Napa Valley Land Stewards Alliance
P.O. Box 3238, Napa, CA 94558
October 15, 2004
Dear Dry Creek-Lokoya Fire District property owner:
In the summer of 2003, over 3600 Southern California families lost their homes to wildfire because they had not properly managed the fire hazard in their neighborhoods. Although we Northern Californians like to think we are more self-reliant and in control of our own destinies, our own Atlas Peak Fire of 1981, the Oakland Hills fire of 1991, the Cavedale fire of 1996, and the recent Rumsey fire demonstrate that if we don’t pay attention, it can happen to us, too.
Each year we have chosen not to think about the big fire. We have closed that little door in our minds and simply hoped for the best. So far we have been lucky, but each year brings us a little closer to disaster, because our luck will eventually run out.
Our side of the Valley is long overdue for a fire. The ridge I live on has not burned for 80 years. The dense underbrush and accumulated dead and fallen trees now provide sufficient material to fuel a very hot fire. A fire in these conditions could destroy not only our homes, but also the forest that makes this such a great place to live. In that case, even the value of our property as a place to rebuild would go up in smoke.
We can continue to bury our heads in the sand and just hope for the best, or we can take control of our future and protect our homes, our forest, and the value of our property by working together to reduce the fire hazard in our district.
Some of us have already begun. The Mount Veeder Fire Safe Council has cleared the underbrush and fallen debris to create a demonstration shaded fuel break on top of Mount Veeder. The Fire Safe Council also secured financing for last year’s chipper program (providing a chipper and crew to chip the brush cut by residents). Warren Kubler has been organizing work parties to de-brush the old fire trails and make them passable. I have cleared and chipped all the underbrush and fallen debris from several acres around my house and along a 75-foot wide path centered on my one-mile driveway, thereby creating a shaded fuel break from Dry Creek Road to the top of the ridge to the west. Others have similar projects in mind or under way.
Napa Valley Land Stewards Alliance representatives have met with CDF, the Mount Veeder Fire Safe Council, and Napa County Planning Department to ensure that there will be no bureaucratic obstacles, and I am happy to report that we have the support of all those agencies.
There are many benefits to reducing our fire hazard. Clearing the old fire trails provides access to fires and creates a network of fuel breaks that makes it possible to confine a fire to a smaller area. Reducing the fuel loads along our driveways and around our homes provides us and the fire department safe ingress and egress in the event of a fire. Eliminating underbrush and other ladder fuels prevents the fire from getting hot enough to destroy mature trees and the property value and quality of life that derive from them. It also makes it more likely that the Fire Department will try to save our homes from the fire, rather than the ones down the road that might be more difficult or more dangerous to defend. In addition, clearing out the underbrush makes our property more accessible, beautiful, pleasant, and valuable. Reducing our fire hazard is a win-win proposition. It is worth every penny it costs. We simply cannot afford not to do it.
No one is going to do this for us, and none of us can do it alone. It is up to all of us, the landowners and residents in the Dry Creek-Lokoya Fire District, to voluntarily work together to get the job done. It will require a conscious decision by each of us to take responsibility for our own safety and property, to encourage all our neighbors to do the same, and to help those who need help. The more properties we can protect, the better off we will all be, and if enough of us act, we can take control of our future and avoid the fate of those unfortunate Southern Californians.
Success is within our reach if we take it one step at a time:
1.The first step is to maximize the defensible space around our homes and provide safe access along our driveways.
2. The second step is to de-brush and grade the old fire roads on our property to provide access to the fire as well as a potential second exit from our property.
3. The third step is to clear the underbrush from a wide margin along both sides of our driveways and fire roads.
4. The fourth step is to extend that network of fuel breaks to connect hillside vineyards and natural clearings to the County Roads, thus compartmentalizing the forest into defensible parcels.
5. The fifth step is to reduce and maintain the fuel loads within all those defensible parcels so a fire will have no chance of destroying our forest.
We don’t know when the big fire will come, just that it will. Protecting ourselves and our property from that fire is our responsibility. It will take time and effort, but it is achievable, and it is the best investment we can make.
Napa Valley Land Stewards Alliance is willing to help organize this effort, but we need your assistance. If you can help us plan and coordinate it, please contact me as soon as possible. If you prefer to just reduce the fire hazard on your own property, or if you want to see a demonstration project, or simply want more information, then please let me know. You may return the enclosed post card with your response, or if you prefer, you can email me or call me.
I will assemble a list and map of all participants and their proposed projects, so we can all see the big picture and how we each fit into it. I hope you will want your property on that map and that you will also want your neighbors’ properties on it for your protection as well as for theirs.
By communicating and working together we can better encourage, support, and assist each other, and by mapping the cooperating properties we can coordinate our efforts for maximum effectiveness, monitor our progress, and educate and inspire more people to participate.
The next move is up to you. Please mail your response card now.
Sincerely,
George Bachich, president
Napa Valley Land Stewards Alliance