Skip to main content

Case Studies: Prescribed Fire and Red Pine

Prescribed Fire for Forest Management Series

Case Studies: Prescribed Fire and Red Pine

Aug. 7, 2024

Jed Meunier explored how frequent low to moderate intensity fires shaped mixed conifer forests in ways we never realized. Discover ways to design silvicultural treatments that can increase forest resilience by examining these historic fire-dependent ecosystems. ​

Kyle Gill presented on the collaborative ecocultural fire restoration and relationship building work on Nagaajiwanaang and the U of MN Cloquet Forestry Center. Fire history research, led by Evan Larson in 2016 and informed by indigenous knowledge holders and 200+ year-old red pine storykeepers, made it clear that the pre-settlement surface fire regime was abundant, human led, and required cross-cultural collaboration for restoration. The CFC restoration planning took shape in 2019 and commenced on-the-ground in 2022 across 75 acres. General objectives include putting land acknowledgement into action, relationship building between human communities, humans, and the Land, and restoring fire as a community member in fire-dependent ecological communities with red pine canopies. Specific objectives vary from unit to unit depending on the age of the red pine and the structure and composition of the community. Kyle approaches land stewardship from training in forestry and disturbance ecology and was the CFC forest manager from 2015 until early this year. In April 2024, Kyle took on the role of Director of Operations & Forest Stewardship for CFC and HWRC.

Watch the Recorded Webinar

PRESENTERS

Jed Meunier, Ph.D.

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources – Division of Forestry

Jed Meunier is an ecologist and research scientist within the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Division of Forestry. His work relates to the conservation and sustainable management of natural resources. Jed has expertise in disturbance ecology which translates well into management issues whether that is the harvest of wildlife or timber, understanding natural disturbance like fire, or the use of fire to meet particular management objectives. His dissertation research was on fire ecology in northern Mexico investigating spatial and temporal aspects of fire in relation to climate and land-use over several centuries. Jed received his M.S. in the wildlife ecology department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, studying the effects of hunting on declining American woodcock populations. Jed considers himself lucky to spend his time asking questions and through applied research to assist in the management of Wisconsin’s many treasures.

Kyle Gill

Director of Operations & Forest Stewardship, Cloquet Forest Center & Hubachek Wilderness Research Center, University of Minnesota

Kyle has been the Director of Operations & Forest Stewardship for the Cloquet Forestry Center (CFC) and the Hubachek Wilderness Research Center (HWRC) since April of 2024. Prior to this role, Kyle was the Forest Manager and Research Coordinator for the UMN Experimental Forests properties found at CFC and HWRC since 2015. In his role as Director, he seeks to ensure that the facilities and land found at CFC and HWRC can be places of applied education, research, stewardship, and community involvement. The philosophies that help to guide his leadership and stewardship include: (1) Acknowledging Indigenous sovereignty; (2) Respecting the agency of the Land and approaching land stewardship with humility; (3) Trusting that the only thing that endures is change; (4) Utilizing the Landscape Triad conceptual framework for balancing multiple objectives; and (5) Employing forest treatment techniques that mimic evolutionary-scale forest development patterns to promote the capacity for resilience and adaptation to changes in climate and other forms of abiotic and biotic uncertainty. He earned his M.S. (2014) in Natural Resources Science and Management and B.S. (2007) in Environment and Natural Resources from the University of Minnesota. For his M.S. thesis, he investigated forest development, dynamics, and relationship to climate of jack pine-dominated forests (FDc12, FDc23, and FDc24) in Minnesota’s central floristic region. In his free time, he enjoys many outdoor recreational activities, including cross-country skiing, mountain biking, wilderness exploration, and philosophizing about life’s great and simple questions.

MODERATOR

Eli Anoszko, Ph.D.

Vallier Treehaven Ecologist, College of Natural Resources, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point

Eli Anoszko is the Vallier Treehaven Resident Ecologist at UWSP’s Treehaven field station in Tomahawk, WI where he teaches courses in plant identification and serves as land manager for the 1,200-acre field station. Eli earned a Ph.D. in Natural Resource Science and Management at the University of Minnesota where he studied the effects on the Ham and Cavity Lake Fires on the near boreal forests of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Eli has also worked as a forester and wildland firefighter for the Minnesota DNR and spent several seasons as a research technician with the U.S. Forest Service in the Sierra Nevada of California working on a variety of fire ecology research projects. His current research seeks to better understand the dynamics of fire in mixed pine forests of the Lake States.

Additional Resources

Continuing Education

This webinar has been pre-approved for the following:

If you are watching the recorded session and need continuing education credit, you must be registered for the series AND verify you watched the recorded session​. 

Certificates of completion are available by emailing wfc@uwsp.edu. Certificates will be emailed to you within 7-10 business days.

Verify you watched the recorded session

Resources

Building Forest Resilience: The Northern Pine Management Initiative by Dr. Jed Meunier

Dr. Meunier explores how frequent low to moderate intensity fires shaped mixed conifer forests in ways we never realized. Discover ways to design silvicultural treatments that can increase forest resilience by examining these historic fire-dependent ecosystems. ​

Relationship Development through Ecocultural Fire Research and Restoration by Kyle Gill

Kyle Gill presents on the collaborative ecocultural fire restoration and relationship building work on Nagaajiwanaang and the U of MN Cloquet Forestry Center. Fire history research, led by Evan Larson in 2016 and informed by indigenous knowledge holders and 200+ year-old red pine storykeepers, made it clear that the pre-settlement surface fire regime was abundant, human led, and required cross-cultural collaboration for restoration. The CFC restoration planning took shape in 2019 and commenced on-the-ground in 2022 across 75 acres. General objectives include putting land acknowledgement into action, relationship building between human communities, humans, and the Land, and restoring fire as a community member in fire-dependent ecological communities with red pine canopies. Specific objectives vary from unit to unit depending on the age of the red pine and the structure and composition of the community. Kyle approaches land stewardship from training in forestry and disturbance ecology.

CFC Programmatic Rx Burn Plan

Otter Creek Burn Unit Case Study

Camp 8 story map 

Oshkigin – Spirit of Fire: full 16-min film, 1-min preview

Blending tree-ring record and indigenous memory… Johnson et al. 2022

Ojibwe fire [Stewards] restore fire to the Cloquet Forestry Center

Great Lakes Silviculture Library

Evaluation

The Wisconsin Forestry Center and the webinar presenters appreciate you taking the time to share your feedback. Please evaluate Case Studies: Prescribed Fire and Red Pine.

Evaluate the Webinar

WEBINAR SPONSORS