Wildfire Mitigation Proposals

Potential Wildfire Mitigation Actions

Deschutes County is considering changes to help reduce the risk of wildfire. Specifically, changes to building codes and land use regulations are being considered to better protect our communities from wildfire. The potential regulations would only apply in the rural county outside of city limits. The two measures the County is considering include the use of fire-resistant building materials for new rural residential construction and requiring Defensible Space standards for all rural properties.

Deschutes County Wildfire Story Maps

An interactive StoryMap web feature has been created to provide background information about wildfire risk in Central Oregon and to outline the potential measures being considered to reduce wildfire risks. Click on the tabs located on the left side of the page (at the bottom if you are on a mobile device), to learn more about the history of wildfire in the region, current strategies the community is using to reduce risk, and future preventative measures. Click on the following link to launch the story map:

www.deschutes.org/WildfireMitigationStoryMap

Public Outreach Initiatives

The Deschutes County Planning Division conducted a series of public outreach initiatives during the Fall and Winter of 2020 to gauge community interest regarding the wildfire mitigation proposals. Those outreach events culminated in nearly 1,200 individual survey responses from residents, two virtual open house events with the Deschutes County Planning Committee, and numerous comments from community members, fire protection officials, and development interests in the region. The final results of those outreach initiatives are outlined below in the Wildfire Mitigation Outreach Summary Report.

Should the County elect to pursue any additional wildfire mitigation regulations or programs, the public will be afforded additional opportunities to provide testimony and information at a future date.

Next Steps and Considerations

At this time, the State of Oregon is considering a number of legislative bills which may directly affect wildfire mitigation actions in our region. Based on these items, the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners (Board) has elected to evaluate the outcome of any state-level wildfire mitigation bills before proceeding with any additional local mitigation efforts. On February 24, 2021, the Board outlined its commitment to leave the County's currently adopted Wildfire Hazard Zone (WHZ) unchanged, regardless of any final decisions related to future wildfire mitigation measures.

The boundaries of the current WHZ and a general summary of WHZs can located at the following locations:

Map of Current Deschutes County Wildfire Hazard Zone

General Wildfire Hazard Zone Information

A list of bills currently pending at the Oregon State Legislature can be found at the following location:

https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/citizen_engagement/Pages/Find-a-Bill.aspx

More Information

For questions, or more information, please contact:

Peter Gutowsky, Planning Manager: 541-385-1709, Peter.Gutowsky@deschutes.org
Kyle Collins, Associate Planner: 541-383-4427, Kyle.Collins@deschutes.org

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Further resources and community wildfire mitigation programs: