INTRODUCTION DEFINITION OF THE HOME IGNITION ZONE

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1 FIREWISE COMMUNITIES/USA RECOGNITION PROGRAM COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT Oak Knoll Meadows Ashland, Oregon INTRODUCTION The Firewise Communities/USA program is designed to provide an effective management approach for preserving wildland living aesthetics. The program can be tailored for adoption by any community and/or neighborhood association that is committed to ensuring its citizens maximum protection from wildland fire. The following community assessment is intended as a resource to be used by the Oak Knoll Meadows residents for creating a wildfire safety action plan. The plan developed from the information in this assessment should be implemented in a collaborative manner, and updated and modified as needed. A community assessment of both the common areas and residential development of Oak Knoll Meadows was conducted on January 21, Attendees were Oak Knoll Meadows board members Allen Baker and Elizabeth Sherbow; Ashland Fire and Rescue representatives Chief John Karns and Firewise Communities Coordinator Ali True; and Brian Ballou, Wildland Urban Interface Specialist from the Oregon Department of Forestry. The common areas of the subdivision comprise 18.5 acres, surrounding 107 homes. The assessment focused on: flammable vegetation, general fire resistant landscaping characteristics, home construction, access, and existence of defensible space. Photos were taken to include in the report. DEFINITION OF THE HOME IGNITION ZONE Oak Knoll Meadows is located in a wildfire-prone environment. Wildfires will happen-- exclusion is not a choice. Though area is not currently zoned within the existing Ashland Wildfire Hazard Zone, the environment of Southern Oregon supports active wildfire behavior throughout the region. The area may, in the future, be rezoned for inclusion within the Ashland Wildfire Hazard Zone. The variables in a fire scenario are when the fire will occur, and where. This assessment addresses the wildfire-related characteristics of Oak Knoll Meadows. It examines the area s exposure to wildfire as it relates to ignition potential. The assessment does not focus on specific homes, but examines the community as a whole. A house burns because of its interrelationship with everything in its surrounding home ignition zone----the house and its immediate surroundings. To avoid a home ignition, a homeowner must eliminate the wildfire s potential relationship with his/her house. This can be accomplished by interrupting the natural path a fire takes. Changing a fire s path by clearing a

2 home ignition zone is an easy-to-accomplish task that can result in avoiding home loss. To accomplish this, flammable items such as dead vegetation must be removed from the area immediately around the structure to prevent flames from contacting it. Also, reducing the volume of live vegetation will affect the intensity of the wildfire as it enters the home ignition zone. Included in this assessment are observations made while visiting Oak Knoll Meadows. The assessment addresses the ease with which home ignitions can occur under severe wildfire conditions and how these ignitions might be avoided within the home ignition zones of affected residents. Oak Knoll Meadows residents can reduce their risk of destruction during a wildfire by taking actions within their home ignition zones. This zone principally determines the potential for home ignitions during a wildland fire; it includes a house and its immediate surroundings within 100 to 150 feet. The result of the assessment is that wildfire behavior will be dominated by the residential characteristics of this area. The good news is that by addressing community vulnerabilities, residents will be able to substantially reduce their exposure to loss. Relatively small investments of time and effort will reap great rewards in wildfire safety. DESCRIPTION OF WILDLAND FIRE CHARACTERISTICS THAT COULD THREATEN THE AREA Oak Knoll Meadows could be affected by wildfire in a variety of ways. The most likely occurrence is through multiple ignitions from an upwind fire that could shower the subdivision with embers, or heat-carrying firebrands. Those firebrands could then start smaller fires that could then easily spread through hazardous vegetation to become larger fires that could ignite homes. Ember intrusion into a home is also likely with the prevalence of wood shake roofs and overgrown vegetation near windows. Once a structure is on fire, nearby homes are more vulnerable through their close proximity, creating more firebrands that could be carried throughout the neighborhood, possibly initiating more fires. A home-to-home ignition scenario is a possibility because of the close proximity of homes and the predominance of hazardous vegetation that can transmit fire easily between structures. Another scenario is a grass or brush fire on the edge of the subdivision that produces intense enough fire activity to directly impact flammable vegetation lining the subdivision, surrounding wood fences, or structures directly. This is an issue where the subdivision borders I-5 and also along Crowson Road where grass and berries grow between the road and the community. SITE DESCRIPTION Oak Knoll Meadows is a subdivision located on the southeast border of Ashland, Oregon. Ashland is a community bordered by the Siskiyou National Forest, rural farmlands of Jackson County, and forested areas managed by private property owners. Oak Knoll Meadows is bordered by Interstate 5 to the west, a city-owned golf course to the east, dense city neighborhood development to the north (lower Oak Knoll, no association), and privately owned rural residential areas under Jackson County jurisdiction to the south.

