Time to be proactive on wildfires
Summer in Whitefish is a time to enjoy the outdoors with family and friends and to take advantage of the many recreational opportunities that abound here. Visitors come from all over the world to experience the natural beauty and abundant wildlife that we sometimes take for granted as locals.
As we look at the surrounding areas of Whitefish, we see a carpet of endless lush green forests, as well as crystal clear lakes and streams that are home to many species of native fish and comprise the watersheds for the water that we drink.
In such a beautiful natural environment, it's sometimes easy to forget that this is also a time of year when wildfires visit here, as they have been doing long before there was a Whitefish, or Montanans, or even a Montana. As a result, most Montanans have learned how to live with wildfires and to respect the risks that these unwanted visitors pose to our homes and loved ones.
Over the past several decades, however, scientists have noticed an increase in extreme wildfire behavior throughout the western United States and other parts of the world. We've all seen the recent news reports of the tragic and devastating wildfires in California and Australia that resulted in the loss of hundreds of lives and destroyed thousands of homes.
Scientists have become increasingly concerned that fire seasons in Montana and elsewhere are becoming longer, and that the risks are becoming more severe with each passing year. As a result, a more proactive approach is necessary to help manage and reduce the risk that wildfires pose to the greater Whitefish community in order to help keep a bad fire year from becoming a catastrophe for our community.
A balanced group of interested citizens, landowners and governmental agencies have been working together to help raise public awareness of this increasing wildfire threat and to help educate citizens and homeowners on simple ways that they can help reduce the risks that wildfires pose to us all.
This group, which includes the recently created Whitefish Area Fire Safe Council, has collaborated to put on a day-long informational event titled "Living with Wildfire" on Saturday, June 27, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the O'Shaughnessy.
At 10 a.m., I will give a "community fire risk update," with the assistance of local fire experts and analysts who are familiar with Whitefish fire history and the current condition of the surrounding forests. I will also welcome and introduce our new Whitefish fire chief, Tom Kennelly, to those of you who have not yet met him, and will recognize the contribution that firefighters make in keeping the Whitefish community a safe place in which to live. Chief Kennelly is committed to helping us address the genuine wildfire risks that exist here and has substantial experience in this field from his work in Colorado.
Recently, Whitefish took a major step toward developing a more collaborative approach in reducing the risks associated with wildfires by creating a Whitefish Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP), which will be available for discussion at the "Living with Wildfire" event and posted online at www.whitefish.govoffice.com.
This CWPP helps identify areas at particular risk from wildfires and helps with community planning to address those risks. This CWPP will be periodically reviewed and updated as conditions and circumstances warrant. The active involvement by homeowners, citizens, and landowners is critical to the success of the Whitefish CWPP and to the overall effort to reduce the risk that wildfires pose to our community.
The "Living with Wildfire" event will offer the public free information about simple things that can be done to help reduce wildfire risks for our homes and ourselves. Event organizers anticipate that information about public grants to help homeowners with fuels reduction projects will also be available. Videos that show the benefits of "firewising" around one's home, to create what is known as "defensible space," and other fairly simple protective measures that can be taken, will be played throughout the day in the O'Shaughnessy, which has been dubbed "Wildfire Theater" for the event.
Fuels reduction contractors will also be on hand to display some of the equipment used when doing "firewising" work and to answer any questions that the public has about them. Firefighters from Whitefish Fire Department, Big Mountain Fire Department, Forest Service, and Department of Natural Resources and Conservation will be available to help answer questions about how private citizens can help with this effort.
Smokey Bear will be on hand, and there will be music, prizes and gifts for adults and kids alike. This event promises to be both fun and informative. We cordially invite you to join us at the O'Shaughnessy on June 27. If we work together, we can make our wonderful community an even safer place in which to live. I look forward to seeing you there.
Mike Jenson is the mayor of Whitefish.