Skamania County Resolution No. 2004-28

Klickitat County Resolution No. ________

JOINT RESOLUTION

Klickitat County and Skamania County, Washington

A RESOLUTION creating collaboration between Klickitat and Skamania Counties for development of a Two-County Community Wildfire Protection Plan

WHEREAS, wildfires, particularly in the West, have burned thousands of acres of forest land and have devastated the lives of citizens located in communities adjacent to or within these forest lands; and

WHEREAS, the United States Congress enacted the Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) of 2003; to address the need for fuel reduction; and

WHEREAS, this landmark legislation includes the first meaningful statutory incentives for the United States Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to give consideration to the priorities of local communities as they develop and implement forest management and hazardous fuel reduction projects; and

WHEREAS, in order for a community or communities to take full advantage of this new opportunity, it must first prepare a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP): and

WHEREAS, a joint Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CCWP) will identify and prioritize both federal and nonfederal lands, for hazardous fuels reduction treatments, as well as provide recommended methods for achieving hazardous fuels reductions; and

WHEREAS, a joint Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CCWP) will outline measures for reducing the risk of fire damage to property and structures throughout Klickitat and Skamania Counties; and

WHEREAS, completion of a joint Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) will earn Klickitat and Skamania Counties priority funding of hazardous fuels reduction projects carried out under the auspices of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003; and

WHEREAS, Klickitat and Skamania Counties jointly constitute a community at risk of catastrophic wildfires within the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) that would result in destruction and devastation of life, property and critical infrastructure,

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Klickitat County Commissioners and the Skamania County Commissioners enter into a collaboration to develop a joint Community Wildfire Protection Plan.