Only a fraction of the $2.7 billion spent by the federal government to reduce forest fire risk in the West went to the areas near homes, according to a new study.
The study by University of Colorado researchers found that 11 percent of “fuel-reduction activities” took place in the so-called wildland-urban interface, a prime area for home development.
“It looks like fire-mitigation treatments were not targeted to the wildland-urban interface,” said Tania Schoennagel, a CU geographer and lead author on the study.
Most of the projects, which included thinning trees and removing brush, were 6 miles or more from the developed areas, according to the study, which will be published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The study raises the question of whether the National Fire Plan, which calls for fuels reduction around the interface, is being met or should be revised, forest fire experts said.
One reason federal agencies — such as the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management — might shy away from the interface is that 70 percent of the land is in private hands, according to the study.
“This may pose management problems,” Schoennagel said, “and extra costs.”
Between 2001 and 2006, $2.7 billion in federal funds was allocated for fuels reduction. From 2002 to 2006, wildfires destroyed 10,000 homes.
The study looked at 11,000 federally funded fuel-reduction programs in 11 states between 2004 and 2008.
The key area — or ignition zone — for any house is the surrounding 100 to 200 feet. This land is almost always in private hands, according to separate research by Jack Cohen, a forest service scientist.
“We are largely trying to reduce forest-fire risk far from homes in the hopes the fires don’t reach them,” Cohen said.
The study underscores the need for community-based planning and programs, said Volker Radeloff, a forest science researcher at the University of Wisconsin.
“The problem here is that so much of the land is in private hands that you can’t do big public projects,” said Radeloff, who was not part of the study.
In Colorado, the state forest service has embarked on about 120 community wildfire protection plans that range from a single subdivision to a county.
“We are bringing all the stakeholders together and develop a plan regardless of ownership or boundaries,” said Scott Woods, the state’s wildfire mitigation coordinator.
The state is providing between $1.5 million and $3 million a year in matching grants for risk-reduction projects, Woods said. “There’s no question we could use more resources.”
Mark Jaffe: 303-954-1912 or mjaffe@denverpost.com
