Letter to the Editor: My response to the fire risk map

Dear State Fire Marshal,

I am writing to you as a 42 year resident of Plumas County to protest the inaccurate recent Fire Risk Map you are currently reviewing.

I am astonished that no attention was given to the recent devastating wildfires we have endured here. Surely these fires have changed the available fuel levels and topography of our area. The report also ignored the efforts that many of our communities are now engaged in to reduce fire risk. I am the Lead for our local Lower Grizzly Road Firewise Community outside of Portola,California. We are certified by NFPA and are very seriously involved in reducing our wildfire risk with fuel reduction, home hardening, etc. activities. We are some of the recipients of a multimillion dollar fuel reduction grant to Plumas County to aid these efforts. To pay no heed to all of this is insulting and just plain wrong.

Maps such as these need to be reviewed and updated regularly.

Insurance companies could definitely abuse the present unacceptable Fire Risk Map.

You need to have a much more complete and correct map of our fire risks.

Sincerely,
Christopher D Stanton

Portola