u.s. forest service wui report

ABSTRACTStein, S.M.; Menakis, J.; Carr, M.A.; Comas, S.J.; Stewart,

S.I.; Cleveland, H.; Bramwell, L.; Radelo!, V.C. 2013. Wild!re, wildlands, and people: understanding and preparing for wild!re in the wildland-urban interface—a Forests on the Edge report. Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-GTR-299. Fort Collins, CO. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 36"p.

Fire has historically played a fundamental ecological role in many of America’s wildland areas. However, the rising number of homes in the wildland-urban interface (WUI), associated impacts on lives and property from wild#re, and escalating costs of wild#re management have led to an urgent need for communities to become “#re-adapted.” We present maps of the conterminous United States that illustrate historical natural #re regimes, the wildland-urban interface, and the number and location of structures burned since 1999. We outline a sampler of actions, programs, and community planning and development options to help decrease the risks of and damages from wild#re.

Key Words: wild#re, community planning, #re-adapted, wildland-urban interface, defensible space

AUTHORSSusan M. Stein is a private forest-land studies coordinator and Sara J. Comas is a natural resource specialist, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Cooperative Forestry Sta!, Washington, DC; James P. Menakis is a national #re ecologist, U.S. Forest Service, Washington O$ce-Fire and Aviation Management, Missoula, MT; Mary A. Carr is a technical publications editor, U.S. Forest Service, Publishing Arts, Olympia, WA; Susan I. Stewart is a research social scientist, U.S. Forest Service, Northern Research Station, Evanston, IL; Helene Cleveland is the #re prevention program manager, U.S. Forest Service, Fire and Aviation Management, Washington, DC; Lincoln Bramwell is the chief historian, U.S. Forest Service, Washington DC; Volker C. Radelo" is a professor, University of Wisconsin, Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Madison, WI.

Robert Gauthier ©2012

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USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-‐GTR-‐299. 1

INTRODUCTION

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2 For the cited study, “housing units” were de#ned as homes, apartment buildings, and other human dwellings.

3 Of course, vegetation outside of wildland areas can also burn.

1 %e range of ecological processes and conditions that characterized various ecosystems in the United States prior to European settlement, referred to as “historical range of variability (HRV),” has been a subject of much research (Keane and others 2009). HRV is used by scientists and managers as a reference point to assess current conditions. For #re, HRV refers to the #re regimes that existed prior to European settlement.

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2 USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-‐GTR-‐299.

WILDFIRE—A FUNDAMENTAL, COMPLEX, AND COSTLY FORCE

The Ecological Role of Wildfire

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Key TermsWildlands

Forests on the Edge

4 “Adapted” in this sense means an ability to adjust to the intensity or quality of a disturbance; qualities that make an organism or its parts #t for existence under the conditions of its environment (Merriam-Webster 2011).


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5 %e information displayed in Table 1 and Figure 1 is derived from an analysis (USDA Forest Service 2012) based on the following data sources: Fire Regime Group and Mean Fire Return Interval data come from LANDFIRE Refresh 2001 v1.0.5 (http://www.land#re.org). Developed and agricultural lands data come from LANDFIRE Refresh 2008 v.1.1.0 Existing Vegetation Type. State boundaries are from publicly available 1:2,000,000-scale polygon spatial data of U.S. States. All spatial data were converted to rasters with 270-meter (~82-feet) resolution for this summary.

6 It is important to note that some U.S. wildlands no longer experience these #re regimes, owing to #re suppression, invasive species, and other factors. Ke

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Historical Natural Fire RegimesLANDFIRE version 1.0.5 (Completed 2011)

µ0 200 400 600 800100

Miles

Legend

FRG I: 0-35 year frequency, low-mixed severityFRG II: 0-35 year frequency, replacement severityFRG III: 35-200 year frequency, low-mixed severityFRG IV: 35-200 year frequency, replacement severityFRG V: 200+ year frequency, any severityNon-burnable wildlands (barren, sparsely vegetated, snow, ice)

Agricultural LandsDeveloped Lands

Fire Regime Groups:

WaterMap compiled 11/22/2011, GKD. Sources: FRG from LANDFIRE v1.0.5 (Refresh 2001), Agricultural and Developed Lands from LANDFIRE v1.1.0 (Refresh 2008) Existing Vegetation Type layer.

Historical Fire Regimes: What’s ‘Natural’ for Wildfire?

frequencies

severity

USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. RMRS-‐GTR-‐299.

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7 Whether or when recovery occurs depends upon site conditions, #re severity, and species involved.

