Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples Convenes Wildfire Prevention Task Force

Texas’ agriculture commissioner has begun the first meeting of a group intending to keep wildfires down in the Lone Star State.

On Wednesday, Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples convened the inaugural meeting of the Texas Wildfire Prevention Task Force, in an effort to maximize wildfire mitigation strategies across the state.

The task force will complement new web applications created by the Texas Forest Service and the Texas A&M University System to help homeowners and communities determine wildfire risk, and then take measures to reduce the hazards.

“With a state as vast in size and as diverse in environment as Texas, we must be strategic in our wildfire mitigation efforts,” said Staples. “As Texas prepares for another potentially active wildfire season, it is important to ensure first responders, local and state officials, and landowners are aligned in both fire mitigation and response efforts.”

Texas Forest Service Director Tom Boggus weighed in, saying “I’ve said it before, ‘If all hell’s going to break loose – I want to be in Texas! Why? Because the fire service in this state stands together and we work hard on interagency coordination.”

The Texas Forest Service and local fire departments responded to more than 30,000 individual fires burning nearly 4 million acres in Texas.