GLOUCESTER — Fire Chief Eric Smith encourages property owners across Gloucester and Cape Ann to protect their property by sharing details of a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) that was developed to help prevent and control wildfires.
As part of the completion of the CWPP, an online hubspot for residents and business owners to learn more about the plan has been established and is full of resources that can help homeowners and business owners learn more about the threats in their community and learn more about how to mitigate those threats using simple, common sense steps on their property.
“The outcome of the CWPP is that it creates best practices and really a to-do list for all of the communities involved,” said Chief Smith. “It identifies problems we currently have and contains things we need to do to mitigate those problems.”
A CWPP is a collaborative document developed for a community, or group of communities, in the wildland urban interface — areas where homes and businesses are comingled with forest and brush. It’s a comprehensive and strategic plan that aims to reduce the risk of wildfire damage to people, property, and natural and cultural resources. The CWPP is developed with the participation of local residents, community leaders, land managers, fire personnel and other stakeholders.
The Cape Ann CWPP was initiated and put into place in response to several large and threatening wildfires in the area over the past couple of years. Community leaders wanted to take steps to help mitigate the potential damage from such wildfires.
The CWPP process, a cooperative effort between local, state and federal authorities, involves a thorough assessment of the community’s wildfire risk and vulnerabilities, including the analysis of fire history, fuel (vegetation) conditions, weather patterns and the community’s capacity to respond to wildfire events. Based on the assessment, the CWPP outlines a set of actions that can be taken to reduce risk and improve the community’s preparedness and resiliency.
On Cape Ann, the CWPP identified high-risk areas for wildfires and suggested strategies for preventing them and reducing risk.
Those strategies include mechanical fuel treatments, in which vegetation that can fuel fires is managed; adding fire containment features to the environment, such as firebreaks; working with local home owners associations and residents to develop fuel break measures around homes and properties; working with the Department of Conservation and Recreation to establish forest projects that reduce wildfire risk; and implementing a community chipper program to encourage residents to keep brush and other vegetation cut back from their homes.
“Department of Conservation and Recreation Forest Fire Control and Forestry applauds all four communities for their collaborative efforts to develop this plan, and for recognizing the importance of having a vision for public safety around wildfire occurrence in an ever changing climate,” said Dave Celino, Chief Fire Warden for Massachusetts DCR.
The CWPP hubspot, which can be accessed here, provides detailed maps of Cape Ann along with numerous resources for home and business owners to protect their properties against fire. An entire section of the plan is focused on steps that home and property owners can take to help protect their properties.
Among the tips for homeowners are reducing flammable brush within 5 feet of the home, keeping gutters clean and keeping trees trimmed back from homes and trimmed at least 10 feet from the ground.
“The Cape Ann CWPP contains a wealth of information for homeowners, including maps that show specific fire dangers throughout the community,” said Chief Smith. “I encourage all property owners to review the plan, and in particular to review tips in the plan for hardening properties against wildfire. We hope to make Gloucester a wildfire-adapted community so we can all work together to reduce the risks that we face as wildfire season approaches this summer.”
To learn more about the plan or to view its full details, click here.