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Complicating Factors: Climate Change, Insect Pests, and Diseases

Climate Change

Insect Pests and Diseases

8 Earlier winter/spring snowmelt reduces stream&ow during the summer and autumn, thus increasing vulnerability to wild#re damage.

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Societal Costs of Wildfire

9 Recent analyses indicate that #re suppression expenditures by the U.S. Forest Service are greatly in&uenced by the presence of private lands (Liang and others 2008) and that per-acre suppression costs are greater in areas with higher total housing values (Gebert and others 2007).

10 Figures are based on data provided by #re departments and State #re authorities who participated in the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) and the annual NFPA #re experience survey. Fires in forests, woodlands, or other wildlands accounted for about 10 percent of all #res to which local #re departments responded (estimated average of 356,800 brush, grass, and forest #res per year) during 2004–2008.

11 %e need for restoration a'er a wild#re varies considerably, depending upon the location and intensity of a #re. In some areas, such as remote areas, restoration may not be warranted.

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Over Time: Changes in U.S. Wildland Fire Management Policy

How Much Money Does a Wildfire Cost?

Colorado’s 2002 Hayman Fire, 138,000 acres

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thousand

burned areas.

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WHERE WILDLANDS, HOUSING, AND FIRE CONVERGE

The Wildland-Urban Interface

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A National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy

include:

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12 Public lands are excluded from census blocks before housing and vegetation are assessed, to ensure that WUI classi#cation captures even small human communities surrounded by public lands.

13 We used the same methods as described in the Radelo! and others 2005 publication to produce Figure 2, but we updated the analysis based on the 2010 census data.

14 %e remaining nine-tenths of land area occupied by housing, and two-thirds of housing units, are located in areas that are urban, or are too sparsely populated to be identi#ed as WUI.

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urban interface.


interface

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WUI Facts and Figures

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Variations in Wildfire Risk Across the Wildland-Urban Interface

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High ModerateLow

Low

Moderate

High

Based on: Haas JR, Thompson MP, Calkin DE & Finney MA. In review. Integrating wildfire simulation modeling into WUI risk assessment.

Wildfire Risk to Populated Places

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Population Density

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Probability of a Large Wildfire Exposure to Populated AreasPopulation Density Wildfire Risk to Population Density

High ModerateLow

Population Density

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MajorCityRoads

Background: Color Satellite Imagery

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Structures Already Lost to Wildfire15 %e data were collected by the Geographic Area Coordination

Centers (GACC), an interagency group of Federal and State land management agencies created for the purpose of management and mobilization of resources to respond to emergency incidents such as wild#res, earthquakes, &oods, hurricanes, and tornadoes (

). Data on structures burned and on latitude and longitude of the #re start are among the many types of information collected by GACC. %e map itself was created by the U.S. Forest Service Fire Modeling Institute, in the Fire, Fuels, and Smoke Program of the Rocky Mountain Research Station.%e map depicted here only includes data collected by the GACC and does not include areas outside of the conterminous United States. Although wild#res do occur in U.S. States and territories outside the continental United States, few structures are lost compared to the conterminous United States.


Connecting the Dots: How Housing Can Influence Wildfire Activity

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CREATING FIRE-ADAPTED COMMUNITIES

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Reducing the Risk—Prevention and Mitigation

17 %is is the de#nition used by Fire Adapted Communities Program of the U.S. Forest Service’s Fire and Aviation Management sta!.

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CASE STUDY 1: COST-EFFECTIVE WILDFIRE PREVENTION EDUCATION IN FLORIDA

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Homeowners in the Wildland-Urban Interface

CASE STUDY 2: FIRE ‘PRESCRIPTION’ FOR WILDLIFE AND LONGLEAF PINE IN GEORGIA

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Fuel Treatment Effectiveness

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Preparing Homes and Neighborhoods: Examples and Resources for Planners and Homeowners


Community Education/Involvement Programs

Key Ingredients for Education Programs

CASE STUDY 3: FROM SOUP TO NUTS: MAINE FOREST SERVICE TAKES A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH

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What do homeowners need to know?

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Firewise Communities Program

Ready, Set, Go!

A Sampler of Other Educational Resources

Fire Safe Council—

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Living with Fire—

Take Responsibility—

Community Planning and Development Resources

Key Ingredients for Effective Planning

Community Wildfire Protection Plans


CASE STUDY 4: COMMUNITY PLANNING AND WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLANS IN OREGON

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Zoning Ordinances and Codes

CASE STUDY 5: FIREWISE-FRIENDLY DEVELOPMENT: RIVER BLUFF RANCH, WASHINGTONSt

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SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

A

ACKNOWLEGEMENTS

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