3 The subdivision consists of 107 lots, and 18.5 acres of commonly owned area. Within the common area are gravel walking paths, a pond, and managed open space. Many of the homes are in close proximity, and share home ignition zones. The subdivision was impacted by the August 2010 Oak Knoll Fire, which consumed 16 acres and 11 homes in the adjacent Oak Knoll neighborhood. Two roofs of houses within the Oak Knoll Meadows subdivision suffered damage, and the entire neighborhood was at risk of severe wildfire damage due to its downwind location, heavy fuel loading and dense home construction, some with wood shake roofs. Fire is influenced by three factors: topography, weather, and fuel. Topography: Oak Knoll Meadows is located at an elevation of 2000 feet. The neighborhood consists of 0-10% slope, though it is located upslope from the lower Oak Knoll neighborhood. A steep cut bank of 30% slope lies between portions of the Interstate and the neighborhood, with the interstate on the uphill portion. While the neighborhood is located downslope, the steepness of the slope provides a significant challenge to vegetation maintenance by ODOT, the property owner. Weather: During fire season, June through October, temperatures range on average between 80 to 105 degrees Fahrenheit. Average wind speed is generally 5 to 15 miles per hour, with regular gusts exceeding 25 mph. Humidity ranges between 5 to 35%. General Fuels: General fuels consist of primarily managed ornamental landscaping surrounding residences, screening-type rows of Leland Cypress and poplar, and open grassy areas with some predominance of mature oak trees, manzanita, pine, and broadleaf evergreen hedges. There is a predominance of hazardous vegetation such as juniper and Italian cypress in many home landscapes. In addition, some older wood shake roofs and numerous wooden fences are present in the community, acting as potential fuel for wildfire. IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS The Firewise Communities/USA program seeks to create a sustainable balance that will allow communities to live safely while maintaining environmental harmony in a WUI setting. Homeowners already balance their decisions about fire protection measures against their desire for certain flammable components on their properties. It is important for them to understand the implications of the choices they are making. These choices directly relate to the ignitability of their home ignition zones during a wildfire. Upon entering oak Knoll Meadows, the assessment team observed three issues of concern: 1. Prevalence of hazardous vegetation, both in common areas and individual residential lots

4 1. Juniper and Italian Cypress adjacent to home and walking path 2. Overlapping Home Ignition Zones. Every home in the development shares defensible space with its neighbors in multiple directions. 2. Typical street width and home siting; homes are mostly less than 20 feet apart 3. Home construction materials include some wood shake roofs (3.a.) as well as many attached wooden fences (3.b.) that connect homes and areas of flammable vegetation.

5 3.a. Wood shake roof and attached wood fence 3.b. Attached wood fences are common throughout the area; alternative materials are limited by CC&Rs OBSERVATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS (All recommendations are based on specific observations and will be listed in bold.) A consistent issue within Oak Knoll Meadows is the prevalence of fire prone vegetation used as privacy screening. This situation occurs in both common areas and individual lots, and is mostly composed of Leland Cypress. Leland Cypress is a species prone to easy ignition, supports extreme fire behavior once ignited, and when planted in dense rows, can easily transmit fire from one end of the row to the other, thus connecting otherwise separated structures. In addition, it can

