Firewise USA®, sponsored by the National Fire Protection Association, is a national program that encourages homeowners and communities to take action to reduce their wildfire risk. These actions, such as creating and maintaining defensible space, should happen before a wildfire occurs. These recognized Firewise USA® Sites have an on-going commitment toward reducing their overall wildfire risk.
To become a Firewise USA® Site the following steps must be taken:
- Wildfire Risk Assessment: Enlist a Texas A&M Forest Service WUI Coordinator to complete a wildfire risk assessment and create a plan that identifies agreed-upon achievable solutions to be implemented by the community.
- Board/Committee: Form a board/committee of residents and other stakeholders to develop a multi-year Action Plan based on the assessment. The board oversees the annual renewal requirements.
- Action Plans: Are a prioritized list of risk reduction projects developed by the board/committee from the risk assessment to help reduce wildfire risk.
- Educational Outreach: Each participating site is required to have a minimum of one wildfire risk reduction education event, or related activity annually.
- Wildfire Risk Reduction Investment: At a minimum, each site is required to invest the equivalent of one volunteer hour per dwelling unit in risk reduction actions annually.
- Application: Applicants begin the overall process by creating a site profile at: Portal.firewise.org. The application is eligible for submission when the overall criteria is completed.
For more information about the Firewise USA® program in Texas, visit https://tfsweb.tamu.edu/ProtectYourCommunity/, or contact Texas A&M Forest Service Firewise Coordinator Kari Hines, (512) 375-0354, khines@tfs.tamu.edu
How to Prepare Your Home for Wildfires (English and Spanish)