With the Bug and Stallion fires burning over 120,000 acres north of Reno, fire fuels mitigation is more important than ever.
Incline Village is getting ahead of the game.
As a way to clear vegetation and reduce fire risk, the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District is partnering with BurnBot to take a bite out of the problem.
BurnBot’s remote masticators and hand crews are clearing flammable vegetation in Incline Village.
Since BurnBot's masticators are remote operated, they give the operator a better vantage point they wouldn't have in a cab.
"They have a much broader view of the area they're treating," says Tanya Soans with BurnBot. "It's much lower impact on the environment, both because they can see where they are and also because it's lighter."
The masticators chew up the fuels and, with the help of hand crews, reduce the fuel load and spread it out so that if a wildfire burns here, the flames are much less intense and easier to fight.
NLTFPD is working with several agencies on this project. The Incline Village General Improvement district owns the land, the Nevada Division of Forestry orchestrates much of the funding, and BurnBot brings the equipment.
The project is called "the worm."
"We got, good quality wildfire fuels reduction right up to the boundary of private property, 132 feet deep on the forest land," says Jason Furmaniak, NLTFPD's Forester.
This map shows where crews are mitigating 176.5 acres of fire fuels north of State Route 431 in Incline Village. Courtesy: North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District.
That boundary just so happens to wiggle like a worm, hence the project's name.
The map on the right shows where crews are working above State Route 431. In yellow is the 62.6 acres crews finished in phase one last year. In green is phase two, and additional mitigation work is in black.
Furmaniak says the project's name gets people to ask questions, first about why it's called that, and then about how it works and why it's important.
Tom Millhoff has lived in Incline Village since 1999. He says the worm gives him peace of mind and hopes it inspires his neighbors to clear their own defensible space.
"The masticators can't come on our property," he says. "It's our job to make sure that ember that lands on our property doesn't become a house fire or a neighborhood fire."
The project is taking place on IVGID's land. The agency fully funded last year's work and continues to support it this year.
"It's really benefiting the safety of our residents as well as the stewardship of the lands that we have and are challenged with protecting for our beautiful village," says Michelle Jezycki, IVGID Trustee and Vice Chair.
This time around, the Nevada Division of Forestry administered a Better Together Nevada Shared Stewardship grant to fund 94.9 of the 113.9 in this phase through the State of Nevada. IVGID is matching 10% of that grant.
"We're glad to have the coordinated efforts of all the grant work come together and increase the protection for the community," says Tony Parenti with NDF.
As of August 13, 35 acres in Phase Two are complete since work began in July. Work is scheduled to be completed by mid-September.
Once the worm project is finished, fire fuels on 176.5 acres will be mitigated in Incline Village.
Alin Beane shows us how the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District is using this remote equipment for phase two of "the worm."
