Mission Statement
Salmon River Fire Safe Council
"The Primary Mission of the Salmon River Fire Safe Council is to help plan, monitor and implement the reinstatement of natural fire regimes in the Salmon River ecosystem in a manner that protects life, property, improves forest health, and enhances the resources valued by its stakeholders."
Salmon River Fire Safe Council
Meeting Minutes
Date: December 19, 2000
Place: Forks of Salmon Community Club
Time: 1 p.m.
I. CALL TO ORDER
Meeting called to order at 1:35 p.m. by Jim Villeponteaux, SRRC.
II. ATTENDANCE and INTRODUCTIONS of the following:
Jim Bennett Salmon River Volunteer Fire & Rescue-
Fire Chief
Petey Brucker Program Coordinator-SRRC
Jeff Burns California Dept. of Forestry-Fire
Tim (Lino) Darling Godfrey Ranch Landowner's Assoc.
Darla Eastman U.S. Fish & Wildlife
Chuck Glasgow National Marine Fisheries Service
Geba Greenberg Godfrey Ranch
Stephen Gunther Cecilville Concerned Citizen
Clarence Hagmeier Cecilville Concerned Citizen
Peggy Hanley Forks of Salmon Store
Tom Holzem Ecotech
Sharon Hoppas Cecilville Concerned Citizen
George Martin Cecilville Concerned Citizen
Kathy Duffy McBroom Office Manager-SRRC
Monty Messenger California Dept. of Forestry-Fire Captain
Specialist-Pre Fire Engineering
Jessie Rose Salmon River Native Americans
Jim Rose Forks of Salmon Concerned Citizen
Beverly Tompkins Sawyers Bar Concerned Citizen
Bill Tripp Karuk Tribe DNR
Ted Tsudama California Dept. of Forestry-Fire
Jim Villeponteaux Technical Coordinator-SRRC
Robert Will Sawyers Bar Concerned Citizen
Monte Wooden California Dept. of Forestry-Fire
Claire Zann Forks of Salmon Concerned Citizen
III. California's Fire Problem/The California Fire Plan - CDF
Jim Villeponteaux gave a brief presentation on the history of fire in the Salmon River and showed a map of Fire Starts. The map pin points all the fire starts that were responded to. The info. in the data base contains how they were started, natural or man caused. The time frame shows from 1911 to the present major fires of 1977 (Hog), 1987 (Salmon River Complex), Specimen (1994), to last years Meghram fire.
Since the Hog Fire, the Forest Service has started keeping track of these fires by burn intensity. Our concern is since 1910 44% of the drainage has burned. Since the early 70's, the last 25 years, 30% has burned. Fires are on a upswing with the fires tending to get bigger, due to more biomass and fuels on the ground.
One interest in starting the council is how we can get things done on the ground. Jim's estimation is that catastrophic fires cost 4-10 times as much as fire suppression activities.
Monty Messenger, Pre-Fire Engineer for the CDF shared the California Fire Plan that came out in 1995. Working with the other fire councils their primary interests are in protection of their residences, whereas ours is unique in the protection of our whole drainage as well as homes.
Monty handed out a smaller condensed overview of the California Fire Plan much easier to review. We need to address the issue of pre-fire projects, i.e. fuel breaks, wildfire protection zones and fire safe landscaping, etc.
Ted Tsudama said "Our objective is to get local community input to help our own community on our own terms, rather than the State or Federal government coming in and saying, "'you need to do that!'"
Developing a fire council gives you some say in how you want fire protection. The CDF is developing a plan for each county to identify where are our high hazard fire areas, using different components, looking at past fire history, and going back 50 years. You look at how things grow back and revegetate. Fuels constitute different fuel types, heights of grass, tree or shrub. Taking all the data, historical fire weather data, severe fire weather days that you have through out the year.
Also important is assets at risk. These are the viewshed, recreation, residences, historic buildings, timber, watershed, power generation all these are taken into account as to how advantageous for our protection, in case we had a catastrophic fire.
The fire safe council helps a small community like this by bringing all the voices together. Filing for and establishing not-for-profit tax status with the federal government allows local councils to accept monetary donations without being taxed by the federal government.
This council may consider making an arrangement with local organizations such as firefighters associations or local environmental groups who have already established not-for-profit status. The Salmon River Volunteer Fire & Rescue and the Restoration Council both have 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status.
Ted Tsudama said, "the concept of a county wide fire safe council is as a oversight committee." In the sense that the County council is just one more layer above the individual councils. The County Council is county wide with invitations to everyone in that county, but still a grassroots run organization.
The decisions on funding prioritization's, for instance, would we compare a Salmon River project against a Lake Shastina subdivision project? Possibly, if the Salmon River Fire Safe Council goes in for a grant on its own, on its own letterhead through the statewide Cal-Nepa and Lake Shastina goes in on there with their grant request to the state Cal-Nepa organization. The CDF management feels that if you say, this is a Siskiyou Co. Fire Safe Council submitting both of these grants, there may be a little advantage, rather than submitting individually.
It was summarized that our main concern is watershed overall, ecosystem, fisheries and people's homes. Each fire council and community would have their own priorities of different funding sources.
Discussion on the $1.8 billion that was recently allocated to the Federal government, specifically for fire. The three major priorities to spend this money are 1) communities, 2) watersheds, and 3) threatened and endangered species. Definately should be funding for our needs.
IV. The Fire Safe Council Concept - Video
The video summarized that over 8 million people have settled in California's land inter-urban face. To form a Fire Safe Council we need to:
· Bring people together to make sure our communities are fire safe
· Support needed from local citizens to address the problems
· How to form a Fire Safe Council
· How to determine which parts of the community are at particular risk of wild fire
How to identify particular assets that need protection
· How to select a fire safe program/project that is right for the community
If you care to view this video, please contact Kathy McBroom.
Jim mentioned that on the video those that were represented at various meetings had Realtors and insurance agents present. Who would we need to contact? The Western Insurance Information Service which is a non-profit that deals with these issues.
V. Goals and Objectives - Identify existing efforts:
· Defensible space around homes
· Evacuation Plan (Emergency Access)
-Notification Procedures
-Office of Emergency Services
-High risk individuals
-Helicopter lands
· Identify High Risk Areas
· Defensible High Risk Areas
· Identify Water Sources (Improve)
· Update Pre-Fire Plan (Residential Risk)
· Install Pipes to River at Bridges
· Identify Resource Values and Prioritize (Assets at Risk)
-Manmade
-Natural
-Cultural
Identify and Address Residences (Prioritize one item and decide to do)
VI. High Fire Hazard Areas (Tabled)
VII. Fire Safe Projects (Map of Salmon River) Tabled
VIII. Organizational Structure
George asked the question does this Council have to be a separate legal entity? Discussion followed on making the Fire Safe Council a fire protection subcommittee of the Salmon River Restoration Council. Jim V. suggested a Fire Safe Council for membership with support for any projects from Fire & Rescue or SRRC. The funding if it came down could go through either organization without setting up a separate non-profit organization.
IX. Appointment of Executive Officers
Decided on three positions at this time, no need for a treasurer. Those nominated were:
Facilitator: Jim Villeponteaux
Vice-Chair: Petey Brucker
Secretary: Kathy Duffy McBroom
X. Open Forum
No further discussion.
XI. Next Meeting
A. Forks of Salmon Community Club
January 23, 2001
1:00 p.m.
B. Action Items:
- Prioritize Goals
Assign Committees
Define Time Frames
- Revisit Maps
Define Community Protection Areas
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