Safety in Numbers
The Washington State Department of Natural Resources is responsible for wildfire protection on 12.7 million acres of private and state forestland. The WADNR Northwest Region, in keeping with the agency mission and mandate, has embarked on a collaborative wildland-urban interface education campaign with successful results. After using national standards to identify at-risk communities, a multiagency program incorporating the Firewise Communities/USA model has been used to engage community groups.
The Firewise model allows agency interaction with the greatest number of communities at a time. By educating property owners and community groups on loss mitigation strategies in the WUI, fire managers from all agencies can influence positive changes in this very hazardous element of the fireground that, in turn, can create home sites and communities that are more resistant to loss or damage caused by wildland fires.
The department used the WUI fire hazard assessment methodology and risk assessment components from NFPA 1144, Protection of Life and Property from Wildfire, to conduct a systematic wildfire risk assessment of its northwest region. The five-county area assessed is located in the northwest corner of the state, just south of the Canadian border.
First, recent census data were queried to identify potential WUI areas and assessed for risk using a representative sample scored against NFPA 1144 criteria. Hazard levels were identified and subsequently mapped using census polygons, and ranked by hazard level from low to extreme.
A requirement of the Healthy Forests Initiative and the Healthy Forests Restoration Act is to identify at-risk communities and conduct Community Wildfire Protection Planning. Using guidance provided by the National Association of State Foresters, WADNR used its most recent wildfire risk assessment to identify landscapes of similar risk. Members of local fire management agencies assisted with this effort, as did county emergency management departments, fire marshal's offices, and other local, state and federal fire managers. They began with the then-current regional risk assessment and consolidated risk assessment boundaries down to the landscape level. Landscape risks weren't restricted by county borders, so a true landscape was considered. These landscapes were labeled and digitized to create a GIS map layer.
The next step in the project was to use the Inter-Agency Risk Assessment and Mitigation Strategies software to systematically perform landscape level risk assessments, set landscape priorities and plan mitigation strategies. The software allowed assessment of landscapes for similar risk based on fuels hazard, ignition risk, historical fire ignition, fire return interval, values and protection capability.
A critical component of the National Fire Plan, as well as the Healthy Forests Restoration Act, is interagency cooperation. This component also was critical to the success of the Northwest Region's WUI prevention and education program. Generally speaking, in western Washington, where catastrophic wildland fire incidents are not an everyday occurrence, it can be difficult to convince WUI residents that they have a fire problem. Residents have been more receptive to Firewise education when addressed by a multiagency team of fire and education professionals.
In the WADNR Northwest Region, strong interagency relationships were established to facilitate a WUI education and prevention program. Partner agencies were identified based on concurrent agency missions. For example, the mission of the Skagit Conservation District is to provide voluntary, incentive-based options that support working landscapes while protecting and enhancing the natural resource land base. This mission, along with the Skagit Conservation District's experience in community education and outreach, made them an ideal collaborator. Funding and support from the local Skagit County government and Title III funds made it possible for the conservation district to play a vital role in wildfire prevention and education.
County fire marshal's offices and departments of emergency management are examples of other agencies with missions that align with those of the Department of Natural Resources in community wildfire prevention efforts. Partnering with other federal and state fire managers is important as well. Local fire departments are the final keys to a successful community wildfire prevention program.
With a multiagency team, a strong, coordinated message can be delivered to WUI residents. Agencies speaking with one voice can make it very apparent to residents that a fire issue exists. As residents gain an understanding of the issue, they will become more receptive to mitigation strategies.
Once the team is assembled and roles and responsibilities have been decided, work with targeted at-risk communities can begin. (See “Shelter Bay Wildfire Hazard Reduction: A Collaborative Approach,” opposite.)
Sometimes the team will have determined a community is a priority target for outreach efforts. In such cases, the first and most important step is to get the community to recognize that there is an ignition risk and to take ownership of that risk. This often is the most difficult part of the education process, but it is much easier with a multiagency team. In other cases, a community may initiate contact with an agency that is part of the team, seeking guidance in dealing with the community's fire issues. In either circumstance, however, it's crucial to develop a relationship with, and an understanding of, the community to be able to determine how best to move forward.
Initial stages of developing a relationship with a target community require an effort on the agencies' part to understand the characteristics of that community, such as the nature of its governance, lifestyles of its residents and any other aspects that may play a role in responding to a wildfire issue. For example, a community with strong governance may be able to enforce a covenant that requires fire-resistant roofing materials on new construction as part of a Firewise program, while a community with less effectual governance may be able only to suggest such action.
Another important aspect of developing a relationship with a community is to identify those members who have taken leadership roles or have the most interest or concern regarding WUI fire issues. These individuals can be instrumental in the dissemination of information within the community. Having a member of the community take personal responsibility to bring forward the message and draw in other community members opens the door for further outreach opportunities.
An information meeting or workshop can be an effective means of community-wide dissemination of information. Whether the community has solicited an agency for a presentation or the agency has targeted a community for outreach, it's most effective to take the presentation to the audience. If possible, include the presentation as an aspect of some other event that's already scheduled within the community.
Meeting and workshop presentations should be made by a team of experts, including staff from the local fire district, wildfire or forestry experts that have jurisdiction in the area and a county fire marshal or warden. Such a team of experts can give informational presentations of all aspects of wildfire and with a more powerful message than just one person representing one agency. This approach also allows for shared responsibility in communicating information to the community and can bring to bear a wider range of resources. Even though the experts hosting the meeting may be federal or state representatives, the focus of the presentation should be local.
