Jerry R. Barker, Walsh Environmental Scientists and Engineers LLC and University of Denver, 4888 Pearl E. Circle, Suite 108, Boulder, CO 80301
The Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 provides accommodations for wildland fire and fuels management planning by local entities such as counties, communities, and home owners’ associations. The resulting document is called a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). The CWPP is a strategic plan that identifies specific wildland fire risks and hazards and provides prioritized mitigation recommendations that are designed to reduce risks. Hazardous fuels accumulation has occurred on many rangelands because of a variety of reasons. The accumulations of hazardous fuels may present an increased wildfire risk to economic and ecological values such as communities, forage production, livestock production, and watershed health. Two recently completed CWPPs for counties in central Oregon with considerable rangelands will be examined as to wildfire risks and hazards, mitigation opportunities, recently completed fuels management projects, and benefits to rangelands.
