BIA Forestry & Wildland Fire Management - Pacific Region

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"It's a reminder to the greater world that we are amongst you every single day. We've always been here." - Chairman Jesus Tarango, Wilton Rancheria

Celebrating the naming of Miwok Middle school, formerly Sutter Middle School, a new mural was unveiled last week depicting Miwok and Nisenan life and culture. Painted by Indigenous youth with professional graffiti artists, the 100-foot-wide mural covers the former mascot, the Miners. Thank you to the Native Dads Network, Hope Through Art, Sacramento City Unified School District, and all the parents and students who are fighting to educate us all about our history.

See new Indigenous-themed mural at Sacramento’s recently renamed Miwok Middle School 14 Native teens joined with a group led by artist Shane Grammer on the gigantic project

Tule River Tribe's wildland firefighters stand proudly with their Fire Management Officer Zane Santos (second from left) in front of their new fire station being constructed. BIA Pacific Region Southern Zone Fire Prevention Specialist Kevin Small (bottom right) helped the crew install a new Fire Danger Rating sign provided by BIA, along the main road in and out of Tule River Tribe of CA's lands. Morale is Very High.

Photo by S. Santos, BIA Pacific Region

A big thank you for the often-unseen diligence of Indigenous public servants and partners, who have persisted and fought to transform this bureau from what it was into a true means for tribal revitalization, self-determination, and Indigenous representation in government.

Seven generations later, we've come a long way, and there is still much to be done.

today! In celebration, we have a new landing page, https://www.bia.gov/bia to help users find popular resources, such as a listing of Federally Recognized Tribes, maps of reservations and lands in trust, tribal membership requirements, and open data resources. You can also learn about our exciting career opportunities across Turtle Island.

As we embark on a new era of Indian policy, we are proud to join U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Indian Affairs to lift tribal voices and support our communities in the work to make Indian Country a more robust, safer, and prosperous place for all!

A monument to Miwok cultural leader William Franklin Sr. was unveiled today, the first statue of a Native American at the state capital. Mr. Franklin fought to preserve vital traditional dances, even when they had been banned, to prevent them from being erased.

Thank you to the Franklin family members who shared their stories today. Thank you to Assemblymember Ramos, the first Native American state legislator, for introducing the bill. Thank you to the Miwok nations of this area -- Wilton, Shingle Springs, Chicken Ranch, Ione, Tuolumne, and Buena Vista -- and their ancestors who persisted and were there today.

Native American statue unveiled at former site of Junipero Serra at California Capitol “What this statue is replacing, the pain and suffering under Serra, it’s a huge blessing.”

As the fire season begins to calm down a bit, we will be posting highlights from the past year for BIA Fire, Pacific Region. So stay tuned!

Congratulations to the tribal fire departments and DOI partners who completed our 2023 BIA Pacific Region Fire Engine Operator Course this spring. Hosted at the Sycuan Reservation, participants included Tule River Fire, Yurok Fire, Karuk Fire, Hoopa Fire, Chumash Fire, La Jolla Fire, and Mojave NP Fire.

Thank you to our Cadre Leader Brandon Davis (BLM), Taylor Kelliher and Carlos Vasquez (Sycuan Golden Eagles Hotshots), Gilbert Romero, Quintan Garcia, Frank Rodriguez, and Nelson Palato (Santa Ynez Chumash Fire), Fermin Sanchez (Yurok Fire), Skyler Cruz (Mojave NP), Mitch Silvester (BLM Desert District).

Special thanks to Michael Black, Garth Fisher, Brent Higbee, and Tanner Basil out of NIFC, and Joseph Lords (BIA NM-SPA) Brian McAffrey (BIA OK-MIA), and Lloyd Irvine (BIA MT) from the Model 52 program for assistance.

Photos courtesy of instructors Ray Ruiz (BIA SCA FMO) and Greg Perry (BIA PRO Fuels).

BIA Pacific Regional Office is currently planning a second ENOP course for Spring 2024, hosted by Blue Lake Rancheria. Please contact us for more information.

This week, for the first time in history the California State Capitol dome was lit up red to bring attention to the national Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons Week. Over 800 people gathered to answer the call of organizer Assemblymember James Ramos, the first and only Native American state legislator in the state with the highest population of Native Americans in the country.

Tribal chairpersons and councilmembers traveled from across the state to speak on behalf of their nations, represented by each tribe's flags, on the steps of the Capitol. Speakers were followed by traditional dancers and singers, and a candlelight vigil.

BIA Pacific Region's own Tribal Government Specialist, Viola Brooks - Hupa, Karuk, Yurok, and enrolled in the Hoopa Valley Tribe - danced on the steps of the Capitol with her family to bring attention to their missing cousin Emmilee Risling and other missing relatives.

Apply through the link at the bottom. And please share widely!

This season, did a fireline EMS provider really make a difference for you or your crew? Did an entire crew stand out in your mind on handling an IWI? Is there somone who you feel deserves recognition for a career-long devotion to fireline medical service?

Send a little appreciation their way by nominating them for a NWCG Wildfire Emergency Medical Service Award! Check the link below for all the categories for nominations. Thank you to all the fireline emergency medical personnel and wildland crewmates who carry that extra kit and always have our backs out there.

Are you searching for a holiday gift for an excellent emergency medical service provider in wildland fire? Nominate them for an NWCG Wildfire Emergency Medical Service Award!

Submissions are due by December 31. https://www.nwcg.gov/committees/emergency-medical-committee/wems-award-nomination

📷 Andy Lyon, USFS

Congrats to the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe's Alabama-Coushatta Wildland Fire Management on their recent award for bringing more good fire back to their lands, restoring longleaf pine in Texas. Longleaf pine today covers only 5% of its historical acreage, due to excessive fire suppression and logging since European expansion.

The tribe's fire team is also expanding their restoration work to neighboring lands outside their current land ownership using the BIA-funded RTRL program (Reserve Treaty Rights Lands). For more information on RTRL funding for restoration projects, please reach out to your local BIA Fuels/RTRL Specialist!

How One Tribe is Restoring the Fire-dependent Longleaf Pine This Native American Heritage Month, we’re highlighting stories of Indigenous fire practices. The Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas has a deep cultural connection to the longleaf pine. It has vanished from many areas. The Tribe is striving to preserve this fire-dependent species and recently receiv...

Good people bringing back more good fire! Thank you for leading the way.

California needs to burn. These Native American women want to help lead the way. Decades of fire suppression, logging and climate change have resulted in catastrophic wildfires in California. A group of Indigenous women from the Karuk tribe in Northern California are bringing back a centuries-old practice of prescribed burning in order to help manage a landscape that’s been pu...