7.1 Risk and Hazard Assessment

In 2002, Resource Concepts, Inc. completed an assessment entitled Community Wildfire Risk Assessment and Fuel Reduction Plan for Caliente in Lincoln County, Nevada on behalf of Lincoln County. The pertinent information for this report is summarized from the RCI Caliente assessment.

Caliente is located in west-central Lincoln County along U.S. Highway 93 about fifteen miles south of Panaca and 54 miles east of Alamo. The risk/hazard assessment resulted in classifying Caliente in the Moderate Hazard category. The moderate rating was attributed to unenclosed architectural features, some instances of inadequate defensible space, and some high fuel hazard vegetation around homes in the community. See Figure 7-1 for details of the Caliente community boundary.

7.1.1 Community Design

The wildland-urban interface area around Caliente can best be characterized as a classic interface condition. While structures abut wildland fuels, there is a clear line of demarcation between wildland fuels and residential structures. Of the 168 homes included in the assessment, the majority were located on parcels less than one acre in size.

• Access: U.S. Highway 93 and State Route 317 are the two major transportation routes through Caliente. The highways are at least 24 feet wide, paved, and have adequate turnaround space for fire suppression equipment. Secondary roads in the community are of adequate width, grade, and turn-around space for fire suppression equipment maneuverability and two-vehicle passage.
• Signage: Most of the streets in Caliente have clearly visible signs posted. Clear and visible street signs and residential addresses are important for locating homes during low visibility conditions that occur during a wildfire.
• Utilities: All of the utilities were above ground. Power line corridors have not always been properly maintained as trees were touching or almost touching lines in several places throughout the community.

7.1.2 Construction Materials

Nearly all of the homes in Caliente were built with non-combustible or highly ignition-resistant siding and roofing materials. Approximately one-quarter of the homes have unenclosed porches, decks, or balconies where sparks and embers can be trapped and smolder, rapidly spreading fire to the home.

7.1.3 Defensible Space

Approximately eighty percent of the homes have the recommended defensible space distance to protect the home from damage or loss during a wildfire.

7.1.4 Suppression Capabilities

Wildfire Protection Resources

The Caliente Volunteer Fire Department provides wildfire and structure fire protection in Caliente. The VFD reported approximately 25 volunteers at the time that interviews were conducted for this report. Additional resources are available through the Bureau of Land Management Caliente and Pony Springs Fire Stations and the Nevada Division of Forestry Pioche Conservation Camp as described in Section 4.1.1. Table 7-1 lists the types of wildfire resource equipment available for initial response to a wildland fire call near Caliente.

Table 7-1. Caliente Valley Wildfire Suppression Resources

Type of Resource	Amount of Equipment	Resource Location
Type 6 Engine Type 4 Engine Type 1 Engine*	2 1 2	Caliente Volunteer Fire Department
Source: Steve Rowe, Caliente VFD Chief
* These two engines would be used for structure protection by would not likely be used for initial attack of a wildland fire.

Water Sources and Infrastructure

Water availability for fire suppression resources in Caliente includes 500 gpm hydrants within 1,000 feet of structures. The hydrant system operates on gravity.

7.1.5 Factors That Affect Fire Behavior

The vegetation around Caliente is a desert shrub with Wyoming big sagebrush, fourwing saltbush, rabbitbrush, spiny hopsage, and ephedra. Shrubs reach about three feet in height. The fuels along Meadow Valley Wash consist of willows, tamarisk, and other associated riparian vegetation. Patches of Russian knapweed, a State-listed noxious weed, and kochia, an annual weed that grows in disturbed sites are highly flammable once the plants dry. There is no history of large wildfires around Caliente, but some small fires that burned less than 1,000 acres have been reported. The town sits in the valley bottom at the east end of an east-west oriented canyon. There are some steep canyon walls northwest and southeast of the community.

7.1.6 Fire Behavior Worst-Case Scenario

The worst-case scenario around Caliente would involve a wind-driven fire that started southwest of the community. The topography in that area in conjunction with the predominant southwest winds would funnel a fire directly toward the town.

7.2 Risk and Hazard Reduction Recommendations

As part of this project, the RCI Project Team returned to Caliente to monitor the status of the recommendations from the 2002 report. The RCI Project Team found that none of the previously recommended defensible space treatments, brush clearance, or power line clearance had been completed. The 2002 and 2004 recommendations for Caliente are given below.

7.2.1 Defensible Space Treatments

Defensible space treatments are an essential first line of defense for residential structures. Significantly reducing or removing vegetation within a prescribed distance from structures (30 feet to 200 feet depending upon slope and vegetative fuel type) reduces fire intensity and improves firefighter and homeowner chances for successfully defending a structure against an oncoming wildfire.

Property Owner Recommendations

• Remove, reduce, and replace vegetation around homes according to guidelines provided in Appendix E. This area should be kept:
  • Lean: There are only small amounts of flammable vegetation.
  • Clean: There is no accumulation of dead vegetation or other flammable debris.
  • Green: Existing plants are healthy and green during the fire season.
• Maintain defensible space annually.
• Maintain the area beneath unenclosed porches and decks free of accumulated vegetation or other flammable debris. Enclose these areas wherever possible.
• Store woodpiles at least thirty feet from any structure.
• Clear all vegetation and combustible materials around propane tanks for a minimum distance of ten feet.
• Cheatgrass or other annual grasses that have become dominant within the defensible space zone should be mowed or treated with an application of pre-emergent herbicide prior to seed set. Treatments may need to be repeated the following year to ensure that the seed bank of unwanted grasses has been depleted. Refer to Appendix E for recommended seed mixes and planting guidelines that can be used in conjunction with removal of this annual grass.
• Remove brush growing within thirty feet and mow grass within ten feet of fences in the community.
• Install spark arrestors on chimneys.