6 transmit enough radiant heat and large flame lengths to easily impact a structure if it is located within 30 feet. The recommendation for all Leland Cypress in the area is to remove it within 30 feet of a structure. All remaining Leland Cypress located within the area should be isolated with 18 foot canopy spacing and limbed up 8 feet, in order to remove ladder fuels that could carry fire from the ground to the crown of a tree, as well as to prevent the transmission of fire along a row. Even if farther than 30 feet from a home, once ignited, a Leland Cypress can generate significant firebrands that can seriously impact downwind areas. By removing and altering this highly flammable species, much greater fire protection can be achieved. Because there are receptive ember sources elsewhere in the neighborhood, such as wood shake roofs and ornamental landscaping, the removal and modification of Leland Cypress throughout the subdivision is strongly recommended. It is the recommendation that fire-resistant site-appropriate hedges replace the Leland cypress and be maintained annually of all dead debris and leaf litter. Significant fire-resistant hedges already exist as models throughout the subdivision, and provide opportunities for residents to examine their effectiveness and appeal while Cypress rows are removed. Screening row of Leland Cypress Another observation made during the assessment is the prevalent use of flammable vegetation within individual lots. The most common offender is juniper. Juniper burns in a similar way to Leland Cypress: it ignites easily due to its dead inner composition, volatile resins, and dense nature. When it is planted within 30 feet of a home, it can easily spread and transmit fire to a home s siding, deck or porch, as well as break a window with the extreme heat and large flame lengths it emits. Another common and dangerous vegetation is Italian cypress. Most commonly located directly adjacent to a structure, it is a tree that easily transmits flames from the ground up to the wooden eaves and roof substructure of a home. It has also been planted adjacent to wooden fences, increasing the potential for extreme fire behavior to be transmitted through attached fences to a home.

7 The recommendation is to encourage individual homeowners to remove hazardous vegetation like juniper and Italian cypress from their lots. In doing so, they will be creating a defensible space for their own house, as well as their neighbors homes. Because effective defensible space requires vegetation management within 100 feet of a home, it is only by collectively removing the hazardous vegetation that the neighborhood can have cohesive protection from wildfire. When juniper is used in a home landscape, it should remain low to the ground, isolated from other types of fire-prone vegetation, and small and low to the ground. Juniper adjacent to home Italian Cypress adjacent to home Italian Cypress adjacent to home Italian Cypress adjacent to wooden fence A further observation of the neighborhood revealed a prevalence of wood attachments as well as some wood shake roofs throughout the community. Wood fences can easily ignite if located adjacent to flammable vegetation, and then act as a wick, carrying fire to a structure. A complication is that the Oak Knoll Meadows Homeowners Association s CC&Rs disallow other fence styles or building materials. It is the recommendation that extra care be taken with vegetation near wooden fences, as well as the community-wide installation of metal flashing where fences attach to structures. Many houses also have attached wood decks without adequate screening or skirting to prevent the collection of debris, as well as firebrands during a wildfire event. It is the recommendation that individual residents be encouraged to properly screen or skirt the areas underneath decks and porches to prevent annual debris collection. Before screening, the area

8 underneath should be cleared to bare ground or rock, and then adequately screened with ¼ inch metal mesh or wood skirting that prevents collection of leaf litter and needle cast. The assessment process did reveal that many of the original wood shake roofs in the neighborhood have been replaced over time with fire resistant materials such as asphalt shingle and concrete shake. Due to the close proximity of houses in the area, the remaining wood shake roofs do pose a hazard both for the homeowners as well as the neighborhood at large. It is the recommendation that homeowners be encouraged to replace wood shake roofs as soon as feasible, and to utilize Class A rated fire-resistant materials for the replacement. Implementing Firewise building and landscaping practices and materials in Oak Knoll Meadows can be an increasing part of the already emerging culture of fire safety in the community. Home with wood shake roof Wooden fence A final observation and recommendation concerns the treatment of adjacent property alongside Interstate 5 and the northern boundary of Oak Knoll Meadows. Although this property is beyond the responsibility and maintenance requirements of the Association, the area is within the defensible space and home ignition zones of many residences within the community. The slope as well as the uphill concrete barriers have not allowed for the regular maintenance or removal of vegetation by the owner, Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). The slope has thus been taken over with highly flammable vegetation such as overgrown blackberries and manzanita. It is the recommendation that a cooperative long-term agreement be established between ODOT and Oak Knoll Meadows that encourages removal and maintenance of problematic vegetation. In doing so, the chances of an ignition in this zone impacting the homes in Oak Knoll would be greatly diminished. Specifically, clumps of blackberries and manzanita need to be reduced in size, isolated, and unable to spread fire from ground into trees. Some fire resistant vegetation should be preserved. Grass and other ladder fuels should be removed. Because of the slope, it is not recommended that all vegetation be removed without erosion prevention measures put into place. This process should be done in conjunction with adjoining homeowners, so that effective defensible space is created and managed by all parties. If ODOT removes a wildfire hazard and the homeowners continue to allow hazardous vegetation in their lots, then the end goal of wildfire safety will not be achieved.

