Updated wildfire hazard map provides landowners, policymakers with objective data to inform wildfire management strategies

Jan. 7, 2025

Updated wildfire hazard map provides landowners, policymakers with objective data to inform wildfire management strategies

By Steve Lundeberg, 541-737-4039, [email protected]

Source: Andy McEvoy, [email protected]

This news release is available online: https://beav.es/Gnw

Photos: https://beav.es/GnL

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

The maps can be viewed online on Oregon Explorer; they will be updated about every five years.

The wildfire hazard map was mandated by Senate Bill 762, a $195 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.

The hazard map is designed to support property owners with information about potential wildfire hazard in the landscapes where they live. It also provides state agencies with guidance as to where actions can be taken to reduce the danger wildfire poses to people, homes and property.

The Oregon Department of the State Fire Marshal and the Department of Consumer and Business Services Building Codes Division will use the hazard map, along with the wildland-urban interface map also developed by OSU, to identify which properties will be prioritized for wildfire-related education, as well as where to apply new codes regarding defensible space and fire hardening.

According to the maps, 6% of all tax lots, or approximately 106,000, meet these criteria. Landowners for those tax lots will be notified by the Department of Forestry via mail and will also receive informational resources.

By law, the maps cannot be used by insurers to adjust rates. Oregon’s Division of Financial Regulation oversees the insurance industry in the state.

“The wildfire hazard map is informed by decades of research on the nature of wildfire, where it begins, why it exists, and what the challenges are,” said OSU College of Forestry wildfire scientist Andy McEvoy. “The wildfire hazard map is intended to provide property owners and policymakers with an objective foundation for making decisions.”

The map’s release comes at a time of increasing wildfire hazard across Oregon because of longer fire seasons and more pronounced periods of hot, dry conditions, including drier vegetation that can lead to rapid wildfire spread and greater fire intensity.

Senate Bill 762 directed Oregon State University to consider four criteria for calculating wildfire hazard: climate, weather, topography and vegetation. Scientists consulted available data in published scientific research, including weather data and climate data. The process was informed by three years of public engagement with partner agencies (Oregon Department of Forestry, Oregon Department of the State Fire Marshal, Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services), fire modeling experts, local subject matter experts, advisory committees and stakeholders.

“Wildfire hazard represents an environmental perspective of how climate, weather, and landscape characteristics all interact and determine where fires occur, how often they occur, and how they behave, said McEvoy. “Hazard maps, and the science behind them, help both landowners and policymakers better understand the wildfire problem and make informed decisions about how we might solve it.”

About the OSU College of Forestry: For a century, the College of Forestry has been a world class center of teaching, learning and research. It offers graduate and undergraduate degree programs in sustaining ecosystems, managing forests and manufacturing wood products; conducts basic and applied research on the nature and use of forests; and operates more than 15,000 acres of college forests.

On-campus TV and radio services: Oregon State University is equipped with on-campus television and radio studios/services that can be used by journalists. Live or live-to-tape broadcast television and radio interviews can be conducted using Vyvx, Zoom, Webex or Comrex (IP Audio). Oregon State staff can also gather b-roll and coordinate live-to-tape interviews on locations throughout campus. For radio, Oregon State’s Comrex (IP Audio) provides a broadcast-quality audio feed.