Harden for wildfire
Harden for wildfire
Why?
In California, catastrophic wildfires are growing in number and size. Do what you can to protect yourself and your family.
Prepare for smoke
Poor air quality can be a health hazard, especially for children, pregnant women, older adults, and people with lung and heart conditions. Protect your health by taking recommended precautions.
Resources:
Harden your home (for building owner)
Your home can be exposed to wildfire in three ways: direct flames from a wildfire or neighboring home, radiant heat from nearby burning plants or structures, and flying embers. Flying embers from a wildfire can destroy homes up to a mile away and are responsible for the destruction of most homes during a wildfire.
Fire Safe Sonoma is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation and is the countywide Fire Safe Council serving Sonoma County since 1988. Over the past two decades, Fire Safe Sonoma has been instrumental in helping to educate residents about wildfire prevention and safety, taking on large scale fuels reduction projects, and creating the first chipper program in the county.
Resources:
Create defensible space
This is the buffer you create between a building on your property and the grass, trees, shrubs, or any wildland area that surround it. This space is needed to slow or stop the spread of wildfire and it helps protect your home from catching fire.
Reducing wildfire risks includes both maintaining defensible space and hardening your home. The top 3 things you can do to make your home more fire-resistant are to:
Incorporate fire- and ember-resistant construction materials, installation details, and maintenance.
Avoid combustible materials on the property, especially within the first five feet of the home.
Be thoughtful about landscaping choices and maintenance.
If you live in the country, check out this Community Grazing Cooperative as a potential way to empower yourself in land stewardship. Shared by the community, the grazing ruminants are walked down the road from neighbor to neighbor to serve as community ambassadors and to help manage everyone's fire fuel load.
Local nonprofit Audubon Canyon Ranch's robust Fire Forward Program trains people to safely use “good fire" and help build resilient communities.
Grants:
Fire Safe Sonoma lists currently active grants that Sonoma County communities and fire mitigation groups can apply for. We know grants are especially crucial in this work, so that is why we have this resource and offer our services as a fiscal sponsor. For more information, check out the links below, or contact our Executive Coordinator, Marika at marika@firesafesonoma.org.
To find and apply for federal funding opportunities visit https://www.grants.gov/. Grants.gov is a centralized website where grant seekers can find and apply for federal funding opportunities, streamlining the process for both applicants and grant-making agencies.