Yellowstone County Community Wildfire Protection Plan

2025 Update

Introduction

Welcome! This is a story map, or interactive graphic tool, that is devoted to the development of the Yellowstone County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). This CWPP planning process has been ongoing since Fall 2024.

The purpose of this story map is to engage and educate members of the public in the CWPP update process, especially during the time of record-breaking fire seasons and rapid growth in our communities. The story map will be updated as new information becomes available. Please visit the story map regularly for information on how the public can engage in this process by clicking on the Public Engagement heading in the navigation bar.

County Background

Yellowstone County adopted its first CWPP in 2006. Since then, many changes have occurred across the county, including new housing and roads, fires on the landscape, and fuel treatments. These changes can affect the way a community plans for fire and have prompted the need to update the CWPP. The update of the CWPP is rooted in facilitated collaboration among local, state, and federal officials, as well as non-governmental stakeholders and private citizens.

Click on the box below to access and explore the County's current CWPP (2006).

Fire History

Fire is a natural part of Montana’s diverse landscapes and is essential to many ecosystems across the state. Almost all of Montana’s diverse ecosystems are fire-dependent or fire-adapted.

Click on boxes below to view fires in Yellowstone County and surrounding areas through the past five decades.

Wildfires have continued to grow in size and severity over the last decade. This has led to fire managers needing to institute more robust pre-fire planning as well as adapt and improve decision making tools to reduce risk to fire responders and the public.

Fire history is an important component in understanding present fire conditions and preparing for future wildfires. Yellowstone County has a long history of wildfire, as fire is a natural part of the landscape in Montana.

The aggressive fire suppression policies of the 20th century reduced acreage burned but caused a buildup of fuels that has led to more frequent and severe fires today. In the present, wildfires in Yellowstone County are increasing in size and intensity.

As changing climatic conditions continue to impact the landscape, leading to longer fire seasons with more intense fires, new challenges are presented to communities living with wildfire.

Wildfire Risk

A community’s wildfire risk is the combination of likelihood and intensity (together called “hazard”) and exposure and susceptibility (together called “vulnerability”).

In 2020, The Northern Rockies Fire Science Network and MT DNRC partnered to develop a statewide assessment of wildfire risk called the Montana Wildfire Risk Assessment (MWRA). The MWRA serves as the authoritative, updated dataset for wildfire risk across the state.

Learn More:

Visit the MWRA Data Explorer interactive map for the state of Montana that displays the risk layers that contribute to wildfire risk for each county:

BLM Prescribed Fire in 2020, Yellowstone County

Wildfire Risk to Communities was developed by the USDA Forest Service (USFS) to provide a free and intuitive resource to help the public learn more about wildfire risk through interactive maps, charts, and more. According to Wildfire Risk to Communities, the wildfire risk to Yellowstone County is higher than 86% of counties in the US.

Explore Yellowstone County's wildfire risk by clicking the link below.

CWPP Overview

What is a CWPP?

A Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) is a community-based plan focused on identifying and addressing the local threat of wildfire. The CWPP determines what is at risk and provides a roadmap of clear actions for the community to mitigate the risk. CWPPs have been a national standard of practice since 2003 when the Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) was signed into law. CWPPs must meet three minimum requirements:

  • Show collaboration between local and state agencies, in consultation with federal agencies and other interested parties;
  • Identify and prioritize fuel treatments to reduce hazardous fuel areas;
  • Recommend strategies to reduce the ignitability of structures.

A current CWPP (less than 10 years) is required to qualify for millions of dollars in grant funding, such as those available through the U.S. Forest Service’s Community Wildfire Defense Grant Program.

Learn more:

What are the benefits of a CWPP for Yellowstone County?

CWPPs have economic, social, and environmental benefits including:

  • Reducing the direct and indirect social, economic, and environmental costs of wildfire.
  • Coordinating wildfire risk reduction with other community values and priorities.
  • Bringing together diverse interests to tackle local wildfire challenges and opportunities.
  • Identifying potential resources and funding for mitigation activities.
  • Increasing community awareness and engagement in risk reduction.
  • Influencing where federal agencies (BLM, BIA) prioritize fuel treatments.

An updated CWPP facilitates informed and effective decision-making, improving Yellowstone County's ability to plan for, respond to, and recover from wildfire events.

What will the Yellowstone County CWPP update include?

The updated CWPP will include a definition and mapping of the wildland urban interface (WUI), a new County-specific wildfire risk assessment, an action table based on local priorities, and updated content about wildfire history and community development. The update is organized around three themes: resilient landscapes, fire-adapted communities, and improved response and suppression. All three themes are required to coordinate an effective countywide approach to wildfire.

