Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team Releases New Tool Showing Fire Restrictions

September 24th, 2024

Press Release- Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team

Contact: Tahoe Resource Conservation District, Cara Moore, cmoore@tahoercd.org

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev., September 24, 2024 - The Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team (TFFT) is pleased to announce the release of a new map that has been created to showcase fire restrictions throughout the Lake Tahoe Basin. The map shows who owns the land and what type of fire is permitted. It can be found here underneath the “Prescribed Fire & Current/Upcoming Fuels Reductions” map on Tahoe Living With Fire.

“Fire restrictions have been a topic of confusion for residents and visitors alike,” said TFFT Incident Commander Isaac Powning. “In a region defined by two states, five counties, and one city, it can be challenging to know who manages the land and what the rules are on that land. This map will help remedy that confusion.”

Fire restrictions are meticulously set by land managers and fire agencies. They dictate what kinds of BBQs, residential fires, or campfires are allowed. This map functions as a tool that will use a user’s location to connect them to the corresponding agency’s fire restrictions website.

“It’s critically important to understand the fire restrictions where you are,” said the map’s creator, Cara Moore, Environmental Scientist at the Tahoe Resource Conservation District. “We are surrounded by forests in the Tahoe Basin, and all need to do our part to follow restrictions to reduce wildfire risk.”

There are six fire districts that encompass the Lake Tahoe Basin and dictate what kinds of fires are locally allowed in residential areas. The local fire districts are incorporated onto this map based on their jurisdictional boundaries and links are provided to their websites displaying fire restrictions. In addition, the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is included on the map and is a major landowner that establishes and posts updated fire restrictions. Popular recreation areas and campgrounds are also included on the map. When clicked on, they will direct a user to the information corresponding to that specific location’s fire restrictions. State Parks and various other campground areas can differ in their fire restrictions by allowing certain kinds of fires in designated areas. This map aims to clarify overall fire restriction information and make it user friendly.

For questions or to obtain the raw data, contact TRCD’s Cara Moore at cmoore@tahoercd.org

About the Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team

The Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team (TFFT) consists of representatives of Tahoe Basin fire agencies, CAL FIRE, Nevada Division of Forestry and related state agencies, University of California and Nevada Cooperative Extensions, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, the USDA Forest Service, conservation districts from both states, the California Tahoe Conservancy and the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board. Our Mission is to protect lives, property and the environment within the Lake Tahoe Basin from wildfire by implementing prioritized fuels reduction projects and engaging the public in becoming a Fire Adapted Community.

For more information, visit https://tahoe.livingwithfire.info/about/.