Firewise Community Newsletter - September 2024
September 2024, V4
Now that we are officially a Firewise USA community, a nationally recognized site, we have our signs displayed at both entrances of the LRAA for neighborhood recognition.
SAVE THE DATE!
Community Chipping "Air Care" Event and FREE Soft Organic Material Dumpster Days
We heard your feedback from the Spring Chipping Event and it’s back on the schedule!
Through the Okanogan Conservation District and the LRAA Firewise Committee partnership, an industrial chipper is being provided for LRAA on October 7th, 2024, and a soft organic material dumpster from October 4th - 10th, 2024.
• Chipping Day Details:
Get your yard work done and build piles by the side of the road/driveway for easy access. For chipping, logs/branches must be no longer than 6.5 feet and no wider than 12 inches. They also must be natural woody material, no lumber or treated wood. Additional instructions are in the sign-up form. Please READ to ensure you are staging correctly. There is now no requirement for homeowners to be home to have chipping completed. Just have yard waste ready and staged by 8 AM on the morning of October 7th.
• Soft Organic Material Dumpster Days Details:
Only soft organic materials can be accepted, including pine needles, leaves, grass, weeds, or other non-woody material. Things not accepted are tree branches, firewood, stumps, lumber, or other woody material. WasteWise says no to any bags, plastic or paper. They need ALL material to be loose in the dumpster, in order to properly steam and treat it. Bring your soft organic materials to the dumpster in a bag(s), dump it into the dumpster and take your bag(s) home.
The dumpster will be located on Meek Road at the LRAA Fire Hall October 4th - 10th
MICROGRANT UPDATE
We were awarded another $4,000 Firewise USA Micro grant this spring that is allowing us to spread gravel around the pump house so it stays clear and accessible in case of a fire. A work party will be coordinated soon if you are interested in helping!
GOOD REMINDERS AS WE CONTINUE TO FIREWISE OUR NEIGHBORHOOD
Pick up/rake all flammable vegetation (dead branches, brush, stumps, logs) on your property.
Trim your trees lower limbs 15’ up off the ground
Trim tree branches within 15’ within a chimney or stovepipe
Trees close to your home are a risk, consider creating a 30’ defensible space around your home without trees.
Order blue reflective address signs so emergency vehicles can locate you quickly.
Now is a great time to do a chimney sweep after a COLD winter! This should be done every 1-2 years to prevent chimney fires in the spring and fall that could easily spread.
Please share how many hours you have put into making your property more fire resilient. We get to use these hours towards our Lost River Airport Firewise community hours. These hours give us access to neighborhood micro-grants and free programs, such as the chipping day in October. If two or more people worked, than add everyone hours separately so we record all total hours. Please email all your hours to LRAA.business@gmail.com
FREE MONEY FOR DOING FIRE MITIGATION WORK ON YOUR PROPERTY
We are now Firewise Certified Site and the benefit to becoming a Firewise neighborhood is we have an opportunity to receive funding to help make our neighborhood safe from fire from your individual contributions. And you as property owners can earn money doing the mitigation work. See the program details at https://www.dnr.wa.gov/cost-share.
Please note that nothing will ever be done to private property without the consent from the owner. It is your personal choice to participate.
Also you can schedule a FREE IN PERSON FIREWISE HOME ASSESSMENTS with Okanogan Conservation District and Department of Natural Resources. To schedule an assessment, email Eli Loftis at eli@okanogancd.org.
HOW TO STAY INFORMED ON FIRES & SMOKE IN THE AREA
Firewise resources for the upcoming summer…
If you’d like to stay informed on when fires are near us and evacuation levels you can sign up for Okanogan County alerts. It’s great to know whether you’re a part-time or full-time resident. Links can also be found on the LRAA Home page.
Okanogan County Emergency Management
AirNow - Air Quality Monitor App
Purple Air - Air Quality Monitor App (There’s a Purple Air monitor at LRAA.)
Inciweb - Up to date fire reports
National Interagency Fire Center - Fire tracking map
Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest Facebook
From Your LRAA Firewise Committee