JJSWA Meeting & Program

6 pm, Thursday, February 22
Southern Oregon Research & Extension Center (SOREC)
569 Hanley Road, Central Point

You're invited to join us for the February 2024 Jackson Josephine Small Woodlands Association Meeting & Program. Open to all; non-members welcome! This is a great opportunity to meet with your neighbors, make new friends, gain knowledge, and share your experience managing forestland in Southwest Oregon.

Program 
The Rogue Valley Prescribed Burn Association

Controlled burning is the most efficient, economical, and ecological land management tool for our fire dependent landscapes. Whether you're trying to increase wildfire resilience, combat invasive species, or restore the health and vigor of your woodlands, fire is the right tool. The Rogue Valley Prescribed Burn Association (RVPBA) is bringing together our local community of landowners and fire professionals to share the knowledge, equipment, and time needed to put this vital tool back into the landowner's toolbox. Aaron Krikava, the organizer of the RVPBA, will discuss what a PBA is, how it works, and how we can work together to use this important tool on our private woodlots. www.roguevalleypba.com

Aaron Krikava has lived in the Rogue Valley for 19 years working initially as a forestry and fuel reduction contractor before shifting his career to wildland firefighting. He is currently a qualified Engine Boss/Firing Boss and owner/operator of a wildland firefighting company. This work has given him insight into the importance of fire as a land management tool as well as expertise in its safe application. In 2020, he formed the Rogue Valley Prescribed Burn Association, the first PBA in Oregon, bringing people together to accomplish controlled burns on private land for the health and safety of our communities. Aaron is deeply committed to the importance of this work and travels throughout Oregon to help other areas build their own PBAs as well as educate communities through events, workshops, and live fire trainings. In the rare times Aaron's not working with fire in some capacity, you might find him working in his 20-acre woodlot, snowshoeing in the mountains, or hiking through the beautiful landscapes of southern Oregon with his wife, Reanna.

Social hour: 6-7pm
Program: 7-8pm with time for questions
Coffee/tea provided

Please RSVP to OSU Extension at 541-776-7371 or sandy.oneill@oregonstate.edu