A Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) is being developed. The draft plan is available for review and citizens are invited to provide feedback on it through an online community survey through Feb. 28.
The plan can be read, and an associated on-line survey, on the Chelan County website.
Elle Robinson, senior natural resource specialist with Chelan County Natural Resources says, "Making the plan current comes at a time when our community is experiencing increased wildfires – and an increase in those impacts from wildfires."
For the past year, the County and Cascadia Conservation District have been working with representatives from the county’s fire districts, to update the 2019 plan.
The plan outlines the county’s vulnerabilities to wildfire hazards and details various strategies and actions designed to reduce wildfire risk.
The webpage also features a project StoryMap that provides in-depth and interactive maps and information on natural hazards within Chelan County, along with a hazard mapper tool that allows users to explore specific risk areas.
Email written comment can be sent to: elle.robinson@co.chelan.wa.us.
"Over the years, we have seen an uptick in increasingly severe wildland fires in our region. The CWPP is in response to the several decades of mega fires within our county, putting Chelan County on the Fire Map as one of the most dangerous fire areas in the nation," Chris Willoughby, chair of the Manson Community Council wrote in an email on Monday. "Chelan Complex fires in 2015 were some of the most costly fires to our valley. Luckily, the early morning lightening storm that started a fire in the Emerson Acres area of Manson was able to be quickly extinguished before it became a problem to our community, at least as a fire. This fire cut our power for large portions of our valley for days to weeks. Manson was without power for nearly a week while crews rushed to replace burned power poles and run new lines. Structures were destroyed and life here was altered for years."
Willoughby urged citizens to read, and comment on the plan, which he says has been in development for years and has created a response plan utilized by not only fire and other local, state, federal and tribal emergency services, but service agencies also.
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