The role of CWPPs:

The Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 provides communities with a great opportunity to influence where and how agencies implement fuel reduction projects on federal or private lands, as well as how additional federal funds may be distributed for projects on non-federal lands. A CWPP is the most effective way to take advantage of this opportunity.

Why do we need to update the CWPP?

• CWPP’s are intended to be a living document and updates are expected as the needs in a community change and evolve.

• CWPPs act as an ideal document to outline concrete benchmarks and action plans on how those goals are to be achieved by the local community at all scales.

• Periodic updating of the CWPP will guide the appropriate risk management strategies.

What are the benefits of a CWPP for Ravalli County?

CWPPs have economic, social, and environmental benefits, including:

• Reducing the direct and indirect social, economic, and environmental costs of wildfire;

• Coordinating wildfire risk reduction with other community values and priorities;

• Influencing where federal agencies (USFS, BLM) prioritize fuel treatments;

• Bringing together diverse interests to tackle local wildfire challenges and opportunities;

• Identifying potential resources and funding for mitigation activities;

• Increasing community awareness and engagement in risk reduction.