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STORIES -> Success Stories
Fire Risk Reduction Involves Local Residents
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| A stand of trees on private property
before thinning. |
Wildland fire poses a real threat to
lives and property near the Kaibab National Forest in northern
Arizona. With major fires in the late 1990’s, local
residents were looking for ways to protect their families
and their properties. The award winning Greater Parks Fuels
Reduction Project was formed to help private landowners thin
trees on their lands. Tree-thinning reduces the risk of fire
while improving overall forest health. Landowners also learned
about other practices that can make their properties more
defensible against wildland fire.
The Strength of Partnerships
The project’s strengths are its partners. None could
have planned and implemented the project on its own. Each
had a role that was built upon the roles of the others. Participants
are the Kaibab National Forest, Arizona State Land Department,
University of Arizona Coconino County Cooperative Extension,
Coconino County Public Works and Emergency Services divisions,
Northern Arizona University’s Ecological Restoration
Institute, the Arizona Department of Corrections, and the
Parks-Bellemont and Sherwood Forest Estates volunteer fire
departments.
The project was publicized through community events, mass
mailings, media, and word of mouth. Informational materials
were available as well as a demonstration plot where residents
could see the results of tree-thinning before deciding whether
to participate. The Arizona State Land Department visited
properties of interested residents, marked trees recommended
for removal with involvement from the landowner, and supervised
the actual cutting work. The Winslow Prison fire crew, trained
and experienced in fuels reduction and wildland fire suppression,
supplied the labor and were accompanied by Arizona Department
of Corrections guards.
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| After thinning, the risk of fire is
reduced and overall forest health improved. |
While publicizing the project, partners took the opportunity
to educate local residents about the importance of fuels reduction
and other forest health and wildland fire prevention practices.
They engaged in conversations with residents to answer questions
and respond to specific concerns.
Project Goals and Accomplishments
The project partners first came together in the winter of
2000/2001 because fuels reduction and community assistance
were emphasized in mandates and funding provided by the National
Fire Plan. Since wildfires do not respect public or private
boundaries, the goal of the partnership was to reduce fuels
on continuous acres of forest regardless of ownership. Tree
thinning was prioritized for private properties in high risk
areas adjacent to public lands already slated for fuel reduction
treatments. The Greater Parks Fuels Reduction Project is a
leader in tying together fire reduction practices on both
private and public properties.
Since implementation began in fall 2001, more than 100 acres
of private property have been thinned in communities surrounded
by the Kaibab National Forest. Many of them were heavily forested
1-acre lots. Additional property owners have signed their
lots up for thinning, and the project’s partners will
be moving into other local communities. This success has brought
the project the USDA Secretary’s Honors Award for Maintaining
and Enhancing the Nation’s Natural Resources and Environment.
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| The project hauled away thinnings
like these of ponderosa pine. |
Because of the Greater Parks Fuels Reduction Project emphasis
on education, private landowners are taking responsibility
for protecting their property and communities from the threat
of wildland fire. Fuels reduction work, critical to both forest
health and reducing the risk of wildland fire, is becoming
better understood and more fully supported by many local community
members.
The partners hope to initiate similar projects in other communities.
The Greater Parks Fuels Reduction Project is an example that
can be used in other communities threatened by wildland fire.
Contact Person:
Annie Hanson, Williams Ranger District
Kaibab National Forest, 742 South Clover Rd., Williams, AZ
86046
(928)635-5649
ahanson@fs.fed.us
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PARTNERING WITH THE FOREST SERVICE
