Big Bear Lake, Ca July 15, 2011 12:00 pm – During Wednesday’s meeting of the Big Bear Lake Fire District, Fire Fuels Reduction Supervisor David Yegge gave a presentation about the multiple fire prevention programs the city is pursuing. Big Bear Lake has received commendation for these programs, including an article in Sunset Magazine last September called “Doing it right: looking for the safest place to live in wildfire country? Welcome to Big Bear Lake” Current programs highlighted by Yegge included the joint agency Curbside Chipping program throughout the Valley, the work with the County to remove dead and dying trees, updates to the Community Wildfire Protection Plan, and grants in progress for future programs. One grant Yegge is working on would extend the successful chipping program for several additional years. In June alone, the program received 570 requests for chipping, with another 225 made this month. 202 tons of brush has been chipped, with some of the wood chips being used at sites around the City, and some slated to be burned for electricity at a plant in Thermal, California. During the presentation, the Board was invited to visit the firewise property during this Saturday’s Xeriscape Garden Tour. The demonstration property uses native plants and careful landscaping to create a beautiful yard that also reduces the home’s vulnerability to wildfire. The demonstration is part of the Districts’ programs to educate the public so that more homes in the Valley are firewise, increasing the safety of the entire community. David Yegge’s presentation provided the board with information on the progress of the Healthy Urban Forest Initiative, inacted after the Old Fire swept through mountain communities in 2003.
Additional information is at thinisin.org
[audio:https://kbhr933.com/wp-content/uploads/SP30902.mp3|titles=Firewise Programs Update by David Yegge]