Tom McMackin
Special Note: Regarding Evergreen Trees
No New pruning or removal work — Now until the Fall’s first frost! It can attract Ips Beetle(s) to your trees and the wider surrounding area and begin an infestation cycle that will spread rapidly, potentially killing your pines and seriously impacting your lovely White Oak/Evergreen Savannah vistas. New springtime damage (such as pruning) attracts beetles, allows easy access for laying their eggs in the ‘injured’ tree, and exposes all other trees to beetle infestation!
The wildland fire season begins NOW! (The snow, mud, ice, and muck are purely a distraction…)
Fire is a natural component of all of Nature’s ecosystems. The White Oak/Evergreen Savannah we live in and call High Prairie is no exception. This coexistence is referred to as a WUI — Wildland [no humans]/Urban [humans] Interface. A wildland fire event in our WUI is entirely a matter of ‘When’ not ‘If’. The primary ‘if’ variable factors are how bad and how long-term any impacts may be!
The Firewise USA® program is a community-based program developed for individuals and communities to bring wildfire awareness, education, and practical resources to humans in their unique WUIs. It is not a clear-cut and take-no-prisoners horticulture mandate. Following a list of sequential tasks using the Firewise concepts and principles empowers you to create a ‘defensible space’ zone, which deters wildfire impact on your property and increases fire response teams’ ability to safely protect lives and property. The program also provides communities with a framework for reducing the risk of wildfire, encouraging neighbors to work together and take action; and it offers a variety of resources to assist homeowners, program participants, and other wildfire stakeholders.
High Prairie Fire supports the Firewise effort, but it is not a program or function of Klickitat County Fire Protection District 14/High Prairie. If you are interested in learning more about Firewise or becoming involved in developing and participating in this effort for your High Prairie community, please contact me using the contact
Special Note: Regarding Evergreen Trees
No New pruning or removal work — Now until the Fall’s first frost! It can attract Ips Beetle(s) to your trees and the wider surrounding area and begin an infestation cycle that will spread rapidly, potentially killing your pines and seriously impacting your lovely White Oak/Evergreen Savannah vistas. New springtime damage (such as pruning) attracts beetles, allows easy access for laying their eggs in the ‘injured’ tree, and exposes all other trees to beetle infestation!
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information at the end of this article.
Firewise actions to take now:
First order of business — Follow up on your checked-off Fall ‘Firewise To-Do List’
Begin disposal of your Fall 2023 collected property clean-up material and slash. Gather it into a location or locations that are readily accessible and safe for you to easily prepare the debris for chipping or burning, as you choose.
WA DNR burn pile guidelines specify that only ‘natural’ — grass, weed, brush, or tree — sourced debris are legal. A burn permit is not required by KCFPD #14 at this time; however, adding trash to a burn pile or using a burn barrel are illegal and may result in citations and fines. https://www.dnr.wa.gov/publications/rp_burn_outdoors_northeast_english.pdf
Firewise — things to do for this Spring & early Summer:
Survey your Firewise buffer zones. Create a checklist for action(s) you can start, given the weather, etc.
1st: [0-5’] Inspect your home and other structures from the top down / from foundation out 5 feet…
• Observe where things like leaves, small twigs, pine needles & cones, etc. accumulated for removal
• Is there anything combustible on or near by that might hold an ember or lead fire to your house ?
** Clean-up & Clear up these areas (Now! or scheduled as weather allows)
2nd: [5’-30’] From your buildings’ foundations out into your surrounding spaces
[30’ is a minimum buffer area between structures or other fuel sources for defensive firefighting & protection]
• Create a plan for making this zone ‘protective’ for your property and a working zone for any firefighters, who are assigned to protect your home and other homes near your property.
• Is there an accessible ‘fire lane’ around your structures for them to work ?
** Create and execute a plan in the next 4–6 weeks… (well before High Prairie’s burn ban goes into effect!)
3rd — [30’-100’] From the close in Firewise buffers above — plan for work in your wild rural environments.
** Clean-up & Clear up these zones as you can, working from the center outward !
Resources —
Contact me, Tom McMackin, if you’d like more information on the ‘Firewise’ and ‘Ready, Set, Go!’ programs; if you have comments or suggestions; or if you would like to be more involved with the High Prairie Firewise effort. I can answer questions and get you connected with the resources we have available as a recognized Firewise Community. Contact me by email at Firewise.onhighprairie@gmail.com or by phone message by calling 509-365-2786. Please, if you don’t receive a response from your email, call me!
Online resources:
http://www.Firewise.org or http://www.Firewise.org/wildfire-preparedness/be-Firewise/home-and-landscape.aspx
Ready, Set, Go! – http://www.wildlandfirersg.org or http://www.wildlandfirersg.org/Resident-Preparedness-&-Evacuation
https://www.nevadacountyca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/15855/ Nevada-Couny-Evacuation-Guide—2015-PDF