Daily Archives: October 8, 2016

ADOT internships prepare next generation of transportation professionals

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adot-intern-yuri-lechuga-robles_cropPHOENIX — Arizona’s network of highways requires transportation professionals specializing in areas as wide-ranging as planning routes, repairing bridges and creating beautiful landscaping along roadways.

To help ready the next generation of professionals to plan, operate and maintain a safe and efficient transportation system, the Arizona Department of Transportation employs nearly 40 interns whose work touches projects in every corner of the state.

Coming from communities across Arizona, the interns work in fields including engineering, urban planning, construction management, environmental science, landscape architecture and more.

Earlier this year, ADOT partnered with Arizona State University to have meteorology interns provide real-time forecasts to those managing highways. Working out of ADOT’s Traffic Operations Center, these interns have helped crews respond rapidly to storms and other weather challenges.

ADOT recruits interns from high schools and colleges every spring, and interns can work for the agency throughout their college careers and up to six months after graduating. Typically working one day a week, they tackle the same kinds of projects they’ll face after graduating.

Interns benefit from the experience of working with a supervisor plus a designated mentor.

“The interns I talk to love the program,” said Candee Samora, ADOT’s intern project coordinator. “They say they love school but there’s nothing that can replace the hands-on training they’re getting at ADOT.”

One of ADOT’s interns is Yuri Lechuga-Robles (shown in the photo), an Arizona State University landscape architecture student who graduated in May as the 2016 Outstanding Undergraduate Student for the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. Lechuga-Robles’ position in roadside development has allowed him to work on freeway projects in northern Arizona, Tucson and the Phoenix area. One of the lasting impacts of his work with ADOT Roadside Development is helping choose plants to go along roads and the graphic designs on bridges.

“Everyone in Roadside Development has been very helpful,” he said. “They’ve really taken care not to hold back and they’ve put me in situations where I can do things and learn. They’ve had confidence in me.”

Lechuga-Robles received the John E. McGee Intern Scholarship in 2015 from ADOT and the Western Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. He was the first landscape architecture student awarded the scholarship named after McGee, the late ADOT chief financial officer.

“A lot of what I’m doing at school is directly related to the projects I do here,” Lechuga-Robles said. “It’s definitely been enriching to my career in landscape architecture.”

LeRoy Brady, ADOT’s chief landscape architect, said the agency gets just as much out of the experience as its interns do.

“Interns help us meet our project development goals and schedules,” Brady said. “They bring in new ideas and new ways of looking at things.”

For more information on ADOT internships, visit azdot.gov/internships.

Deadline to apply for 2017 spring hunt permit-tags is Tuesday, Oct. 11

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PHOENIX — Time is running out to apply for 2017 hunt permit-tags issued through the draw process for spring turkey, javelina, bison and bear.

To apply online, visit https://draw.azgfd.gov/ and scroll down to “Apply for a Draw.”

The deadline by which the Arizona Game and Fish Department must receive all applications – online or paper – is 11:59 p.m. (MST) Tuesday, Oct. 11. Postmarks do not count. Paper applications can be dropped off at the department’s headquarters in Phoenix or any regional office statewide.

As a reminder, all Game and Fish offices will be closed Monday, Oct. 10, in observance of Columbus Day. Offices will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on deadline day, Tuesday, Oct. 11, but applications still will be accepted until 11:59 p.m.

The “2017 Spring Turkey, Javelina, Bison and Bear Hunt Draw Information” booklet is available online at www.azgfd.gov/draw. Printed booklets are available at all Game and Fish offices and license dealers statewide.

As a reminder, applicants must possess a valid Arizona hunting license to apply online for a hunt permit-tag. That license must be valid on the last day of the application period (Oct. 11). Licenses now are valid for one full year from date of purchase. Licenses are available online, as well as all Game and Fish offices and license dealers statewide.

For more information, visit www.azgfd.gov/draw, or call (602) 942-3000.

Meanwhile, PointGuard is available to applicants who apply online for a hunt permit-tag. PointGuard, the newest benefit for AZGFD Portal customers, ensures that if a successful applicant is unable to participate in a hunt for any reason, the accumulated bonus points that were expended to draw that hunt permit-tag will be reinstated.

All applicants must sign up for a free AZGFD Portal account to purchase PointGuard (visit www.azgfd.gov, click on the “Sign in to Account” button in the upper right-hand corner of the home page, then select the “Create an Account” option). PointGuard is $5 per species, per applicant, purchased at the time of completing the online application, or prior to the application period deadline.

Kaibab National Forest prescribed fire projects to begin south of Williams

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WILLIAMS —Fire managers with the Williams Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest plan to conduct two prescribed fire projects south of Williams beginning Monday, Oct. 10, and continuing through next week.

The first of the two prescribed fire projects to be implemented will be the McCracken East Project, which is located east of County Road 73 near Barney Knoll 6 miles south of Williams. About 839 acres are scheduled to be treated using hand ignition with drip torches over two days. Smoke from the McCracken East Project is likely to be noticeable near Dogtown Lake, Sherwood Forest Estates, Pittman Valley, Parks, and Bellemont. While major smoke impacts are not anticipated in Williams, it is possible that smoke will be visible from the community and from Interstate 40.

If conditions remain favorable following completion of the McCracken East Project, fire managers will move slightly west to treat about 1,693 acres in the McCracken West Project, which is located just west of County Road 73 in the vicinity of Ham Tank and Kunde Knoll 7 miles south of Williams. Smoke impacts from the McCracken West Project are expected to be similar to those of McCracken East. Fire managers plan to use a helicopter to complete aerial ignitions on the burn unit over two days.

Kaibab National Forest fire managers have a number of other prescribed fires planned for fall and winter depending on fuel moistures and weather conditions. Following implementation of the McCracken projects, they will consider other locations on the Williams Ranger District to complete similar fuels reduction efforts. Public notification will be provided prior to the implementation of additional projects.

Fire plays a beneficial role in maintaining the ecological stability of many landscapes, including the Kaibab National Forest. Managers use prescribed fire as a practical means to reduce risks associated with uncharacteristic wildfires that can pose significant threats to public health and safety.

Forest managers recognize that prescribed fires may create negative impacts to air quality at times. However, these efforts, which are essential to restoring forests in a fire-adapted ecosystem, can also significantly reduce the amount and limit the duration of smoke impacts associated with uncontrolled wildfire situations in the future. In order to minimize smoke impacts to businesses and residences during prescribed fires, managers closely monitor wind direction and ventilation and adjust operations accordingly.

In the interest of safety, forest visitors are reminded to obey all traffic signs and use caution when traveling in the vicinity of prescribed fires as firefighters and fire-related traffic will be present.

All prescribed fires on the Kaibab National Forest are subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. For additional information on the Smoke Management Division and to view prescribed burn authorizations for any given day, visit https://www.azdeq.gov/programs/air-quality-programs/smoke-management.

Additional fire information for the Kaibab National Forest can be obtained through the following sources: InciWeb http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4112/#; Kaibab National Forest Fire Information Phone Line (928) 635-8311; Text Massage – text ‘follow kaibabnf’ to 40404.