Another try: Draft of revised Oregon wildfire hazard, interface maps out for public review after first sparked outcry

Among changes: Standards won't apply retroactively, can't be used by insurers to change rates

SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — Draft versions of the statewide wildfire hazard and wildland-urban interface maps are available to the public for review and comment starting Thursday on Oregon State University’s Wildfire Risk Explorer website. 

The first such attempts at the legislatively mandated maps were withdrawn two years ago due to a public and official outcry and concerns they were causing big increases or cancellation of homeowner insurance policies.

Here are Thursday's full announcements from the Oregon Department of Forestry and OSU, which helped prepare the maps.

The wildfire hazard map's purposes are to:

• Educate Oregon residents and property owners about the level of hazard where they live.
• Assist in prioritizing fire adaptation and mitigation resources for the most vulnerable locations.
• Identify where defensible space standards and home hardening codes will apply.

A series of open houses about the state’s new community wildfire risk reduction programs were held from June 3 to July 1 throughout Oregon. It was an opportunity to learn about wildfire hazard assessments, new defensible space and home hardening programs and standards, insurance concerns, and statewide wildfire policy. 

"Defensible space around your home and property is just one of the ways Oregonians can be better prepared for wildfire," Oregon State Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple said. "No matter where you live, the simple actions you take to limit where an ember can land and catch fire can make all the difference, saving your home and protecting your community."

“Home hardening standards are extremely important because they help reduce the risk of ignition to the most vulnerable parts of a home by the embers of a wildfire,” said Andrew Stolfi, director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services.

“Once the map is finalized, we will then initiate rulemaking to adopt the home hardening standards, which will be followed by a six-month phase-in period for education and outreach. Importantly, the standards will not apply retroactively. They will be required only in new construction, major additions, and such things as replacing a roof or siding if the home is in both a high wildfire hazard zone and the wildland-urban interface.”

Representatives from OSU, ODF, Oregon State Fire Marshal, Department of Consumer and Business Services Building Codes Division and Division of Financial Regulation, and the Wildfire Programs Advisory Council addressed hours of questions at the events and engaged with over 500 community members. 

“The level of engagement at these community meetings was impressive. I attended them all, and hundreds of Oregonians had their questions addressed about community wildfire risk reduction programs and how the map supports protecting Oregon’s communities at highest hazard of experiencing wildfire,” said Dave Hunnicutt, Chair of the Wildfire Programs Advisory Council.

At those meetings, early maps depicting wildfire hazard were available, but property tax lot level maps were not yet available. However, draft maps are now ready for Oregonians to see the hazard designation of their specific address, and whether they’re in the wildland-urban interface.

“The maps are still drafts,” said Andy McEvoy, wildfire research scientist at Oregon State University. “The maps won’t become final until we receive input from counties on potential local anomalies, administrative rules are adopted by the Board of Forestry, and we evaluate input from the public.”

The draft maps reflect revisions from the last two years based on input received in 2022 from county governments and the public. Updates include:

• Adjustments for hay and pasturelands.
• Adjustments for northwest Oregon forest fuels.
• Changes based on draft rules to include irrigation of agricultural crops as a mitigating factor in wildfire hazard assessments. Final maps will reflect rules as adopted by the Board of Forestry.

“Work on the wildfire hazard map hasn’t ceased over the last two years,” said Kyle Williams, Deputy Director of Fire Operations at ODF. “ODF and our partners at OSU have worked diligently to evaluate and address concerns about the accuracy of the map. These drafts are still based on the core principles of wildfire science but have been pored through to address expressed concerns. With one more round of public input, we will be well situated to finalize a hazard map that will contribute to advancing wildfire protection in Oregon as the Legislature intended.”

Comments can be sent to hazardmap@odf.oregon.gov. Find more information on ODF’s wildfire hazard web page.

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OSU news release:

Draft of statewide wildfire hazard map mandated by Legislature released

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Oregon Department of Forestry today released drafts of new statewide wildfire hazard and wildland-urban interface maps developed by Oregon State University scientists.

The draft maps can be viewed online on Oregon Explorer and the Department of Forestry will accept comment on them through Aug. 18. Comments can be sent to hazardmap@odf.oregon.gov.

The maps are expected to be finalized by the department and OSU on Oct. 1 once public comments and suggested edits from county planners have been considered.

The wildfire hazard map was mandated by Senate Bill 762, a $220 million legislative package in 2021 aimed at improving Oregon’s wildfire preparedness through fire-adapted communities, safe and effective response to fire, and increasing the resilience of the state’s landscapes.

By law, the maps will not be used by insurers to adjust rates, or by the state to make landowners modify the components of the building they live or work in unless significant updates are planned for structures within high hazard areas in the WUI.

The wildfire hazard map is designed to support strategic actions to aid community wildfire protection and provide information for Oregonians about wildfire hazard in the landscapes where they live.

Once finalized, the map will be used in conjunction with the wildland-urban interface map to identify which properties will be subject to new defensible space codes or fire-hardening building codes.

Only properties that are both categorized as high hazard and in the wildland-urban interface will be subject to the new codes. The Oregon State Fire Marshal oversees defensible space regulations and the Department of Consumer and Business Services Building Codes Division oversees fire hardening codes. Each has informational resources available for affected landowners.

The wildfire hazard map is an update of one released in June 2022 and later withdrawn to allow for greater public engagement.

“Since the first map was withdrawn, we’ve reviewed thousands of pieces of feedback,” said Andy McEvoy of the OSU College of Forestry. “In coordination with counties, local planners, land managers and wildfire risk scientists, we’ve made some important changes in response to all that feedback.”

Kyle Williams, deputy director of fire operations at ODF, said the feedback has been diligently addressed and that the draft maps are based on the core principles of wildfire science.

“With one more round of public input, we will be well-situated to finalize a hazard map that will contribute to advancing wildfire protection in Oregon, as the Legislature intended,” Williams said.

McEvoy points out three main differences between the original map and the new draft map:

• The maps categorize properties according to three hazard classes – low, moderate or high – rather than five risk classes.
• In response to public feedback to the first map, OSU scientists adjusted the way hazard is calculated in hay and pasturelands, which often won’t burn because they’re either irrigated or grazed. And if they do burn, the scientists point out, it’s usually later in fire season and only under severe weather conditions. The result of the changes is a reduced hazard level for about 1.7 million acres.
• Also in response to public feedback, scientists modified hazard calculations on irrigated croplands to account for irrigation reducing the likelihood and intensity of wildfires in these areas. All croplands identified as having been irrigated in at least one of the last five years were placed in the low hazard category in the current draft map, affecting about 2.7 million acres. The state Board of Forestry will vote in September to finalize the rule on irrigated agriculture.

McEvoy notes that existing defensible space and/or fire hardening characteristics of properties were not accounted for in the hazard calculations.

“The wildfire hazard map is intended to represent environmental hazard as a result of the surrounding climate, weather, topography and vegetation,” he said.

Oregon has 1.8 million tax lots and each has been placed into one of the three hazard categories. The map is so detailed that in some cases, two neighbors may be in different categories.

“The idea is that regardless of which category someone lives in, resources can be offered to help people be as prepared for wildfire as they possibly can be,” McEvoy said.