14 Summer 2016 Applegater
Big puppy and little stuff
BY SANDY SHAFFER
Can you believe it? Our puppy
Maggie turned one year old on April
Fool’s Day! No joke: our 86-pound Akita
pup is huge! And since larger breeds
stay puppies longer than smaller breeds,
we’ll continue to enjoy her sweet, playful
personality for some time.
Maggie has definitely joined our
family “pack.” We enjoy the little things
that she does: sharing her toys, keeping
herself occupied when we’re outside
working, and letting us know that the
wild turkeys are on the deck again. She
loves to travel, especially to the beach!
Of course, going for walks in our
woods is the best. Maggie notices the
smallest things—spiders, butterflies, a
hawk up riding the lofts. Watching her
try to climb a tree to catch a lizard is just
hilarious! Isn’t it always the little things
in life that mean the most?
And yes, this is the time of year when
all of us in the Applegate need to address
those annual “little things”: leaves, pine
needles, weeds. Even though here in
Buncom we’ve had over 29 inches of rain
since the “rain year” began on the first of
October, we are not guaranteed a free pass
during fire season! We could still have
plenty of wildfires this summer, caused
by humans and lightning.
Why are fine fuels so important?
Because, over 90 percent of homes that
burn in a wildfire do so because of flying
embers, not from the main front of a fire.
Embers or firebrands can travel up to a
mile ahead of a nearby wildfire. Where
they land is a crapshoot; however, what
they find if they land on or near your
house is something you can affect!
If you’re like us, you didn’t fully
understand or appreciate the threat
of wildfire when you bought or built
your home in the Applegate. A home’s
location, design, and building materials
all play a role in how fire-safe the home
can be.
We can’t change the location of our
house. So, we make sure our driveway is
well-marked and vegetation is thinned
for safe access/egress. Living in the
woods, we thin our trees 30-100 feet out
from the house, limb up ladder fuels, and
remove dead materials. Extra thinning
can also help mitigate a steep slope or the
not-so-safe location of a propane tank.
The location of your home
in relation to other buildings
(your “home ignition zone” or HIZ)
is important: radiant heat causes fire
to spread from structure to structure.
Thirty feet is the minimum safe distance
“This has been a great opportunity
to bring the neighborhood together.”
■ FIREWISE
Continued from page 1
manzanita and other ladder fuels next to
the homes. They were greatly appreciated
by all the neighbors. Carey Chaput from
the Applegate Fire Department also came
by to offer her support and expertise.
We all got together for a barbecue lunch
to celebrate our hard work. This has
been a great opportunity to bring the
neighborhood together to work on our
defensible space and also take time to
visit with each other. We look forward to
receiving our certification soon.”
What is a Firewise
Community? Simply, a group of
homeowners who live in the wildland-
urban interface and want to be better
prepared against losing their homes
to wildfire. They work together with
local agencies (ODF, Bureau of Land
Management, US Forest Service, the
county, etc.) as appropriate to develop
a plan that addresses and mitigates
their risks; they form a leadership
board; they pledge to maintain work
annually; they eagerly share experiences
with other community members who
are interested in being Firewise, and
they eventually get national Firewise
Community recognition.
There are no size requirements—7,
20 or 50 homes all qualify. A stretch of
road, a cluster
of homes, a
neighborhood
or small town
could all work
This ODF work crew helped seven households off Griffin Lane
clean up defensible space in order
to be accredited as a Firewise Community.
to keep between buildings,
whether it’s a garage, shed or
neighboring houses. If you
haven’t already, please define
your HIZ right away, so that
you can make sure you’re
being as safe as possible this
summer. Then, keep it clean
and clear!
We usually can’t change
our home’s building design,
so we have to be aware of
and inspect eaves, overhangs,
open spaces under decks,
“valleys” in the roof, curved
tile roofing, and re-entrant
(interior) corners of the
building. Debris from birds
or insects, as well as dry
leaves, needles, twigs, or
moss, can all collect in these
spots, providing beds of fuel
Maggie, the big tree-climbing puppy, is after another lizard.
for embers. Remove all fine
fuels prior to and during fire season.
feature to something more fire-safe, then
Building materials can, of course, keep it in good shape. Do at least annual
be replaced as a home ages. Increasing a vegetation thinning and/or maintenance
roof’s fire rating, and changing to double- work. Lastly, be aware of and monitor
pane windows are great improvements. your vulnerable spots during fire season.
Siding and deck materials should be clean And have a hose ready!
and well maintained; if replacement is
Lots of “little things” to
needed, a fire-resistant alternative should consider for a safe fire season in the
be considered.
Applegate. I sure wish Maggie could help
Mitigation and maintenance us haul slash!
are the operative words here. If you
Sandy Shaffer
can’t immediately change out a building
sassyoneor@gmail.com
together to be more fire-safe, prepared,
and Firewise by taking these steps.
Step 1: An interested rural
landowner (someone like you) starts
talking to neighbors about working
together to make their neighborhood
homes more fire-resilient. Or, they call
ODF to talk about how to get started,
to find out what the process is, or
exactly what they should say to their
neighbors and friends to gain interest.
Step 2: The group of interested
homeowners meets to talk about the
process of becoming Firewise. A board
is elected to lead the group. Some
ideas, concerns, or specific tasks might
be initially identified as work to be
accomplished.
The group
agrees to
participate in
this process,
to help with
the work, and
to maintain
the work
annually. The
board contacts
the local ODF
Firewise-fuels
specialist and
provides the
participants’
information.
A site visit by
ODF is then
scheduled.
Step 3: ODF contacts the
neighbors, makes appointments, and
conducts the neighborhood Risk
Assessment: where are the fuels, what
are the threats, what needs to be
accomplished to make this community
fire-safe and Firewise?
Step 4: An action plan is agreed
upon by all, a date is set for the work
party, and the work is done by a crew
from ODF and the neighbors. Everyone
relaxes at the end of that work day with
a good meal, good friends, and a sense
of accomplishment.
Step 5: ODF submits the
neighborhood, their assessment, and
their completed work to the national
Firewise organization for accreditation.
Step 6: Accreditation is received,
along with Firewise Community signs
to post, and a date for next year’s work
party is set!
Southwest Oregon’s ODF
currently has grant dollars to cover
the costs of its work crews! So, if you
are interested in learning more, contact
Herb Johnson (Jackson County) at
541-664-3328 or Joe Pryts (Josephine
County) at 541-474-3152. And talk to
your neighbors!
Peggy Martin
Herb Johnson • 541-664-3328
herb.a.johnson@oregon.gov
Sandy Shaffer • sassyoneor@gmail.com
For more information about Firewise
Communities, including the Recognition
Program, visit www.firewise.org.