Fire Risk Reduction

The Shenandoah Valley Fire Prevention Team, created by members of the Potomac Watershed Partnership, formed in October 2001 to work with local residents and address the watershed’s fire prevention needs. The interagency team includes staff from the George Washington-Jefferson National Forests (GWJNFs), the Virginia Department of Forestry, and the National Park Service.

Specific goals include making people aware of the open-air burning ban; reducing the number of fires on federal, state and private lands; enlisting residents’ help in reporting arson and suspicious activities; and educating residents about woodland home forest fire protection strategies. Since the creation of the team, the state of Virginia has had fewer fire starts than other adjoining states with similar fire danger.

The team employed a wide range of informational tactics to educate residents in a seven-county area about fire prevention, including: press releases, electronic media, door-to-door contacts, posters, tri-lingual flyers (Russian, Spanish, and English), Smokey Bear appearances and hand-outs, hunter contacts, and arson education. The team has also been involved in training workshops and plans to continue working with volunteers throughout the watershed to prevent forest fires.

The team recently won the USDA Forest Service’s annual Robert E. Browning, Jr., award, which recognizes excellence in fire prevention programs.

The Partnership has also completed a fire-risk assessment for the Shenandoah Valley, and formed an expanded cooperative relationship with the Potomac Valley Volunteer Fire Company, located in Maryland, that resulted in a wildfire response plan for the Potomac Vistas community. In addition, the Partnership provided funding for a rehabilitation project for fire roads in Cunningham Falls State Park in Maryland. This project has already resulted in less soil erosion in the area.

Ric Lillard with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources/Forest Service educates homeowners in wooded areas about forest fire protection stategies.