Columns

Making wildfire prevention a life safety priority
NFPA Journal®, March/April 2003

Anyone who enjoys visiting the wildlands of the United States can probably tell at least one tale about a benign hike in the woods that suddenly brought them back in touch with the realities of nature. On more than one occasion, I have begun a hike in the White Mountains of New Hampshire on a warm spring day, only to find myself fighting through a snowstorm an hour or two later.

Many of the thousands of Americans who choose to live in areas abutting our nation's wildlands have also learned that, along with the beautiful views and peaceful surroundings, comes the threat of wildfire engulfing their communities. This problem has gotten a lot of attention recently, as droughts in the West continue to contribute to large, deadly wildfires.

For years, NFPA has worked hard on the special fire problems of those areas where wildlands and development intersect. Since 1986, NFPA has had a cooperative agreement with the USDA Forest Service to develop and implement fire protection and prevention programs to reduce the nation's wildfire losses. That relationship grew into the National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Protection Program, sponsored by the Forest Service, the Department of the Interior, the U.S. Fire Administration, the National Association of State Foresters, and NFPA.

Out of that relationship, a new public-private partnership, The National Firewise Communities/USA Recognition Program, was launched. On behalf of NFPA, I signed an agreement last November with the Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters to promote and encourage this innovative program, which encourages communities to develop local solutions to unwanted wildfire. Through the Firewise Communities/USA Program, NFPA and its partners educate Americans about wildfires and help communities develop programs tailored to their needs.

The Firewise Communities/USA Program projects vary from community to community. In Briargate, Florida, for example, the program was used to develop strategies that will help the community avoid a repeat of problems faced when wildfires hit the area in 1998. A million-gallon (3,785,344-liter) water tank is now available for fighting fires, dirt from excavated lakes was used to establish firebreaks, and pine forests have been thinned. At River Bluff Ranch, near Spokane, Washington, roads have been improved, utilities are now underground, and covenants require fire-resistant roofing, deep side-yard setbacks, and the maintenance of defensible space. And in Sundance, Utah, spring and fall chipper/clean-out days are becoming annual events.

This community leadership is central to the program's success. By creating a framework in which fire and emergency management officials work with concerned citizens, communities most at risk from wildfire can put plans in place to deal with one. That means that the more involved a community is, the more lives will be saved and property preserved.

We can't change the laws of nature. Wildfires will continue to shape and reshape our environment. But that doesn't mean we should withdraw from wildland areas. It does mean that we must take special steps to live responsibly in those areas, to protect both the environment and ourselves. That's what the Firewise Communities/USA Program is all about, and that's why we at NFPA are proud to be involved with it.

James M. Shannon
President, NFPA

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In this Section:

			Building to Code Fire-resistance-rated construction provisions within NFPA 5000

			Buzzwords NFPA 72 doesn't add or delete requirements from building codes

			Fire Watch Ruptured gas main damages Ohio buildings

			First Word Making wildfire prevention a life safety priority

			Heads Up Determining how well sprinklers can work

			In Compliance Fire-resistive construction and codes

			Ins and Outs Searching for alternatives

			Inside the Beltway Congress will take up Bush´s Healthy Forest proposal again

			Just Ask NFPA 914 upgrades the fire protection of historic buildings without compromising their uniqueness

			Looking Back ...at the Happy Lands Social Club Fire: Lessons Learned

			Meetings Playing Hardball in Dallas

			Out Reach Security bars can have unintended consequences

			Structural Ops Staging and stairway support help you manage logistics during a high-rise fire