Enclosure 3A - Project Summary Form
NATIONAL FIRE PLAN COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE AND WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE PROJECTS
Application for Wildland Urban Interface Fuels / Education and
Prevention / Community Planning for Fire Protection Projects
Applicant
Applicant/Organization:
Oregon Department of Forestry
Phone:
541-935-2283
FAX:
Email:
541-935-0731
dspiesscha@odf.state.or.us
Address (Street or P. O. Box, City, State, Zip):
2600 State Street, Salem OR 97310
Project Coordinator
Project Coordinator (Name and Title):
Gordon Foster, Unit Forester
Organization/Jurisdiction:
John Day Unit, Central Oregon District, Oregon Department of Forestry
Phone:
541-575-1139
FAX:
Email:
541-575-2253
gfoster@odf.state.or.us
Project Information
Project Title:
Interface Hazard Inventory & Education
Project Start:
Project End:
October 2002
September 2004
Federal Funding Request:
Total Project Funding:
$91,000
$91,000
Are you submitting multiple projects? If so, please explain and prioritize:
Yes, Priority #4
Brief Project Description:
This project would inventory the wildland urban interface and make contact with each of the rural
residents within the John Day Unit. This area covers 1.6 million acres of private lands intermingled
with approximately 3.4 million acres of federal lands. The demographics have changed in the area
from scattered ranches and timberland to a more rural residential with concentrations of homes built
in the forest. Contacts would be made with the rural residents and provide technical assistance in
creating a fire safe environment, defensible space. At the same time an inventory would be done
on each improvement or group of improvements that would include access, water availability,
bridges, defensible space issues, and specialized equipment needs. This will provide additional
information in the Risk and Hazard analysis process. This has been completed on two areas in the
John Day Unit and has proved invaluable in assessing fire protections needs during large fire
situations. The areas completed represent less than 5% of the total area.
Project Location:
County:
Congressional District:
John Day Unit, Central Oregon Dist.
Grant, Wheeler, Harney
2nd Walden
Project Type: Check appropriate project type. More than one type may be checked. If only Box (4) is checked, use Enclosure 4.
(1)
Wildland Urban Interface Fuels Project
(2) X Wildland Urban Interface Education and Prevention Project
(3)
(4)
Community Planning for Fire Protection Project
Fuels Utilization and Marketing Project
If the applicant is an unincorporated area, define the geographic area being represented:
John Day Unit, Central Oregon District, Oregon Department of Forestry
Enclosure 3B (Page 1 of 3) - Project Narrative Description
Applications for funding must include a narrative response that describes the proposal. Please do not submit responses longer than one page,
single space, 12-pitch font.
Describe project including, but not limited to:
 project location
Address these
 project implementation
items as
 anticipated outcomes
applicable:
 measures and reporting
 partners





project income
project time frames
specify types of activities and equipment used
amount or extent of actions (acres, number of homes, etc)
environmental, cultural and historical resource requirements
Response:
Project Location: The area covered under this inventory and education project is the John Day Unit of ODF.
The counties in this area are Grant, Wheeler, northern Harney, southern Morrow and Gilliam
Project Implementation: The project is a two fold project, one is educational and the second is developing
an analysis. It will consist of contacting rural landowners and providing technical advice on creating a fire
safe environment, and defensible space. At the same time an inventory would be done on each improvement
or group of improvements that would include photographs of the improvements, access, water availability,
bridges, defensible space issues, and specialized equipment needs. This information will be documented and
stored in two formats, one will be a hard copy that will be available to dispatchers, fire managers, and
incident management teams. It will also be stored in an electronic format and eventually tied to the ODF Spot
Fires program (ODF Desktop ArcView Program). This will provide additional information for the Risk and
Hazard analysis process. The inventory has been completed on two areas in the John Day Unit and has
proved invaluable in assessing fire protections needs during large fire situations. The areas completed
represent less than 5% of the total area.
Project Outcomes: The outcomes are twofold, first in public education and technical assistance, the second
is the development of data for the Risk and Hazard analysis process. This information will be available to the
Oregon Department of Forestry, U.S Forest Service, BLM, and local Fire Chiefs.
