Q&A
Recommendations for increased training frequency and maintenance of fire-prone areas
0:35:03
ยท
85 sec
Council Member Krishnan recommends increasing the frequency of trainings for both new and experienced staff, especially leading up to summer and fall. He then inquires about the maintenance of areas prone to brush fires.
- Krishnan suggests increasing training frequency for brush fire response
- He asks about maintenance of natural areas prone to brush fires
- Marit Larsen explains that the Natural Resources Group manages 14,000 acres of natural areas
- The Parks Department focuses on fire prevention in locations with vegetation prone to fires
- They work on removing fire-prone vegetation and restoring native ecosystems where possible
Shekar Krishnan
0:35:03
Thank you.
0:35:03
And I hope also, in addition to training new staff, to your point, about, seasonal, trainings too, that, of course, in this I mean, you already may be on you already may be thinking about this as well.
0:35:13
But in the leading up to this summer and the fall, increasing the frequency of the trainings around this issue in particular, both for new and experienced staff, could, I think, be very important as well and something I'd recommend.
0:35:24
Now do, parks department and horticultural staff and park rangers actively maintain the areas, especially natural areas that may be prone to to brush fires?
Marit Larsen
0:35:35
Yes.
0:35:35
Thank you for the question.
0:35:37
In particular, the New York City Parks Natural Resources Group is responsible for management across our 14,000 acres of natural area.
0:35:46
And, we do that, with an eye to fire prevention when and where possible, in locations where there might be vegetation prone to, to fire.
0:36:00
As I mentioned in our my our testimony, areas that have large extensive phragmites or or mugwort or fast growing and spreading grasses that can contribute to to those risks are areas where we try to, develop projects where we can conduct removal of that kind of vegetation and, where possible, restore native ecosystems that are less prone to, to fire and also have other ecological benefits.