Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
What is a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP)?
A CWPP is a plan developed by a community in an area at-risk from wildland
fire. The CWPP is a collaborative product involving interested parties,
local government, local fire fighting agencies, the state agency which
oversees forest management and, if present in the vicinity, federal land
management agencies. A valid CWPP has two objectives. First, to identify
and prioritize the surrounding area, both federal and nonfederal lands,
for hazardous fuels reduction treatments, as well as recommending methods
for achieving hazardous fuels reductions. Second, the plan recommends
measures for reducing structural ignitability through out the at-risk
community.
The first statutory definition of CWPPs appears in Title
I of the Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 (HFRA). The HRFA promulgates
that communities, which have a CWPP in place, will be a priority for receiving
hazardous fuels reduction funding administrated by the USFS and BLM.
What is the Handbook for Wildland-Urban Interface Communities?
The Handbook
is a roadmap for communities, and interested collaborators, to
use when undertaking the task of creating a CWPP. The Handbook
offers the must complete and up-to-date description of and instruction
for creating a CWPP. The guide is designed to dovetail into the "Developing
Community Wildfire Plans" section of the Interim
Field Guide for the Healthy Forest Restoration Act (USFS: February
2004) and assist communities in creating CWPPs that conform to both the
spirit and letter of the HFRA. The Handbook was first published
in March 2004.
Who will use the Preparing A Community Wildfire Protection Plan:
Handbook for Wildland-Urban Interface Communities?
Communities, particularly local governments, in areas at risk from wildland
fire or adjacent to Federal Lands that are at high risk from wildfire.
What is the advantage to communities to create a CWPP?
In addition to enhancing safety and reducing risk to human structures
and watersheds, communities with CWPPs are also given priority for USFS
and BLM funded hazardous fuels reduction projects as authorized under
the HFRA.
Who initiates and drives the process of creating a CWPP?
Local government or affiliated community groups will likely spearhead
the effort to create a CWPP. Three partners must sign off on the final
plan: local government and municipalities, local fire departments and
the state forestry management agency. Other groups and federal agencies
are also encouraged to participate in the collaborative process.
How long have CWPPs been around?
The Healthy Forest Restoration Act, which was signed in to law in December
2003, first defined a CWPP and established incentives for communities to
create a CWPP. The Interim Field Guide for the Healthy Forest Restoration
Act was released by the USFS and the BLM in February 2004 and provided
one paragraph of guidance concerning development of CWPPs. In March 2004
the Handbook for Wildland-Urban Interface Communities was published,
offering a detailed, user friendly, how-to manual for creating a CWPP. Prior
to the advent of official CWPPs, a few Western communities had independently
developed wildfire preparedness plans very similar to today's CWPPs.
Who prepared the Handbook for Wildland-Urban Interface Communities?
This guide was written, presented, and distributed as a joint effort by
the National Association
of State Foresters , the National
Association of Counties , the Society
of American Foresters , the Communities
Committee of the Seventh American Forest Congress, and the Western
Governors' Association .
Besides this guide are there other helpful resources out there?
This guide is the most complete and comprehensive handbook available to
communities who wish to create their own CWPP. For updates and links to
relevant sites please visit the Additional
Resources Web Resources and Links
to Existing Plans sections of this site.
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