Tue, Jul 13, 2010
State Legislature Says Budget Is The Culprit
The North Carolina Division of Forest Resources has been
directed to cut ten aircraft, four pilots, and two mechanics from
its budget. The state legislature says it must also group aircraft
closer together, and terminate leases on some of the hangars it now
occupies.
By doing so, the division will avoid deeper cuts that were
recommended by the state legislature's Program Evaluation
Division.
Currently, the state of North Carolina has firefighting
airplanes and crews dispersed throughout the state ready to respond
to wildfires, but they are reportedly lightly used. 28 of the
state's 38 firefighting aircraft reported flying fewer than 100
hours during FY2008-09.
A report released in April from the PED recommended divesting
the state of 20 those aircraft, and relying more on private
companies, agreements with other states, and the National Guard for
firefighting.
The Wilmington, NC Star News reports that the state has the
second-largest fleet of aircraft dedicated to fighting forest fires
in the country, but stands 9th in the amount of forest land and
16th in the number of acres burned by forest fires in the past 3
years.
The budget prepared by the legislature anticipates sale of the
aircraft will generate $1.5 million for the state coffers, and
cutting the pilots and mechanics would save $470,000 every year.
The division's aviation budget is reportedly $3.46 million.
The division responded to the report by saying that residential
sprawl had placed many more homes at risk from wildfires, and that
the ability to quickly respond to small fires prevented them from
becoming major events ... which also limited the amount of flying
time required.
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