Landscape and Open Space Update: Fire Fuel Reduction
The Landscape and Open Space Department is actively working on fire fuel reduction, clearing invasive species, and developing the required 100-ft defensible space between living space structures and open space brush.
A vast majority of residential lots are adjacent to federal, state, county, or private lands, with many lots having only 10 to 20 feet between their property line and the property line of others. This creates a challenge as the HOA cannot clear brush on property owned by others.
However, several areas have been cleared to achieve the 100-foot defensible space for homes, as required by County Fire Ordinances, including Oak Springs Drive by County-owned Simon Park and many areas bordering Cleveland National Forest.
The Nature Trail West, as it runs along Rio Verde Road, has had an enormous amount of work completed recently, and with the additional funding this year, outside specialty fire fuel teams were hired to accomplish this task.
Finally, non-native and invasive species are being targeted for removal, especially in our riparian areas, as many of the palms, pines, peppers, and eucalyptus trees are highly flammable and overtake our native species' habitat, clogging our drainage waterways, which can create flooding problems.
As we continue this process over the next few years, we anticipate this strategic plan will get us in front of clearing in a way that hasn't been accomplished at this level in the past.
This multi-pronged approach of removing non-native species and clearing our waterways, in addition to the enhanced trimming of trees and additional mowing of areas around houses, will bring a balance back to our unique and very diverse chaparral community, both maintaining the biodiversity of this unique biome and offering a more fire-resistant community for all of us to live in and enjoy.
