Staff
We provide fire management and planning services that help private and public landowners protect communities and sustain and restore ecosystems. We base our guidelines on the best available science, we strive for synergistic solutions for achieving ecosystem and community sustainability, and we facilitate knowledge-based collaborative and adaptive management processes.
Elizabeth is one of the original founders of Wildland Fire Associates and is currently the Chief Operating Officer. She had a 15-year career with the US Forest Service and National Park Service . Elizabeth started her federal career working on a helitack crew and in natural resources management. She completed a masters thesis at Dinosaur National Monument examining the effects of elevation and aspect on life fuel moisture content of Wyoming big sagebrush as it pertains to prescribed fire and wildland ...More info
During his career, Fred has spent 31 years on the “fire line.” Beginning as a helitack crewman and then helitack foreman, Fred supervised primary initial attack firefighters on hundreds of wildfires. He also learned to use aerial ignition, applying fire on a landscape scale to accomplish resource benefits. These experiences, combined with a degree in wildlife biology, enabled Fred to advance to fire/aviation management positions at local and regional levels. In addition to serving ...More info
Carrie worked for 14 years in both resource management and fire management for the National Park Service. She began her career at Grand Canyon National Park as a Biological Science Technician and moved to Fire Ecologist and then to Fire Management Officer of Chiricahua National Monument/Fort Bowie National Historic Site. With a B.A. in English Literature and M.S. in Natural Resources/Fire Ecology, she is well-equipped to use her writing skills ...More info
Mr. Douhan had 30 years of experience as a career employee with the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He served as a Regional Fire Management Officer for the NPS and as the Regional Prescribed Fire Specialist for the USFWS. He recently completed a contract that called for the review and revision of forty Fire Management Plans for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to insure compliance with current wildland fire policy and guidelines, NEPA, and Section 7 requirements. Carl ...More info
Bill worked for the federal government for 33 years in wildfire management. Starting out on hot shot crews in southern California, he worked on engines, in fire prevention, prescribed fire, and moved into management positions in Indiana and South Dakota, becoming an Area Fire Management Officer for seven national parks in three states. Bill has served on fire use management teams, Type 1 and Type 2 Incident Management Teams, and on a Type ...More info
Brooks has 43 fire seasons of fire experience, and over 20 years experience on Type 1 and 2 Incident Management Teams in operations, planning, safety and fire behavior and is currently on a Type 1 incident management team. He has over 30 years of fuels experience on three national forests as a Fuel Specialist and Division Chief. As a consultant, Brooks recently completed Fuels Specialist input for a contract EIS within a Late Successional Reserve (LSR) that included a Fire Shed Assessment, ...More info
Rod spent the bulk of his career in the US Forest Service in two different Regions and three National Forests. Emphasizing the planning and application of prescribed fire as an addition to wildland fire suppression duties, Rod created a reputation for building successful fuels treatment programs that provided fire protection for wildland and its’ adjacent communities. Before retirement from the Forest Service as the Forest Fire Management Officer on ...More info
Research Forest Ecologist (Emeritus), USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fort Collins, Colorado. Until retirement early in 2006, Merrill was the Rocky Mountain Research Station’s team leader for ecosystem management research in the Colorado Front Range. He remains active as a consultant and contract scientist in the research, fire, and land management communities. He is the senior author of “An Ecological Basis for Ecosystem ...More info
Art’s wildland fire management career began as a seasonal GS-2 BLM engine crewman. Nearly thirty three years later he retired as FWS National Fire Plan Coordinator. Intense Alaska fire seasons and the associated unique opportunities provided broad suppression and mid-level team experience in command, line, air operations, planning, and logistics. Early in his career he gained a diversity of incident experience in command, line, air operations, planning, and logistics; through a mentoring ...More info
John is our lead instructor for many of the classes that Wildland Fire Associates offers. Armed with a degree in Forest Management, John has over 29 years experience in fire and resources management and in training. He has had 22 years experience as supervisor of training and budget/fiscal programming. His expertise is also in wilderness management, exotic species control and cultural aspects of resources management. Just some of John’s classes include Wildland Fire Behavior Calculations, ...More info
Esther complements Wildland Fire Associates experience with technology. As a GIS Specialist with a Fire Ecology background, Esther bridges the technological gap. Esther started her career working for California State Parks in the Lake Tahoe Basin. As a park aid, she trained and performed as a fire behavior and weather specialist as well as a fire effects monitor. This experience provided the background she needed to move further and eventually take the position of Prescribed Fire Manager for the ...More info
Retired from the US Forest Service as a District Fire Management Officer in California, Dave has extensive experience with NEPA planning, Forest and Fuels Management specializing in landscape level prescribed fire, Large Fire Management including Wildland Fire Use, Prescribed Fire and Wildland Fire training cadres through the 400 level.His 36 year career with the Forest Service included not only engines, helitack, and hot shots; but also 23 years serving on ID teams for a variety of Forest ...More info
During his career, Rich worked 32 years in fire management and forestry. Outfitted with a degree in Forest Management, he started his career as a seasonal employee with the Forest Service as a forestry technician and member of the Helena Interagency Hotshot Crew, then moved on to permanent positions with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) as a Fire Management Officer, at three different field locations. The last 12 years of his career Rich worked ...More info
With over 39 years in the field of wildland fire management, Dan brings a deep “above the situation” perspective on forest fire suppression and planning. Beginning as a firefighter and smokejumper, Dan soon became a hotshot crew supervisor. This solid foundation provided him the springboard to become a fire and aviation management officer for six national parks and regions. Dan has two degrees: one in Wildlife Management and another in Education. He has also done graduate work ...More info
Phil has over 35 years of experience in wildland fire management with the USFS, BLM and NPS. He began his career with 10 seasons of dirt time on helitack and hotshot crews, and as a smokejumper. Phil has extensive experience in fire behavior, prescribed fire and fuels management, aviation, fire suppression, fire planning and interagency coordination. He has served on Incident Management Team’s since 1982, mainly in operations and fire behavior. He continues to serve as an OSC1 on a Northern ...More info
Steve directed natural resource management and natural science research programs at Dinosaur National Monument from 1973 into 2002. Major activities included endangered species recovery programs, environmental compliance, research administration, fire and resource management planning, wildland fire use, prescribed burning, and fire effects studies. Steve participated in development and revision of agency and interagency national policy and guidelines for fire and resource management. He also participated ...More info
Fuels/Fire Behavior Expert. Darrell has over 30 years of experience as a wildland fire and fuels manager with the USDA Forest Service and as a private consultant. He has current qualifications as a Fire Behavior Analyst and Long-term Fire Behavior Analyst; and is an instructor of fire behavior, fire weather, fire planning, and fire analysis courses. Darrell has extensive experience with many fuel types ...More info