16.1 Risk and Hazard Assessment

Resource Concepts, Inc. (2003) completed an assessment entitled “White Pine County Wildfire Risk Assessment and Fuel Reduction Plan for the communities of Ely, Blue Diamond, Ruth, and McGill” on behalf of White Pine County. The pertinent information from the 2003 assessment is summarized for the Ruth assessment.

The community of Ruth is located approximately seven miles northwest of Ely (Figure 16-1). The hazard assessment resulted in classifying Ruth in the Moderate Hazard Category Primary factors that determined the hazard rating for Ruth were the proximity to high hazard pinyon and juniper fuels and incomplete implementation of defensible space.

16.1.1 Community Design

The Ruth interface area is characterized as classic interface condition with a clear line of demarcation between the fuels and the residences. Lot sizes in Ruth are primarily less than one acre.

• Access: Two primary roads access the Ruth community: County Road 44A from US Highway 50, and County Road 1146 from Highway 6. Both are of adequate width and grade for fire suppression equipment to maneuver and for two-way vehicle passage. Interior community roads are all 24 feet or more in width.
• Signage: Street signs were present and visible for most streets in Ruth. Clear and visible residential addresses and street signs are important to aid firefighting personnel in locating homes during low visibility conditions that occur during a wildland fire.
• Utilities: Electrical utilities in Ruth are above ground and power line corridors have been properly maintained. Most homes have propane tanks with the minimum vegetation clearance of ten feet.

16.1.2 Construction Materials

All of homes were built with non-combustible roofing materials such as tile, metal, or composition, and non-combustible or highly fire-resistant siding material such as medium density fiberboard. Fifteen percent of the homes had unenclosed porches or decks where sparks and embers can lodge, smolder, ignite and rapidly spreading fire to the home.

16.1.3 Defensible Space

Sixty-five percent of the homes surveyed in Ruth had landscaping that meets the minimum defensible space requirement to help protect the home from damage or loss during a wildfire.

16.1.4 Suppression Capabilities

Wildfire Protection Resources

Ruth is protected by the Ruth Volunteer Fire Department, which is authorized and funded as part of the NDF White Pine County Fire Protection District authorized under NRS 473. Additional resources are available through other local volunteer fire departments, the Bureau of Land Management Ely Field Office, the NDF Ely Conservation Camp, and the Great Basin National Park Fire Department as described in Section 4.1.1 and shown in Table 16.1.

Table 16-1. Ruth Wildfire Suppression Resources

Type of Equipment	Amount of Equipment	Cooperating Partner
Engine Type 1 Engine Type 4 Water Tender Rescue Unit Engine	1 1 1 2	Ruth Volunteer Fire Department
Engine Type 1 Engine Type 3 Engine Type 4 Water Tender	1 1 1 4	Ely Fire Department
Engine Type 1 Engine Type 2 Rescue Unit	1 1 2	McGill Volunteer Fire Department
Type 6 Water Tender 2000-gallon	1 1	Lackawanna Volunteer Fire Department
Source: White Pine County Community Wildfire Hazard/Risk Assessment June 2003 (RCI) and subsequent interviews.

Water Sources and Infrastructure

Water in Ruth is provided through the McGill-Ruth Consolidated Water and Sewer General Improvement District. Fire hydrants are located within 500 feet of structures throughout the town of Ruth. The Gleason Creek watershed supports the four community wells in Ruth.

16.1.5 Factors Affecting Fire Behavior

Numerous inclusions of rabbitbrush and spotted knapweed, a state-listed noxious weed, are present along streets and throughout the town. Juniper with an understory of Mormon tea, black sagebrush, and bitterbrush characterize the native vegetation around Ruth. Transects indicated 170 trees per acre, with tree diameters ranging from one to six inches, tree heights ranging from four to ten feet, and a distance of about sixteen feet between trees (RCI 2003). Some trees and stumps showed signs of a previous burn. The fuel hazard surrounding the community boundary is primarily high. North of White Pine County Road 44A the fuel hazard is generally low. West and south of Ruth, where juniper vegetation is predominant and slopes increase the fuel hazard increases to extreme.