At a minimum, the workshop should address the community fire problem, provide an explanation of what makes homes burn (structural ignitability) and give attendees information on mitigation strategies to be used in the home ignition zone. Materials available at www.firewise.org can be helpful in creating such presentations.
With this basic information, property owners can begin to take action where it's needed: at their homes. If the workshop can convince property owners that they can greatly reduce the ignition potential of their homes, the necessary paradigm shift has begun. And if property owners in the community actually begin to manage their home ignition zones and reduce structural ignitability, the community is well on its way to a better outcome when a wildfire does occur.
One proven way to get a community to respond to a presentation and initiate follow-up contact is to offer free technical assistance. Offering home assessments where a homeowner can receive individual attention and expert advice on a home's ignition risk can generate a positive and successful response. And after a tailored community workshop, an introduction to the Firewise Communities/USA program can provide the process and motivation for a community to take further action.
It's important to communicate to communities that wildfire incidents don't have to be large nor span many days to be catastrophic. Losing just one home in the WUI is a life-changing problem for those involved.
Marc Titus is fire prevention coordinator for the Northwest Region, Washington State Department of Natural Resources.
Jennifer Hinderman is the Firewise program coordinator for the Skagit (Wash.) Conservation District.
Shelter Bay is a community on Fidalgo Island in western Skagit County, Wash. Fidalgo Island was identified by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources as a high-risk area for wildfire due to various physical characteristics of the landscape and the proximity of homes to the wildlands.
In addition to home sites, the Shelter Bay community consists of community beaches, recreational areas, and greenbelt tracts. The greenbelt tracts are of varying acreages and make up approximately 25% of community. They vary in their fuel models and range from grass and dense brush to heavy timber. Enough ladder fuels are present in the greenbelts to cause single-tree and group-tree torching that could result in ember showers on adjacent homes.
The Shelter Bay community has well-established governance that allows the management of community issues through the use of standing committees. The greenbelt committee, for example, deals with such issues as views, pruning, thinning and tree topping. Building and lot committees handle issues involving building and construction covenants, rights, and restrictions. When a FIREWISE committee was approved, it was appropriate that it become an ad hoc committee to provide advice to the other committees in the community.
In acknowledging its potential for WUI fires, the Shelter Bay community contacted the wildfire experts in the region, including the Skagit Conservation District, the WADNR, and the Skagit County Department of Emergency Management and Fire Marshal's Office. Together, these agencies are responsible for promoting the FIREWISE Communities/USA program throughout the region. The stakeholders also included the Shelter Bay community at large, the local fire chief and a Skagit County commissioner.
Once the community made the initial contact, the multiagency team was able to guide the community in its actions. Those actions began with a FIREWISE presentation in conjunction with an already scheduled information session regarding greenbelt cleanup. The purpose of the presentation was to educate the community on the wildfire hazard and emphasize personal responsibility and defensible space for protection of private property. This presentation was developed and directed by SCD and WADNR. Also present were the Skagit County fire marshal, the district fire chief, and one of the Skagit County commissioners.
Each team member had a specific perspective to offer the community as well as specific resources for wildfire safety. The SCD representative was able to effectively communicate the idea of personal responsibility and home-related mitigation strategies. The SCD also took on responsibility for being the direct contact for the community, as well as individual landowners, offering technical assistance and free home assessments. The DNR representative offered his group's expertise in fire behavior and communicated the risk assessment. The fire chief provided perspective on local firefighting resources and current firefighting capabilities. The fire marshal provided regulatory and building code information and discussed outdoor burning regulations. The county commissioner expressed the county's support of the program.
The multiparty approach not only facilitated addressing all aspects of fire safety in a single session, but also allowed the team to offer the community a comprehensive set of resources to help it implement its FIREWISE mitigation measures. Sixty-five community members attended the presentation.
Once the relationships between agency representatives and the community had been established with the initial presentation, the multiagency team was able to assist the community with moving forward, beginning with a community hazard assessment. The assessment addressed the various aspects of wildfire hazards on a community-wide scale. The hazards were analyzed and addressed with a final recommendation of creating an action plan to establish mitigation measures.
From there, the residents who had become active and interested in the FIREWISE process formed an ad hoc FIREWISE Committee of 11 members to follow the action plan through to completion and pursue additional projects and national recognition through the FIREWISE Communities/USA program. Shelter Bay was recognized as a FIREWISE Community/USA for the year 2005, and requirements for 2006 recognition have already been met.
Another project currently under way in Shelter Bay is a FIREWISE demonstration landscape. The community picked one highly visible greenbelt area as the project site. Working with the conservation district and the WADNR, the site was evaluated and a planting design was drafted for a FIREWISE wildlife habitat enhancement. A final plan is being developed that addresses the planting design and plant list and lays out aspects of the project such as proper planting methods, proper pruning techniques and so forth. Once this project is established, the community hopes to use it as an educational tool and to pursue further FIREWISE planting projects within other greenbelt areas.
As ideas like these have been developed, so has the need for additional community organization. With the guidance of the conservation district and the WADNR, the Shelter Bay FIREWISE Committee is currently developing a comprehensive five-year action plan for the community. This action plan will be included as part of the community's comprehensive emergency management plan. Also, as one of the requirements of being a FIREWISE Community, the committee just completed an education event that showcased the demonstration planting area and allowed the community to celebrate its FIREWISE Communities/USA recognition status.
As the Shelter Bay community continues to build upon its initial accomplishments, momentum continues to build as well. The most recent achievement was a covenant change to prohibit the use of cedar shake roofs on all new construction. This represents a major accomplishment and a significant understanding of the wildland fire problem in the community.
