MINNESOTA—Pagami Creek remains Minnesota’s largest wildfire in over a century, burning 93,000 acres in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in August 2011. Most of the area burned in just a few days during a wind-driven run of unprecedented speed and extent. A decade later—almost to the day of the Pagami Creek event—many of the lessons forest managers and researchers learned were applied to the nearby Greenwood Fire.

The University of Minnesota hosted its first two-day Pagami Symposium in April, focused on lessons learned from the Pagami Creek and Greenwood fires in northern Minnesota. The two-day symposium featured research specialists on climate change, soil and fire science; past and current fire management officers and decision makers on the Superior National Forest; and Fond du Lac tribal fire managers on the cultural aspects of indigenous fire. They also shared research, management practices and human impacts that arose from the two fire events.

Symposium attendee Sarah Vogl of the Ely Area Tourism Bureau said she “learned how quickly the Pagami Creek Fire grew and about different tools and treatments for managing wildfire and prescribed fire. It’s interesting to learn about the traditional Anishinaabe’s use of fire on the landscape and growing that partnership in a learning way.”

The University of Minnesota Sustainable Forests Education Cooperative led the symposium with Dovetail Partners, Inc., Superior National Forest and the Ely Field Naturalist assisting in planning and presenting at the event. Symposium coordinators wanted to be sure participants left the event knowing how useful fires are to the landscape, including:

• Northern Minnesota fire-adapted forests have been burned regularly by Indigenous peoples and natural events for centuries, creating a symbiotic fire regime that is part of the land. 
• Fire regenerates vegetation and creates critical forage and habitat for moose and other wildlife. 
• Prescribed fires are designed to burn in a mosaic pattern creating different ages and types of vegetation species, increasing forest stand resiliency to climate change, insects and disease, and other threats. 
• Prescribed fire and Firewise tools reduce wildfire risk to communities and critical infrastructure.

Over 100 people participated in day one of the symposium and more than 60 participated in the field portion, touring three areas of the Greenwood Fire:

• Before—treatments that helped control the Greenwood Fire
• During—Firewise principles and quick evacuation contributed to positive outcomes for the seasonal residential community.
• After—Efforts to re-establish trees and rebuild healthy forest ecosystems after the fire. The Pitcha Pines prescribed burn unit significantly slowed progression of the Greenwood Fire, demonstrating how the Pagami Creek Fire shaped the response to Greenwood a decade later.

Both indoor and field presentations allowed for questions from audience members. Telesha Karush, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, said, “[I’m enjoying] learning about the relationship between the forest and the fire regime on the landscape.”

Minnesota North College-Vermilion student Maria Suarez noted, “The symposium is really interesting! It’s great to see how education grows into your career. Never stop learning as your career progresses. I love that about the presenters and attendees, and it inspires me.”

If you’d like to learn more about the symposium, you can listen to recorded presentations.