Wildfire Protection Plan tackles growing threat

By Cheyanne Neuffer, Tahoe Resource Conservation District

The Lake Tahoe area’s ability to protect itself from devastating wildfires took a huge step forward recently with the release of the 2025 Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP), a cutting-edge framework to safeguard homes, forests, and lives.

The CWPP updates the 2015 version with new technology, lessons learned from recent fires, and a web-based platform for greater accessibility. Funded by the California Tahoe Conservancy through the California Department of Conservation Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Grant Program and led by the Tahoe Resource Conservation District (Tahoe RCD) and Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team, this CWPP builds on over two decades of collaboration between local, state, and federal agencies, fire districts, and community organizations with a mission to help make Tahoe fire-adapted and resilient against growing wildfire threats.

The CWPP tackles Tahoe’s wildfire threat with a three-pronged approach of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy:

Fire Adapted Communities— Encouraging residents to create defensible space, harden homes, and participate in community-driven fire preparedness efforts.

Resilient landscapes—Implementing strategic fuel-reduction treatments to restore forest health.

Effective fire response—Enhancing coordination among fire agencies, improving evacuation routes, and leveraging advanced wildfire technology.

Wildfire played a crucial role in keeping Tahoe’s forests healthy for thousands of years, with burning by the Washoe Tribe shaping the landscape. However, over a century of fire suppression and extensive logging during the Comstock Era left Tahoe’s forests dense and overgrown and susceptible to intense, destructive fires.

Since 2004, roughly 100,000 acres of forest around the communities of Lake Tahoe have been treated to reduce wildfire risk through the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program. These efforts proved invaluable during the Caldor Fire, where treated areas helped slow the fire’s advance, allowing firefighters to protect homes and lives.

Advanced approach to wildfire preparedness

A key feature of the 2025 Community Wildfire Protection Plan is the use of cutting-edge technology. Vibrant Planet software is a comprehensive decision-support platform that leverages advanced data analysis and scientific algorithms to assist land managers in planning landscape-scale fuels reduction treatments. This tool enables agencies to identify high-risk areas, quantify the benefits of different treatment strategies, and optimize wildfire mitigation efforts across multiple jurisdictions. By modeling various scenarios, Vibrant Planet helped prioritize treatment areas that offer the greatest protection to communities while also supporting ecological restoration.

The plan also introduces a web-based platform utilizing ArcGIS Hub and StoryMaps, making information more accessible to residents and decision- makers alike. “Tahoe RCD is proud to have worked alongside our partners and the public to develop a plan that prioritizes both wildfire safety and ecological resilience,” said Mike Vollmer, executive director of Tahoe RCD. “This updated plan not only provides a strategic framework for reducing wildfire risk, but also empowers our communities with innovative tools and accessible information to take action."

While large-scale projects and fire agency efforts are crucial, individual action is just as vital. Residents can play a critical role by creating defensible space around their homes, implementing home hardening recommendations and getting involved with the Tahoe Network of Fire Adapted Communities Program. The CWPP reinforces the importance of making communities safer with defensible space, home hardening measures, and community-based initiatives, ensuring that everyone can play a role in reducing wildfire risk.

During the development of the CWPP, more than 600 Tahoe residents contributed to the CWPP update through surveys and meetings, ensuring that community voices were heard. The plan also prioritizes protecting vulnerable populations, recognizing that wildfire preparedness must be inclusive.

As climate change accelerates and wildfire seasons grow longer, the 2025 CWPP stands as another beacon of proactive wildfire management in the Tahoe Basin’s toolkit. Agencies, land managers, and residents must work together to strengthen Tahoe’s resilience and protect this cherished landscape for generations to come. For more information and to access the interactive CWPP, visit tahoe-basin-cwpp-trcd.hub.arcgis.com.

Cheyanne Neuffer is the community wildfire protection plan coordinator at the Tahoe Resource Conservation District.

Fire Adapted Communities Program continues to grow

The Tahoe Network of Fire Adapted Communities Program, led by the Tahoe RCD, empowers residents to take proactive steps in wildfire preparedness. The program funds basin-wide defensible space inspections, chipping programs, community work days, green waste dumpsters, community wildfire education and prevention support, and helps communities attain Firewise recognition. Here are some highlights:

■ The program grew significantly this year to reach 89 Fire Adapted Communities and 61 Firewise sites—up 50 percent from last year. FAC neighborhood leaders are vital to rallying their communities to prepare. There are now 149 neighborhood leaders across 89 FACs.

■ The FAC Program teamed up with the Tahoe Science Career Technical Education Program to provide high school students with hands-on defensible space training. Students get to apply their knowledge on field trips to local FAC neighborhoods.

■ Thanks to grant funding from the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation, Tahoe RCD created a series of videos to highlight the FAC program and to promote preparedness.

The program will continue to expand its reach, further connecting neighborhoods and strengthening wildfire preparedness across the basin. For more information visit tahoelivingwithfire.com.