As of August 2004 none of the recommendations from the previous assessment had been implemented (RCI 2003).

16.1.6 Fire Behavior Worst Case Scenario

The greatest threat to Ruth would be a fire ignited north of town, south of Highway 50. Strong winds from the north could drive the fire through wildland fuels and toward the town.

16.2 Risk and Hazard Reduction Recommendations

The responsibility to keep a community fire safe falls not only on the local fire department but also on residents of the community and local governments. Recommendations for homeowners in Ruth included implementation and maintenance of defensible space and immediate removal of biomass. Fire suppression resource recommendations included training all personnel and bringing equipment up to frontline standards.

16.2.1 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 Owners 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.
• Immediately remove cleared vegetation to an approved disposal site. This material dries quickly and poses a fire risk if left on site. Refer to the Defensible Space fact sheet in Appendix E for clearance guidelines.
• Keep 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 approved seed mixes and planting guidelines that can be used in conjunction with removal of this annual grass.
• Remove brush within thirty feet and grass within ten feet of fences in the community.
• Install spark arrestors on chimneys.
• Treat spotted knapweed with an approved herbicide to control or eliminate these plants from private land properties. Refer to Appendix E and contact the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension for more information on controlling spotted knapweed.

16.2.2 Fuels Reduction Treatments

Fuel reduction treatments are applied on a larger scale than defensible space treatments, typically along roads, railroads vacant lots, power line corridors, or on the outer boundaries of a community. Permanently lowering the amount of available fuel over a large block of land reduces the risk of a catastrophic wildfire in the treated area. Fuelbreaks can stop or slow the advance of a wildfire. They also give firefighters a place to stand against an oncoming fire. See Figure 16-1 for details on previously recommended fuel reduction treatments in Ruth.

White Pine County, Nevada Division of Forestry, and Property Owners

• Construct and maintain a fuel reduction treatment 100 feet wide by thinning the shrubs on the south sides of Camden and Hill Streets in Ruth. Thin shrubs to a spacing between canopies of two times the height of the shrubs. Reseed disturbances associated with the treatment with a fire resistant seed mixture such as recommended in Appendix E as necessary to control erosion and to control the spread of invasive weeds.

16.2.3 Fire Suppression Resources

Adequate training and equipment are critical to all firefighters, whether they are first responders, volunteer fire department personnel, or agency personnel. These matters are also of special importance to all communities, especially those located in remote portions of the county.

Ruth Volunteer Fire Department, Nevada Division of Forestry

• Continue to provide annual wildland fire training for all volunteer firefighters including the use of fire shelters and State Fire Marshal structure firefighting training.
• Meet annually with the Bureau of Land Management and Great Basin National Park fire management personnel to review pre-attack plans and to coordinate firefighting resources and response procedures.

Table 16-2. Ruth Risk/Hazard Reduction Priority Recommendations

Involved Party	Recommended Treatment	Recommendation Description
Property Owners	Defensible Space Treatments	Remove, reduce, and replace vegetation around homes, stockpiled hay, and equipment storage areas according to the guidelines in Appendix E. Maintain defensible space as needed to keep the space lean, clean, and green. Treat spotted knapweed to reduce the size, or eliminate, the infestations in Ruth.
Property Owners White Pine County	Fuel Reduction Treatment	Construct and maintain a fuel reduction treatment 100 feet wide on the south sides of Camden and Hill Streets in Ruth. Reseed as necessary with a pre-suppression seed mixture to control erosion and the spread of noxious weeds.
Nevada Division of Forestry Ruth Volunteer Fire Department	Fire Suppression Resources	Continue to provide volunteer firefighters with annual wildland fire training including the use of fire shelters and State Fire Marshal structure firefighting training. Meet annually with the BLM and Great Basin National Park fire management personnel to review pre-attack plans.

Figure 16-1 Ruth Fire History, Suppression Resources, and Proposed Mitigation Projects small | large | x-large