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ABOUT THE SOUTHWEST COORDINATING GROUP (SWCG)

The Southwest Area Coordinating Group (SWCG) is comprised of representatives from each of the five Federal land management agencies and the two State land management agencies located within the States of Arizona and New Mexico.

Each member of the SWCG is delegated authority to act on behalf of their respective agencies for the purposes of planning, priority setting, mobilizing and positioning resources, reallocating resources, and implementing all current agency policies, directions and standards for fire and incident management activities. The focus of SWCG is on fire, incident, fuels and smoke management activities in the Southwest Geographic Area, which includes Arizona, New Mexico, and the lands administered by the signatory agencies west of the 100th Meridian in Texas and Oklahoma.

Other fire management goals specified for the group include:

  • Providing a cooperative interagency forum seeking consistency in fire and incident management within the Southwest Area.  This includes an emphasis on safety, efficiency and effectiveness.
  • Understanding and implementing interagency policy, direction, and coordination to the Zone Management Groups and to the Southwest Coordination Center (SWCC) for fire and incident management activities.

Specific fire management activities of SWCG include:

  1. Functioning as necessary as the Multi-Agency Coordination (MAC) Group.
  2. Coordinating and managing the Southwest interagency Incident Management Teams.
  3. Implementing regular revisions of the Southwest Area Mobilization Guide, the SWCG Handbook, the SWCC Operations Guide, the Southwest MAC handbook, the Southwest Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT) Operations Guide, and the Southwest Type 2 Crew Guidelines.
  4. Maintaining an information system of fire intelligence and predictive services sharing.
  5. Developing and training fire and incident management skills in agency personnel.

SWCG Memorandum of Understand


SWCG MEMBERS
AGENCY MEMBER AGENCY MEMBER
Arizona State Forestry Logo John Truett
Arizona Dept of Forestry and Fire Management
1110 W. Washington Street, Suite 100
Phoenix, AZ  85007
Bureau of Indian Affairs Logo Johnson Benallie
Navajo Region
P. O. Box 1060
Gallup, NM 87301
       
New Mexico State Logo Vernon Muller 
New Mexico State Forestry 
P.O. Box 1948 
Santa Fe, NM  87504
Bureau of Indian Affairs Logo John Cervantes
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Southwest Regional Office
P. O. Box 26567
Albuquerque, NM  87125
       
Bureau of Land Management Logo Mike Spilde
Vice Chair (2023 - 2025)
Bureau of Land Management
Arizona State Office
1 North Central Ave
Phoenix, AZ  85004-2203
Bureau of Indian Affairs Logo Carlos Nosie
Bureau of Indian Affairs
Western Regional Office
Div. of Forestry, MS-440
P. O. Box 10
Phoenix, AZ  85001
       
Bureau of Land Management Logo Craig Goodell
Bureau of Land Management
New Mexico State Office
301 Dinosaur Trail
Santa Fe, NM  87508
U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service Logo Thad Herzberger
U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service
Southwestern Regional Office
500 Gold Avenue, SW
Albuquerque, NM 87103
     
National Park Service Logo Jeff Hickerson
Chair (2023 - 2025)
National Park Service
Intermountain Regional Office - Santa Fe
P. O. Box 728
Santa Fe, NM 87504
U. S. Forest Service Logo Jake Nuttall
U. S. Forest Service
Southwestern Regional Office
333 Broadway Blvd SE
Albuquerque, NM  87102

Southwest Coordination Center Logo Kenan Jaycox
Southwest Coordination Center
333 Broadway Blvd SE
Albuquerque, NM  87102
(Non-Voting)
   
PAST SWCG CHAIRS
CHAIR AGENCY TIME
Kelly Castillo BLM-AZ 10/2023 - 06/2024
Jake Nuttall USFS 10/2021 - 09/2023
John Tuett AZS 10/2019 - 09/2021
Dale Glenmore BIA-NAA 10/2017 - 09/2019
Loren DeRosear USFWS 11/2015 - 10/2017
Cal Pino BIA-SWA 11/2013 - 10/2015
Carl Gossard BLM-NM 12/2012 - 11/2013
Leon Ben, Jr BIA-WEA 10/2010 - 11/2012
Donald Griego NMS 12/2008 - 09/2010
Bob Lineback NPS 12/2006 - 11/2008
Pam McAlpin BLM-AZ 01/2005 - 11/2006
Bill Waterbury USFS 10/2003 - 01/2005
Kirk Rowdabaugh AZS 10/2001 - 10/2003
Bob Lee BLM-NM 10/1999 - 10/2001
Frank Smith NMS 10/1997 - 10/1999
Cliff Chetwin NPS 10/1995 - 10/1997
Walt Sixkiller BIA 10/1993 - 10/1995