What will NOT be included in the Yellowstone County CWPP update?

The Yellowstone County CWPP does not include information that is provided elsewhere through other agency planning efforts. The CWPP is intended to assist the community by compiling relevant information and recommendations in one document. CWPPs are NOT legally binding and are NOT regulatory documents. For example, the CWPP:

  • Will not provide tactical wildfire response strategies and detailed emergency management plans for neighborhood evacuation routes.
  • Will not focus on detailed vegetation management strategies or prescriptions for individual projects

Updates to the Yellowstone County CWPP

  • Progress report since 2006
  • Summary of changes and updates
  • New risks and challenges

Frequently Asked Questions

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If Yellowstone County has a CWPP already, why does it need to be updated?

Yellowstone County has changed a lot since 2006 when the current CWPP was signed. Though this update is not mandatory, updating the CWPP will allow the County to more appropriately identify the current wildfire risk and mitigation action that is needed. An update also provides access to federal grant funds that are only available to areas with CWPPs that are less than 10 years old. Federal partners will also be able to better prioritize their projects based on locally defined needs.

What is the Healthy Forest Restoration Act and how does it relate to CWPPs?

The Healthy Forest Restoration Act (HFRA) of 2003 was enacted to reduce hazardous fuels on National Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands to better protect communities, watersheds and other lands that could be at risk from wildfires. The HFRA incentivized the creation of CWPPs by requiring federal agencies to prioritize treatment areas identified by a community in a CWPP. A CWPP outlines what is “at risk” and provides priority areas for fuels reduction projects.

Will the CWPP restrict projects or impede landowner's rights in Yellowstone County?

This CWPP will not attempt to mandate the type and priority for treatment projects that will be carried out by the land management agencies and private landowners. Rather, the intent is to provide a countywide scale of wildfire risk and protection needs, bring together the responsible wildfire management and suppression entities, and to support these entities in planning and implementing the necessary mitigation measures.

Will defining a County WUI for this CWPP raise my insurance rates? 

No, but please ask your insurance agent if you are concerned!

According to various insurance agencies, they do not look at an area’s WUI, as defined in their CWPP, to determine risk, rates, and whether to drop policies or not. Insurance companies use their own algorithms and their own risk assessors to determine policy coverage and rates.

Will the CWPP and defining a County WUI result in regulations? 

A CWPP is a NON-REGULATORY document. It cannot require anything as there is no enforcement arm to it. Local codes and regulations must be enacted through local government. Additionally, Montana counties cannot pass codes/regulations stricter than the State standards.

Why does the County need to have a defined WUI as part of the CWPP?  

The WUI is commonly described as the zone where structures/human development meet and/or intermix with wildland fuels. This is often an area of elevated wildfire risk to communities and thus federal agencies (through the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003) are required to prioritize fuels reduction treatments according to a community’s WUI.

CWPPs provide communities with the opportunity to establish a localized definition and boundary of their WUI.

In the absence of a CWPP, HFRA provides a standard definition of WUI that federal agencies must follow.

Why should I care about the CWPP? 

The greatest benefit to each of us from an updated CWPP is to ideally enjoy less risk from wildfire! Wildfire in Yellowstone County is inevitable, but when CWPP action items are funded and implemented, this will directly reduce Yellowstone County residents’ risk to life, home, and property from that inevitability. A CWPP less than 10 years old is required to qualify for grant funding that will support wildfire risk mitigation projects. As part of the CWPP, a current and localized WUI definition will also allow federal agencies to prioritize projects in areas where they are most needed to reduce risk.

How are projects chosen to feature in the CWPP? 

The CWPP Core Team will “choose” or identify projects collaboratively and based on stakeholder input—which includes public input received during public meetings and through public comment avenues.

When will the CWPP be completed?

The Yellowstone County CWPP update is scheduled for completion in July 2025, with the first draft available for public comment by April 2025. Once adopted by the Board of County Commissioners, the real work begins! Stakeholders will use the plan to guide future wildfire planning and mitigation actions. For example, land managers will use the risk assessment to inform future forest fuel treatments and land use planning decisions. Residents may also choose to take further action to identify risk reduction activities on their properties and within their neighborhoods.

Who is involved and how to participate in the CWPP update?

