CONCERNED ABOUT WILDFIRES IN YOU NEIGHBORHOOD? BECOME A FIREWISE COMMUNITY!
ttps://www.portland.gov/fire/your-safety/firewise-community-program
What is a Firewise Community?
While we in the Southwest Hills enjoy living in our forested ravines and hills, these lovely landscapes place many of us solidly in Wildfire Hazard zones (in blue; brown is parkland within the zone, and the numbered dots are fire stations).
As our neighborhoods warm, the threat of a wildfire starting and spreading in SWHRL neighborhoods will increase; to help address this, Portland Fire and Rescue, Portland Parks Bureau, and the Oregon Department of Forestry are helping neighborhoods create Firewise Community Neighborhoods. This involves a free assessment of the fire risks to your individual home and your neighborhood overall; these assesments do not compel you to take any actions suggested and do not penalize your insurance rates (although sadly they do not currently reduce your rates should you take action). A PF&R representative will assess your home either as an individual, or as part of a cluster of homes who wish to form a Firewise Community; if part of a Community application, at least 8 homes must participate. After the individual assessments, the above bureaus will tour the area and make suggestions for the neighborhood overall, and submit the report to the National Fire Protection Association for Community approval.
To request an assessment of your home: https://www.portlandoregon.gov/fire/80917
The PF&R representatives can also help you coordinate with other neighbors to get their home assessed, as well as a neighborhood assessment to start your Firewise Community if desired.
If approved, what are your responsibilities, and what do you gain?
The main obligation is for the Community to perform a certain amount of hours each year pursuing goals set out in the Community Assessment – one hour for each initial household, per year. So if your neighborhood starts the Community with 10 households, you will have to perform 10 hours of service during the year; this can be neighborhood projects like brush removal, an awareness day, and holding Community board meetings. If 10 people show up for one hour to clear up flammable brush and debris, your time commitments are satisfied for the year! Of course, like most volunteer efforts, the more people – and more time people put in to them – the better the end results.
PF&R and Portland Parks will work with each community to schedule neighborhood brush removals, trim brush, and eliminate fire hazards in parks, especially areas immediately adjacent to homes.
Current Communities:
Green Hills
Please note that unlike some Neighborhood Associations, SWHRL is not creating a Firewise Community itself; SWHRL covers a large area and asking a dozen or so initial households to cover the needs of the entire region was unworkable. Individual neighborhoods should identify a manageable area (as large as possible) and work together with homeowners in that area to create their own Firewise Communities; SWHRL will host or link to each Community’s web portal. SWHRL will also assist PF&R in coordination of these neighborhoods – if the topic interests you, please consider becoming SWHRL’s dedicated Firewise Community liason! Contact president@swhrl.org if so.