1.1 Project Background

A key element of the Healthy Forests Initiative announced by the White House 2002 is to implement core components of the National Fire Plan’s 10-year Comprehensive Strategy and Implementation Plan. The plan, adopted by federal agencies and western governors in the spring of 2002 in collaboration with county commissioners, state foresters, and tribal officials, calls for more active forest and rangeland management.

The Healthy Forest Restoration Act (H.R. 1904) was signed into law in December of 2003. This act creates provisions for expanding the activities outlined in the National Fire Plan. In this same year the Nevada Fire Safe Council received national fire plan funding through the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management to conduct a Community Risk/Hazard Assessment in at-risk communities across Nevada. The communities to be assessed are among those named in the Federal Register list of Communities-at-Risk within the vicinity of Federal lands. This list identifies the communities most vulnerable to wildfire threat in Nevada (66 FR 160).

Mitigating the risks and hazards identified by these assessments is not only crucial to the long term goals of the National Fire Plan, but also to the short and long-term viability of our resources, communities, infrastructures, and watersheds.

Resource Concepts, Inc. (RCI), a Carson City-based consulting firm, was selected to conduct the Community Risk/Hazard Assessments. During 2004, field teams of fire behavior specialists, foresters, rangeland fuels specialists, and field technicians visited over 250 communities in Nevada’s 17 counties to assess both the risk of ignition and the potential fire behavior hazard. With the use of procedures accepted by Nevada’s wildland fire agencies, these specialists focused their analysis on the wildland/urban interface areas - places where homes and wildland meet.

The Community Risk/Hazard Assessments were conducted systematically, observing and recording the factors that significantly influence the communities’ risk of wildfire ignition along the wildland/urban interface. An assessment of the features that influence a community’s hazard rating in the event of a wildfire is the second main component of field reconnaissance. Interviews with local fire agency and emergency response personnel were completed to assess the availability of suppression resources and identify opportunities for increased community preparedness. A description of the existing fuel hazard and fire behavior potential is presented with photos for each community.

The results of these assessments are presented in a way that facilitates ease of reference and reproduction for individual communities. Risks and hazards are described for each community and the proposed mitigation projects are listed. If a proposed mitigation project can be represented spatially, a map is included for planning purposes. These tools will aid local, state and federal agencies in strategic planning, public awareness, and funding for future risk reduction projects.

This county-specific report is one of a series of County-by-County reports for Nevada that make recommendations for action consistent with the principles, goals, and actions outlined in the National Fire Plan’s Collaborative Approach for Reducing Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the Environment 10- year Comprehensive Strategy.

The goal of the present report is to make recommendations and propose mitigation projects to:

• Reduce the threat of wildland fire to the communities;
• Raise the level of public awareness about ignition risk factors and fire safe practices at the wildland/urban interface;
• Improve local coordination for suppression activities;
• Identify firefighting resource needs (equipment and infrastructure);
• Describe proposed risk and hazard mitigation projects in enough detail to aid communities in applying for future implementation funds.

Numerous agencies and individuals were involved in the planning and implementation of this effort. Special thanks and acknowledgement is given to:

• Nevada Fire Safe Council (NFSC)
• U.S.D.I. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
• U.S.D.A. Forest Service (FS)
• U.S.D.A. Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS)
• Nevada Division of Forestry (NDF)
• University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
• Nevada Association of Counties (NACO)
• Nevada’s Counties
• Fire Chiefs and Firefighters Statewide

1.2 Communities Assessed

Ten communities within Pershing County were identified in the Federal Register as at-risk and are included in this assessment: Grass Valley, Humboldt, Imlay, Lovelock, Mill City, Nightingale, Oreana, Rochester, Rye Patch, and Unionville.

1.3 Communities Not Assessed

1.3.1 Nightingale

Nightingale is an historic mine site located in the southwestern corner of Pershing County. There are no residential structures in the community. Because there is no permanent community in Nightingale, the risk/hazard assessment was not completed.

1.3.2 Rochester

Rochester is a historic mine site that was included in the Federal Register to be assessed. In the early twentieth century 1,500 people lived in the area. The original mine ceased operation in 1942 and currently, there are no residences in the area. The only structures are metal buildings used during the mining operations. Because there is no permanent community in Rochester, no risk/hazard assessment was completed.