Partners: Grant & Wheeler County Fire Chiefs, Grant County Soil Water Conservation District, Private
Landowners.
Project Time Frames: October 2002 through September 2004
Specific Activities & Equipment Used: The project will utilize two ODF Forest Officer positions to make
the educational and technical contacts with the private landowners, and fill out the inventory form. They
would be assisted by the person working under the Grant County Soil Water Conservation District grant. The
preparation of the hard copy and electronic documents will be done by an Office Specialist. The GIS layer
will be developed by Oregon Department of Forestry, Salem Graphics office. The information will be shared
with the local and federal partners.
Extent of Action: The area covers 2communities at risk in a 1.6 million acre Protection Unit which is
intermingled with approximately 3.4 million acres of Forest Service and BLM protection.
Environmental, Cultural, and Historic Resources: This is not a ground disturbing activity, so it will not
have an impact on the environmental, cultural, or historic resources.
Enclosure 3B (Page 2 of 3) - Project Evaluation Criteria
Applications for funding must include narrative responses that address the following four criteria. Within each criterion, subcriteria are listed in descending order of importance. Limit your responses to the areas provided.
1. Reducing Fire Risk. (40 points))
A. Describe how the proposal promotes reduction of risk in high hazard areas or communities.
B. Describe how the proposed project benefits resources on federal land or adjacent non-federal land, or how it protects the safety
of communities.
C. To what extent does the project implement or create a cooperative fuels treatment plan or community fire strategy (include
evidence of the plan if it already exists)?
D. Explain to what extent the affected community or proponent has been involved or plans to involve the affected community in a
qualified fuels education program (e.g., FIREWISE).
E. Explain how the proposal (a) leads to, enhances or restores a local fire-adapted ecosystem, and/or (b) mitigates or leads to the
mitigation of hazardous fuel conditions.
F. How will the proposed treatments be maintained over time?
This project will first promote the reduction of fire risk by providing direct one on one education to
the landowners, second it will give fire managers a tool to increase the effectiveness of the response to a
wildland fire and an analysis tool for designing future hazard mitigation projects. This information coupled
with the information being developed from the grant to the Grant County Soil Water Conservation District to
document the Fire Protection program for Grant County and the grant to the Harney County Court for a Fire
Protection assessment for Harney County will better inform the County Courts, Fire Defense Boards, County
Fire Chiefs, ODF, FS, and BLM of the protection issues and needs of the counties. Representatives from
Harney, Grant, Morrow, Gilliam counties have attended Firewise workshops, as well as local fire chiefs,
ODF, FS, and BLM personnel. This grant will allow for seed money to finish the initial inventory and public
contacts, and the development of the documentation and electronic data. It then will be a small task to
maintain the information.
Response:
2. Increasing local capacity. (30 points)
A. How would the proposal improve or lead to the improvement of the local economy in terms of jobs and sustainable economic
activity? How many jobs are expected to be created or retained and for how long (please distinguish between essentially yearround and seasonal jobs)?
B. To what extent will this project be offered to serve as a model for other communities?
C. Will biomass or forest fuels be utilized; if so, in what manner and how much?
This project has the potential to provide 2.5 person years of seasonal work in the short term.
In the long term the measurements will be more difficult and indirect related to the employment. This project
is patterned after other successful projects in the state. The benefit to the local community are in minimizing
the risk to property and increasing awareness to fire safe issues. The John Day Unit is in a fire prone area.
The average fire occurrence within the boundaries of the Unit in Forest Protection District which includes
both BLM and Forest Service protection is approximately 400 fires per year. In the last decade there have
been nine (9) Type I project fires and a complex of 15 fires within the John Day Unit on State and Federal
protection that directly threatened identified communities at risk.
Response:
Enclosure 3B (Page 3 of 3) - Project Evaluation Criteria
3. Increasing interagency and intergovernmental coordination. (15 Points)
A. Describe how this project implements a local intergovernmental strategy plan, or creates such a plan. Describe the plan if it
already exists.
