Homes in rural enclaves offer stunning views – and severe fire risk. Should they be built?
The Diablo Grande resort area, where developers envision building hundreds of homes around two upscale golf courses about eight miles west of
The population under threat is rapidly growing. As many as 1.2 million new homes will be constructed "in the highest wildfire risk areas" of
Despite the threats facing hundreds of thousands of Californians -- and the still vivid memory of destructive wildfires that have roared through densely-populated areas of the state over the past year -- not enough attention is being spent on designing communities to withstand fires or on discouraging rapid growth in once rural areas, wildfire experts and scientists said. Instead, most of the focus has been on blaming public utilities for starting fires and on thinning forestland to reduce the timber that fuels fast-spreading blazes.
"How and where we are building is the under-represented, under-emphasized part of the whole problem," said
It's also not enough to blame the growing devastation of recent wildfires solely on climate change, researchers said. While drier, warmer conditions have lengthened the fire season and likely increased the severity of the blazes, wildfires are only destroying more homes today than decades before because of rapid growth in rural areas.
In other words, the fires aren't getting closer to us -- we're getting closer to the fires.
"We're seeing wildfires that have always been a part of the landscape that are now interacting more and more with us -- not just because they are getting larger, but because we're building in wildfire prone regions," said
Strader studied wildfire history in the western
"We have to be very careful to readily assume this is just a climate change issue," he said. "It is that, don't get me wrong. But there are two sides to the coin. Fires and society are coming together more often than ever before."
Nearly 200 California communities face very high hazards
There are few places in the state where the wildfire threat is non-existent.
In
More than 4,600 homes in the
Cities and counties have for years been aware of the risks their residents face. Many local governments regularly update local hazard plans that detail the impacts of disasters on their communities, from flooding to volcanoes to drought.
And the threat of wildfire.
At least 262,000 people in
Attendance at the county fire safe council meetings has increased since last year's
"I think a lot of people are learning all they can," he said. "What we saw this past year in
And yet, homes continue to be built in areas where state and local fire experts acknowledge wildfires are likely to burn.
In
Much of the western part of
"Given the topography, climate and vegetation on the west side of
The local hazard plan also cautioned against building new homes in parts of the city facing the highest risk.
"The risks associated with future events will continue to increase as the City sees development on previously approved projects in the very high fire hazard severity zone and as new developments are proposed and constructed," the report stated.
Homeowners insurance rates are also generally higher in areas that
Planning departments have ultimate say
However, the ultimate decision to approve home construction in high risk zones is made by local planning departments. And those departments often do not communicate enough with state emergency officials or their own local public safety agencies, said
"That responsibility (to approve homes in fire zones) lies with county planning departments and those county planning departments need to be taking (fire risk) factors into consideration," Gort said. "Why aren't planning departments reading those plans and reacting? It boggles the mind, but how many times in the past have they done it where they design a development where it's one way in and one way out?"
Moritz and other experts said there are steps that planners and policymakers can take to defend homes from wildfire. Some take little effort.
More could be done to provide financial incentives to homeowners seeking to retrofit their homes with fire defense measures, much like the thousands of dollars available to homeowners who strengthen houses to withstand earthquakes. Public agencies could make funds available to replace wood shake shingle roofs with fire resistant material and to place screens on attic and crawl space vents designed to prevent flying embers from entering homes.
A study Moritz co-authored with other environment scientists, including
That study -- which predicted 1.2 million new homes in parts of
Diablo Grande has a temporary, makeshift fire station and a rented house across the street for two volunteers who are usually on site.
Gregory said the fire district now has land for the fire station at Diablo Grande, but the facility is still a few years away from being built. Though he signed off on a redesign last year that allows up to 2,300 homes, Gregory said he won't permit a rapid pace of home-building without the agreed-upon station.
A life away from the city draws many residents to places like Diablo Grande.
Davis, who watched the fire outside the community, said the community golf course drew some residents in, while some older residents prefer its quiet setting, stunning views and trails for walking.
"It is wrong to do that but people do it anyway," Kovich said. "That is how these things get started."
ESTIMATING THE THREAT OF WILDFIRES
Many homes in the
Graphic:
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