OLYMPIA — Senate legislation passed late Thursday by the House would require the state Department of Natural Resources to produce maps identifying the areas of Washington state that face the greatest risk of wildfires and would most likely benefit from the use of fire-resistant materials in new homes.
“Wildfires are expensive, for both property owners and taxpayers, but we can make those dollars go farther by identifying the areas facing the greatest hazards in each county,” said Sen. Kevin Van De Wege (D-Lake Sutherland), sponsor of SB 6120. “By making homes in these areas more resistant to fire, we can reduce threats to people and property while also curbing a wildfire’s ability to spread.”
Strategies for improving wildfire resistance range from requiring fire-resistant materials in roofs and other architectural features likely to catch fire, to requiring driveways be shaped and sized to accommodate the turning needs of large fire response vehicles.
Having been amended by the House prior to its passage, SB 6120 now must come back to the Senate before it can be sent to the governor to be signed into law. Until the statewide maps are completed, local jurisdictions may develop their own wildfire risk maps to identify areas where wildfires are most likely.
“Anything we do to impede a wildfire in one community can reduce or eliminate problems for several communities,” Van De Wege said. “The smaller we can keep a fire, the fewer carcinogens it can produce that would travel and ruin air quality in communities that might be far from the location of the actual fire.”
A career firefighter, Van De Wege gained early, firsthand experience in fighting wildfires and observing the factors that enable them to spread. Two of his first calls as a rookie firefighter were in response to wildfires.
