Interviews with Jerry Volesky and Shaylee Jones
Smoke rising from the horizon has been a common sight with the increase of wildfires across the Great Plains and the United States. With the right conditions in place, farmers and ranchers are facing a year-round wildfire season. Over 2.5 million acres of land were burned from 55,571 recorded wildfires through the U.S. in 2023 and Nebraska was hit particularly hard.
At the beginning of 2024, Nebraska called for a fire ban in February. This ban was set only weeks before the Betty’s Way fire made its way through central Nebraska and burned over 70,000 acres.
Jerry Volesky, a Nebraska Extension Range and Forest Specialist in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture at the University of Nebraska- Lincoln was one of many points of contact for producers as they began to recover from the fire.
“These grasslands have evolved under periodic fire over hundreds of years, so this is nothing new to them. But for the rancher, the extent of the fire seems pretty catastrophic at first to see all this blackened landscape,” Volesky said.
Among the grasslands that have evolved, lies the Diamond Bar Ranch, where Shaylee Jones, a 2022 Agribusiness graduate from the College of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources, experienced the fire and its impact firsthand.
Producer’s Perspective
Wildfires are detrimental to many aspects of agriculture, including crops, grasslands and livestock. Producers across Nebraska are more impacted by this natural disaster than some may know. For Jones of Diamond Bar Ranch, this topic hits a little too close to home.
The Diamond Bar Ranch is located in the heart of the Nebraska Sandhills and has played a strong role in the cattle industry since 1901.
On February 25, 2024, devastation struck. The Betty’s Way fire ripped through the Diamond Bar Ranch destroying fences, tree line shelter and much-needed hay and forage all within 20 minutes.
“It was such a God thing that we did not lose the livestock. Jones said. The fire literally blew over all our young calves.”
-Shaylee Jones, Diamond Bar Ranch
Steps to Recovery
When any disaster strikes, it can be challenging to know the right first step to recovery is because such considerations can look different for every operation.
Knowing the impact of the disaster on an operation can help producers and farmers gauge where to begin. From a producer standpoint, they may evaluate the loss of fencing, livestock, inventory of hay, and how many acres of pasture land were impacted.
Those who were recently impacted by the fires in central Nebraska lost pasture land, livestock that were in the path of the fire, hay reserves, and fencing damaged by the fire.
“Once those stacks of hay catch on fire, they are near impossible to put out,” Volesky said.
After the natural disaster strikes, those impacted can look to their local Nebraska Extension office for resources. In an effort to inform producers of available resources and practices after a wildfire disaster, the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources West Central Research, Extension and Education Center held an informal meeting to help producers get back on their feet.
During the meeting, industry leaders presented information on federal assistance programs that producers can utilize after the fire. Local businesses also assisted the producers by donating funds and gathering resources to rebuild fences and provide hay.
The Jones family looked at federal programs such as Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Tree Assistance Program (TAP), which will help replant the tree line shelter.
They also looked at the Livestock Forage Disaster Program along with the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP), which will aid in the rebuilding of fencing across the ranch. Farm Rescue, a program designed to help farmers when disasters strike, lined up volunteers who donated hay to the Diamond Bar Ranch.
“I think the saddest thing about the whole fire was losing our tree strips,” Jones said. “We use those shelterbelts for our calves when we are backgrounding. Those two strips will be hard to replace, where fence and hay are more quickly replaceable.”
After identifying resources to help them recover and replace what was lost, producers must find the best way to manage their operations following the disaster.
One of the first suggestions is to delay turnout on the pasture to allow for recovery time. Additionally, it is advised to graze at a lighter stalking rate to further help the pasture recover. The main purpose of this is to allow extra plant growth to become reside to protect the soil surface.
“Depending on the situation, producers may have to look and rent some other pasture in the meantime before they can go back and graze their own,” Volesky said.
Ultimately, the response of the producer following the fire will depend on the effect that the disaster has had on their operation. That said, with the use of local resources and practices, producers are able to recover from a wildfire and learn ways to mitigate future impacts.
For the Future
Diamond Bar Ranch is implementing various practices to help mitigate any future fire disasters. Strategic placement of hay reserves will help guarantee that their inventory is spread out and further decrease the chance of loss if a future disaster occurs.
From experience, the Diamond Bar Ranch will ensure that its fire rig is prepared and operational.
Jones emphasized the critical importance of familiarizing oneself with the terrain, keeping track of livestock whereabouts, and having a well-defined evacuation strategy in place in the event of a fire.
Key Takeaways
- Wildfire season is becoming year-round across Nebraska due to dry conditions.
- The effects of the wildfires impact producers for months to come as next steps are taken to replace what was damaged.
- After a wildfire, producers should give pastures time to recover by not grazing right away.
- Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Tree Assistance Program (TAP), Livestock Forage Disaster Program, Emergency Conservation Program (ECP) and Farm Rescue are resources available for producers impacted by wildfires.
- For more information, visit https://disaster.unl.edu/wildfires.