9 Blackberries and manzanita alongside I-5 Blackberries and ladder fuels under pine along I-5 SUCCESSFUL FIREWISE MODIFICATIONS When adequately prepared, a house can likely withstand a wildfire without the intervention of the fire service. Further, a house and its surrounding community can be both Firewise and compatible with the area s ecosystem. The Firewise Communities/USA program is designed to enable communities to achieve a high level of protection against WUI fire loss even as a sustainable ecosystem balance is maintained. A homeowner and community must focus attention on the home ignition zone and eliminate the fire s potential relationship with the house. This can be accomplished by disconnecting the house from high and/or low-intensity fire that could occur around it. The following photographs were taken in Oak Knoll Meadows and are examples of good Firewise practices Replacement of Leland cypress has begun with the planting of small fire-resistant laurel to provide a hedge when cypress are removed. 2. Individual homeowners are embracing removal of fire prone species and replacement of fire-resistant landscaping.

10 Some fire-resistant hedges are already in place, such as this laurel hedge, above left. 4. Some residents have adequate skirting underneath attached wooden deck and utilize fire-resistant vegetation in their home landscapes Common areas are well maintained and in this case, provide year-round water source. 6. Gravel walking paths throughout community offer firebreaks. Many residents within Oak Knoll Meadows have received a Wildfire Safety Home Assessment from Ashland Fire and Rescue, and then performed the recommended work of Firewise construction and landscaping improvements. In addition, many of the homes within the community are built with fire resistant materials such as concrete composition siding and asphalt composition roofs, and have fire-resistant vegetation within their lots. It is by increasing the number of these Firewise homes, and performing Firewise practices on common areas, that Oak Knoll Meadows will truly function as a Firewise Community. Emergency access and evacuation routes within the community are good, due to a paved through-road and connecting side streets. While some roads within the community are dead-end roads, they are relatively short, with adequate cul-de-sacs for turnaround at the end. In addition, numerous wide gravel walking paths suitable for supporting a brush engine (Type 6) provide access between houses and common areas. The golf course alongside the south edge of the development offers a safety zone if needed and a year-round pond could supplement local water resources for suppression if needed, as well as serving as a potential dip site for a Type 3 helicopter. (See photos 5 and 6 above)

11 NEXT STEPS After reviewing the contents of this assessment and its recommendations, the Oak Knoll Meadows Firewise Board in cooperation with Ashland Fire and Rescue will determine whether or not it wishes to continue seeking Firewise Communities/USA recognition. The Firewise Communities/USA representative will contact the Firewise Board representative by April 1 st, 2011 to receive its decision. If the site assessment and recommendations are accepted and recognition will be sought, the Oak Knoll Meadows Firewise Board will create agreed-upon, area-specific solutions to the Firewise recommendations and create an action plan in cooperation with Ashland Fire and Rescue. Assuming the assessment area seeks to achieve national Firewise Communities/USA recognition status, it will integrate the following standards into its plan of action: Sponsor a local Firewise board, task force, committee, commission or department that maintains the Firewise Community program and status. Enlist a WUI specialist to complete an assessment and create a plan from which it identifies agreed-upon, achievable local solutions. Invest a minimum of $2.00 annually per capita in its Firewise Communities/USA program. (Work done by municipal employees or volunteers, using municipal or other equipment, can be included, as can state/federal grants dedicated to that purpose.) Observe a Firewise Communities/USA Day each spring that is dedicated to a local Firewise project.* Submit an annual report to Firewise Communities/USA. This report documents continuing participation in the program. In moving forward with the Firewise Communities Program, the residents and Homeowners Association of Oak Knoll Meadows are acknowledging their partnership with Ashland Fire and Rescue in the mission of reducing home loss to wildfire. Oak Knoll Meadows will function as Ashland s first Firewise Community, demonstrating the individual and collective will to enact change in their community and share the responsibility for wildfire preparedness. Congratulations! *Note: There are a variety of ways to implement Firewise projects, and it is not limited to a single day of recognition. If one of the action items is an on-going or seasonal removal of trees, that is acceptable, as long as it is part of the action plan and can be documented as such, as well as accounting for the per capita investment.