B. Explain the level of cooperation, coordination or strategic planning among federal, state, tribal, local government and
community organizations. List the cooperators.
This project will develop a tool that will assist with the analysis of fire risk and hazard.
Currently the County Courts and Assessors office, Forest Service and BLM, County Economic Development,
State Economic Development, Grant County Soil Water Conservation District, Wheeler County Soil Water
Conservation District, Monument Soil Water Conservation District, North Fork of the John Day Watershed
Council, Grant County Fire Chiefs, Wheeler County Fire Chiefs, and Oregon Department of Forestry have
been working together in identifying, and prioritizing fuel hazard mitigation and defensible space. The Grant
County Soil Water Conservation District received a grant for a Fire Protection needs analysis. They have
hired a person who is working directly with us in this process.
Response:
4. Expanding Community Participation. (15 Points)
A. To what extent have interested people and communities been provided an opportunity to become informed and involved in this
proposal?
B. Describe the extent of local support for the project, including any cost-sharing arrangements.
C. What are the environmental, social and educational benefits of the project?
The majority of the work in this project will be working directly with private landowners in a
one on one situation providing education and technical assistance. In the local area we have taken the
opportunity to provide information in displays at the county fair, presentations to local groups using the
Living with Fire model, coordination and presentations to SWCD’s, Watershed Councils, newspaper inserts
and articles, direct mailings and public meetings.
Currently the John Day Unit has seven Fuel Hazard Mitigation Grants, three funded by the USF&W, one by
the BLM, and three will be funded by the WSFM. These grants cover approximately 450 separate
landowners, at this time only a portion of the landowners will be funded because of the limited amount of
money in the grants. In that process the landowners are being funded to create defensible space and work in
the area beyond defensible space to reduce the fire hazard and improve forest health, with the priority going
to landowners that have residences or other improvements. Direct mailing, newspaper articles, and public
meetings have been the primary method of public involvement. Cost share incentives have be tied to the
grants that include; landowners working together, product utilization, discouraging burning, and the use of
local contractors.
The inventory that is produced from this grant would give us a tool to prioritize the hazard mitigation work
that remained to be done.
Response:
Enclosure 3C - Project Work Form
Tasks
Time Frame
Responsible Party
Recruit two Forest Officers
August 2002
John Day Unit Forester
Coordinate the inventory data process with the
County Courts, fire chiefs, SWCD, Watershed
Councils.
August 2002
John Day Unit Forester
Orientate the Forest Officers
October 2002
John Day Unit Forester
Public Contacts & Inventory
October 2002 through September
2004
Forest Officers
Process documentation
October 2002 through September
2004
Office Specialist
Develop GIS layer
October 2002
Salem Graphics
Share data with cooperating agencies
September 2004
John Day Unit Forester
Enclosure 3D - Project Budget
Cost Category
Description
Federal
Agency
Personnel
Forest Officers 24 mths
Salem Graphics 1 mth
Subtotal
Applicant
Partner 1
Partner 2
Total
$55,200
$3,700
$58,900
$55,200
$3,700
$58,900
$22,000
$22,000
Subtotal
$22,000
$22,000
Travel
Forest Officers
Salem Graphics
Subtotal
$800
$400
$1,200
$800
$400
$1,200
$5,000
$5,000
$5,000
$5,000
$1,200
$1,200
$1,200
$1,200
$2,700
$2,700
$2,700
$2,700
$91,000
$91,000
Fringe Benefits
OPE 37.23%
Equipment
Vehicles
Subtotal
Supplies
Prevention Material
Subtotal
Contractual
Subtotal
Other
Agency Administration
Subtotal
Total Costs
Project (Program) Income1
1
Program income is the gross revenue generated by a grant or cooperative agreement supported activity during the life of
the grant. Program income can be made by recipients from fees charged for conference or workshop attendance, from rental
fees earned from renting out real property or equipment acquired with grant or cooperative agreement funds, or from the sale
of commodities or items developed under the grant or cooperative agreement. The use of Program Income during the
project period may require prior approval by the granting agency.