Smokey Bear to visit Delaware schools in October
Department of Agriculture | Forest Service | Date Posted: Friday, September 30, 2016
Smokey Bear will be back in Delaware schools starting this October, visiting first-graders throughout the First State to remind children that “only you can prevent wildfires.” The second week of October is National Fire Prevention Week, observed annually in commemoration of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.
Smokey Bear has become one of the Delaware Forest Service’s most successful educational programs. In the past two years, the DFS provided an average of 90 Smokey Bear fire education programs to about 8,250 students per year — representing almost 75% of the first-graders in the entire state.
Created in 1944, the Smokey Bear Wildfire Prevention campaign is the longest-running public service advertising campaign in U.S. history.
6th Annual Delaware Arborist & Tree Care Seminar will be held on Nov. 2 and 3 at Delaware State University
Department of Agriculture | Forest Service | Date Posted: Thursday, September 29, 2016
The 6th Annual Delaware Arborist and Tree Care Seminar will be November 2 and 3, 2016 from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Delaware State University, 1200 N. DuPont Highway, Dover. Sponsored by the Delaware Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program, the seminar includes classroom lectures, hands-on training, and vendor exhibits offering the latest knowledge and best management practices on tree care, health, and tree worker safety.
Continuing education credits for International Society of Arboriculture certification, Tree Care Industry Association and its Certified Tree Care Professional program, Delaware pesticide licensing, and Maryland Licensed Tree Expert certification will be offered. Major sponsors for the 2016 event include Delaware State University, Delmarva Power and Rainbow Scientific.
Cost is $95 with lunch included both days.
Delaware wildfire crew returns to First State
Department of Agriculture | Forest Service | Kent County | New Castle County | Sussex County | Date Posted: Saturday, September 10, 2016
After two weeks of battling wildfires in the rugged terrain of Idaho, a Delaware wildfire crew is returning to Blackbird State Forest on September 11 at approximately 8 a.m.
The team was dispatched by the Delaware Forest Service on August 25 at a time when the National Fire Preparedness Level was 4 on a 5-point scale. Over the past 14 days, the team battled the 52,972-acre Henry’s Creek Fire near Idaho Falls and the 1260-acre Grape Creek Fire, located 6 miles southwest of Elba, Idaho.
Delaware sends wildfire crew to Great Basin region
Department of Agriculture | Forest Service | Date Posted: Thursday, August 25, 2016
Delaware is sending its second wildfire crew of the summer to the Great Basin region. Responding to a spike in wildfire activity in the West that has increased the National Fire Preparedness Level to 4 on a 5-point scale, Delaware has joined forces with neighboring Mid-Atlantic states (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio) to dispatch five crews, a total of 100 firefighters, to battle fires in the Great Basin. The crews departed Harrisburg, PA for Salt Lake City on August 25. Delaware is now assigned to the Henry’s Creek Fire near Idaho Falls, Idaho.
Ash tree-killing insect confirmed in Delaware
Department of Agriculture | Forest Service | Date Posted: Tuesday, August 23, 2016
A destructive, invasive beetle that kills ash trees, the emerald ash borer (EAB), has been confirmed in Delaware, making it the 28th state to have found the insect. The statewide impact is expected to be minimal, as ash trees make up only around two percent of Delaware’s tree stock and the state has been preparing for more than a decade. State forestry and plant health officials are providing advice to homeowners, municipalities and civic groups at de.gov/ashtrees.