7.2.2 Fuels Reduction Treatments

Fuel reduction treatments are applied on a larger scale than defensible space treatments. Permanently changing the fuel characteristics over large blocks of land to a lower volume and altered distribution reduces the risk of a catastrophic wildfire in the treated area. Reducing vegetation along roadways and driveways could reduce the likelihood of wildfire spreading across roads and improve firefighter access and safety for protecting homes.

Lincoln County, Caliente Volunteer Fire Department, and Property Owners

• Construct a 50-foot fuelbreak behind homes on the south side of town and on the north side of developed parcels adjacent to Meadow Valley Wash. Thin shrubs to a canopy spacing two times the height of the shrubs and treat annual grass production either by mowing or by applying a pre-emergent herbicide.
• Reduce shrub density on the county property on the west side of town, adjacent to US 93. Thin shrubs to a spacing equal to two times the height of the shrubs between canopies.

Electric Utility Company

• Maintain utility right-of-ways by removing trees from beneath power lines and thinning shrubs within fifteen feet of utility poles.

7.2.3 Fire Suppression Resources

Adequate training, equipment, and water drafting supplies are critical to firefighters, be they first responders, volunteer fire department personnel, or agency personnel. These matters are of special importance to all communities, especially those located in remote portions of the county. The following recommendations are related to actions the community fire departments can take to increase the quality of fire suppression response.

Lincoln County and Caliente Volunteer Fire Department

• Install three 15,000-gallon water storage tanks for fire suppression, one in each of the Highland Knolls, Indian Ridge, and Beaver Dam subdivisions. The tanks must be compatible with firefighting equipment in Caliente and Panaca.
• Allow burning only on set days under a permit process. A sample burn permit is included in Appendix F.
• Meet annually with the Bureau of Land Management to review their pre-attack plan for the area.

7.2.4 Community Coordination

Many of the most effective activities aimed at reducing the threat of wildfire for Caliente require that individual property owners coordinate with each other and with local fire authorities. Defensible space, for example, is more effective in small communities when applied uniformly throughout entire neighborhoods. Public education and awareness, neighbors helping neighbors, and proactive individuals setting examples for others to follow are just a few of the approaches that will be necessary to meet the fire safe goals in the community.

Property Owners

• Assure that address signs are visible from the road. Address characters should be at least four inches high, reflective, and composed of non-flammable material. Improving visibility of addresses will make it easier for those unfamiliar with the area to navigate under smoky conditions during a wildland fire.
• Form a local chapter of the Nevada Fire Safe Council. The Nevada Fire Safe Council proposes to work on solutions that reduce the risk of loss of lives and property from wildfires in Nevada’s communities. Through establishment of a local Chapter, communities become part of a large information-sharing network that receives notifications of programs and funding opportunities for fire mitigation projects such as those listed in this report. The Nevada Fire Safe Council will accept and manage grants and contracts on the Chapter’s behalf through its non-profit status. The Nevada Fire Safe Council provides assistance and support to communities to complete fire safe plans, set priorities, educate and train community members, and promote success stories of its members. For more information on forming a chapter, contact:
  

  Nevada Fire Safe Council
  1187 Charles Drive
  Reno, Nevada 89509
  (775) 322-2413
  www.nvfsc.org

Lincoln County and Town of Caliente

• Develop a brush clearance and biomass disposal program for safe and timely disposal of biomass from fuel reduction treatments.

Lincoln County

• Require all future development in the County to meet National Fire Codes with regard to community design aspects: building construction and spacing, road construction and design, water supply, and emergency access. Require implementation of defensible space according to the requirements shown in Appendix E prior to construction. Refer to Appendix F for fire safe recommendations for planning in new developments.

Caliente Volunteer Fire Department

• Distribute copies of the publication “Living With Fire” to all property owners who live in Caliente. This publication is free of charge, and copies can be requested from the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension.

Table 7-2. Caliente Risk/Hazard Reduction Priority Recommendations

Involved Party	Recommended Treatment	Recommendation Description
Property Owners	Defensible Space Treatments	Remove, reduce, and replace vegetation around structures according to the guidelines in Appendix E. Maintain this defensible space annually. Install a continuous defensible space treatment 50 feet wide behind the neighborhood south of US 93. Clean up weeds and other flammable debris throughout the community.
	Community Coordination	Form a local chapter of the Nevada Fire Safe Council. Ensure thatresidential addresses are clearly visible from the road.
Lincoln County Caliente VFD	Fuel Reduction Treatments	Coordinate with property owners to implement the 50-foot fuelbreak behind homes on the south side of town and on the north side of developed parcels adjacent to Meadow Valley Wash. Reduce shrub density on the County property on the west side of town, adjacent to US 93. Thin shrubs to a distance between canopies equal to two times the height of the shrubs.
	Fire Suppression Resources	Install one 15,000-gallon water storage tank for fire suppression in each of the Highland Knolls, Indian Ridge, and Beaver Dam subdivisions. Allow burning only on set days under a permit process. A sample burn permit is included in Appendix F. Meet annually with the BLM to review their pre-attack plan for the area.
	Community Coordination	Develop a brush clearance and biomass disposal program for safe and timely disposal of biomass from fuel reduction treatments.
Lincoln County	Community Coordination	Require all future development in the county to meet National Fire Codes and defensible space requirements.
Caliente VFD	Community Coordination	Distribute copies of the publication “Living With Fire” to all property owners who live in Caliente.
Utility Company	Fuel Reduction Treatments	Maintain utility right-of-ways by removing trees from beneath power lines and thinning shrubs within fifteen feet of utility poles.

Figure 7-1 Caliente Fire History, Suppression Resources, Critical Features, and Proposed Mitigation Projects small | large | x-large