Cohasset

Tree density changed after 1905 when modern fire suppression techniques were implemented. (Two unlogged locations in Lassen Volcanic National Park)

For thousands of years, Native Americans in what is now California and across the West treated and nurtured fire like a natural resource through the practice of cultural burning.

Cultural burning views fire as restorative, not destructive.

Native people burn to enhance vegetation, not just remove it. Reducing fuel loads is just one of many benefits fire holds for ecosystems. For millennia, Indigenous people worldwide have applied small fires to the land to renew plants and watersheds for food, wildlife habitat, medicine, basketry and other cultural uses.

As wildfires burn bigger, hotter and more frequently each year, state and local agencies, groups and landowners are increasingly looking to Native people — the original land managers — for guidance on living with fire.

"There’s a difference between cultural burning and just setting fire on the land. We use fire as a tool." – Ron Goode

Historically, wildfires in California tended to burn frequently but at lower temperatures that maintained healthy soil, water and forests. Prescribed fires and cultural burns both serve to mimic those conditions.

Photos and text from: Rethinking wildfire Cultural burning and the art of not fighting fire by Kat Kerlin October 01, 2020

Of the seven Ridge-Top communities in Butte County,only three have remained unscathed by wildfire over the last twenty years.

The following map shows flame length before and after fuels reduction treatment. Twenty five foot plus flames can become four to eight foot flames after treatment. Simulation does not include wind speed just current fuel loading. Use the slider to compare.

Most of the recent catastrophic fires in the Butte County area have been driven by north wind events. Winds during the 2018 Camp Fire reached speeds in excess of 60 mph, and the 2020 North Complex Fire’s exponential growth was driven by winds gusting to 45 mph. In Cohasset, north winds are not uncommon in the fall and can have maximum wind speeds over 30 mph.

The following maps show fire spread before (left) and after (right) the proposed treatment. Fire spread is measured from time of ignition in a set hourly interval period. Use the slider to compare.

The following slides show the progression of a fire from ignition to a crown fire and gives key solutions to help reduce negative impacts on your property.

Cohasset and the surrounding area have one travel route for access; Cohasset Road. In the case of a major wildfire, this evacuation route becomes paramount for the survival of community members.

One of the ideas that has been repeated throughout this document is that YOU are responsible for yourself and your property. Over grown vegetation is a safety hazard to your home and your neighbors. Any vegetation treatment that you do to your property can positively impact your home and your neighbors. When you clear over grown vegetation, you're decreasing the chances that your home can be destroyed by a catastrophic wildfire.

The many suggestions provided throughout this document can help prevent your home from igniting. Fire hardening your home, removing all flammable materials within seven feet, keeping flammable vegetation within 30 feet to a minimum and decreasing ladder fuels on your property is the best way to keep your home, your property and your community safe.

Don't forget you're not alone. There's an abundance of resources available to assist you with keeping your property fire safe:

“Funding for this project has been provided by the Sierra Nevada Conservancy, an agency of the State of California, under the California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoors access For All Act of 2018 (Proposition 68)”

Sources:

Accessed 29 March 2021.

BKVC. “Creating a ‘Safety Zone’ for use in a wildfire emergency.” Mendocino County Fire Safe Council. 20 May 2017.  https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/hardening-your-home/ 

Butte County Air Quality Management District. CEQA Air Quality Handbook – October 23, 2014.  https://bcaqmd.org/wp-content/uploads/CEQA-Handbook-Appendices-2014.pdf 

Cal fire. “Hardening your Home.” Ready for Wildfire.  https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/hardening-your-home/ . Accessed 19 March 2021.

Cal Fire. “Maintain Defensible Space.” Ready for Wildfire.  https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/defensible-space/ . Accessed 19 March 2021.

California Fire Safe Council. “Is your Home Hardened to Survive a Wildfire Ember Storm?.” 2019-CFSC Brochure Hardened-Homes.  https://cafiresafecouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/2019-CFSC_Brochure_HARDENED-HOMES.pdf 

County of Butte. “4.3 Air Quality” Butte County.  https://www.buttecounty.net/Portals/10/Docs/Planning/Projects/SP08-0001/4%203%20Air%20Quality.pdf . Accessed 25 February 2021

Diversified Resources INC. “What is Mastication?.” driforest.com.  https://www.readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/get-ready/hardening-your-home/ . Accessed 19 March 2021.

Idaho Fire Wise. “Fire Ecology & Management.” Idahofirewise.org.  https://idahofirewise.org/fire-ecology-and-management/wildfire-ignition-behavior-and-effects/  Accessed 29 March 2021.

Pacific Southwest Research Station. “General strategies for promoting resilience to wildfire.” Forest Service U.S. Department of Agriculture.  https://www.fs.fed.us/psw/topics/fire_science/ecosystems/resilience.shtml 

U.S. Forest Service “Resilient Landscape.” Forest Service U.S. Department of Agriculture.  https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/fire/resilient-landscapes . 29 March 2021.

University of California Cooperative Extension. “Community Action & Involvement.” ucanr.edu.  https://ucanr.edu/sites/fire/Prepare/Community/ . Accessed 29 March 2021.

University of California Cooperative Extension. “Preparing your Home.” Ucanr.edu.  https://ucanr.edu/sites/fire/Prepare/Building/ . Accessed 19 March 2021. 

Safety Zone Research; National Wildfire Coordinating Group:  https://www.nwcg.gov/committee/6mfs/safety-zone-research