Introduction to CWPPs

A Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) is formulated at the local level for areas vulnerable to wildfires. It is developed through collaborative efforts involving community members, local fire agencies, government bodies, and other stakeholders with an interest in wildfire mitigation.

A Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) serves two primary purposes. First, it aims to pinpoint and rank the importance of fuel management interventions in the vicinity, detailing approaches to tackle these issues. Second, it proposes strategies to decrease the likelihood of structures catching fire. The creation of a CWPP enables a community to define and refine its priorities for safeguarding lives, properties, and essential infrastructure within the wildland-urban interface (WUI). Designed to be a dynamic document, a CWPP is subject to updates to reflect the changing and developing needs of the community.

COUNTY-WIDE PLAN

CWPP Resources

• California Fire Safe Council has several guides and resources linked on their website at: https://cafiresafecouncil.org/resources/community-wildfire-protection-plans/
• The International Fire Chiefs Association released their guide to help develop and implement a Community Wildfire Preparedness Plan in communities and across the country. It has a local community level approach to include code, development review, ordinances and local authority, and is used by leaders in the Fire Service, including subject matter experts, and local, state, and federal officials. Click here to download the guide.
• The Forest And Rangelands website provides more information about the importance of CWPPs, as well as a CWPP handbook to download: https://www.forestsandrangelands.gov/communities/cwpp.shtml

FEMA has a best practices for creating a CWPP document on their website here: https://www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/publications/creating_a_cwpp.pdf