To date, many local, state and federal agencies have been engaged in the update process, including Yellowstone County Department of Emergency Services, City and County Officials, Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Bureau of Land Management, etc. The CWPP update is funded by a federal grant secured by the MT DNRC and sub-awarded to Yellowstone County. Members of the public are encouraged to provide input to county officials through a formal public comment process that will begin following a future public meeting where the final draft of the updated CWPP will be presented. A 30-day public comment period will gather comments from interested public to be reviewed and considered by county officials prior to final adoption. Information on the public review process, as well as links to the plan, will be posted on Yellowstone County’s website:

Please visit this story map regularly for information on how the public can engage in this process.

Public Engagement

Join the Community-Driven Planning Process

A key element in the CWPP updating process is the discussion generated among community members regarding priorities for local fire protection and forest management. Substantive input from the public will ensure that the final document reflects the highest priorities of the local community.

Public Feedback

Yellowstone County has developed a form to collect public feedback to support Yellowstone County's CWPP Update. The form may be accessed through the QR code below:

Upcoming Events

Lockwood Public Meeting

Tuesday, February 11th, 2025 6:00pm-7:00pm (MT) Lockwood Fire Department 501 Johnson Lane Billings, MT 59101

Laurel Public Meeting

Wednesday, February 26th, 2025 6:00pm-8:00pm (MT) First on First 101 W. 1st Street, Suite 101 Laurel, MT 59044

Virtual Public Meeting on Draft CWPP

April 2025

Public Review of Draft CWPP

April 2025 - May 2025

Schedule of Process

September 2024 - July 2025

Core Team Collaboration

April 2025

Complete Draft CWPP

April 2025

Virtual Public Meeting

April 2025 - May 2025

Public Comment Period

July 2025

Final CWPP

For additional information visit:

Community Resources

Billings Fire Protection District, Yellowstone County

 Yellowstone County Disaster & Emergency Services (DES).  The Office of DES is an integrated effort to prevent - or minimize the seriousness of - emergencies and disasters and to plan and coordinate the community's response to them should they occur. It requires establishing partnerships among professional emergency management personnel to prevent, respond to, and recover from disasters. Coordination is a key factor in establishing an emergency management program, and continual improvement saves lives and reduces losses from disasters.

 Keep Montana Green  is dedicated to the prevention of human-caused wildfires. Keep Montana Green promotes awareness about the dangers human caused wildfires can have on Montana's timber, rangelands, the wildland urban interface and public safety. Education, outreach and raising awareness to adults and children are a key part of our mission. Yearly educational campaigns are developed and broadcast across Montana.

 Fire Adapted Montana Learning Network  work with communities and fire managers across Montana to create a wildfire-resilient future. A fire adapted community consists of informed and prepared residents collaboratively planning and taking action to safely co-exist with wildland fire.

 Recovery  supports individuals and communities affected by disasters in their efforts to recover. Individual and Public Assistance programs as well as Long Term Community Recovery efforts assist individuals and communities to recover and mitigate future events.

The  Forestry Division of MT DNRC  is responsible for planning and implementing forestry and fire management programs through an extensive network of staff located in field and unit offices across the state. They deliver the following major functions: fire protection, forestry assistance, implementing the Good Neighbor Authority, executing the Montana Forest Action Plan, business management, and policy-planning & outreach.

The  Firewise USA®  program is here to help you get started protecting your home and neighborhood as well as your family's safety.

The  Ready, Set, Go!  Program seeks to empower fire departments to engage the residents they serve in wildland fire community risk reduction.

The  National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC)  aims to ensure that wildland fire personnel and other emergency services employees across the nation receive the support and information they need to do their job in a safe, effective, and efficient manner.

 Living with Fire  convenes communities and stakeholders to address the challenges of wildfire. Through trusted partnerships, they create science-based education and outreach programs that equitably address emerging social and ecological needs.

 Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS)  delivers top-tier science and translates it into action to prevent avoidable suffering, strengthen homes and businesses, inform the insurance industry, and support thriving communities.

Get  Ready  is a National public service campaign designed to educate and empower the American people to prepare for, respond to and mitigate emergencies and disasters. The goal of the campaign is to promote preparedness through public involvement.

 FEMA - Wildfire Actions  supports state-led wildfire fighting efforts through a variety of grant programs.

Acknowledgements

Local Partners

  • Fire Departments and Rural Fire Districts
  • Yellowstone County DES
  • Yellowstone Board of County Commissioners
  • Yellowstone County Residents, Private Landowners, and Community Councils

State Partners

  • Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation

Federal Partners

  • Bureau of Land Management
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs

BLM Prescribed Fire in 2020, Yellowstone County

Billings Fire Protection District, Yellowstone County