Central Ventura County Fire Safe Council

THE MISSION OF THE CENTRAL VENTURA COUNTY FIRE SAFE COUNCIL IS TO REDUCE THE THREAT OF WILDFIRE TO FARMS, RANCHES, URBAN NEIGHBORHOODS AND INFRASTRUCTURE, THROUGH AN AGGRESSIVE PROGRAM OF ACTION, EDUCATION AND COLLABORATION.

THE CVCFSC IMPLEMENTED THE FOLLOWING COMPLEX, MULTI-PARTNER, COUNTYWIDE WILDFIREPREVENTION PROGRAMS IN 2021:I. ORGANIZED 7 COMMUNITY CHIPPER DAYS AND 3 LARGE FUEL REDUCTION PROJECTS IN COMMUNITIES WITHIN THE WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE. THE CHIPPER DAYS CLEARED OVER 40 ACRES OF VEGETATION, AND THE FUEL REDUCTION PROJECTS CLEARED 28 TONS. SOME OF OUR KEY PARTNERS FOR THIS WORK INCLUDED VENTURA COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT, FILLMORE FIRE, CALIFORNIA CONSERVATION CORPS, AND HOME OWNER ASSOCIATIONS. II. FACILITATED OVER 60 EDUCATION AND OUTREACH PROGRAMS, WEBINARS, TOWN HALL MEETINGS AND WORKSHOPS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. WE ALSO CO-HOSTED A VIRTUAL INTERACTIVE SPEAKER SERIES WITH THE VENTURA COUNTY RESOURCE CONSERVATION DISTRICT. WE'VE BEEN IN THE NEWS TOO FRONT PAGE OF THE VC STAR, WE WERE FEATURED IN THE ACORN AND THE OJAI VALLEY NEWS, AMONG OTHER PRINT AND SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS. TO INCREASE INCLUSION AND EQUITY IN WILDFIRE PLANNING AND PREPAREDNESS, WE ORGANIZED EDUCATION, OUTREACH AND TRAINING PROGRAMS IN SPANISH. FOR EXAMPLE, TEN PROMOTORAS WERE TRAINED TO COMPLETE HOME HARDENING ASSESSMENTS WITHIN SPANISH SPEAKING COMMUNITIES. THE VENTURA REGIONAL FIRE SAFE COUNCIL IS ONE OF THE FIRST ORGANIZATION IN CALIFORNIA TO OFFER THIS TRAINING IN SPANISH. III. COMPLETED 100 HOME HARDENING ASSESSMENTS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY, FOCUSING PARTICULARLY IN PIRU AND THE GREATER CONEJO VALLEY. IV. PROVIDED TWO 8-HOUR COURSES FOR HIRED VENDOR INCIDENT SAFETY AWARENESS. THESE COURSES SUPPORT VENDORS THAT CONTRACT FOR SERVICE DURING MAJOR WILDFIRE INCIDENTS. THE COURSES WERE TAUGHT BY WOODY BOUSKA WITH SURE-FIRE TRAINING, INC. AND THERE WERE OVER 60 PARTICIPANTS. V. IN 2021, WE WERE AWARDED FUNDING TO UPDATE VENTURA COUNTY'S COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN AND FACILITATE THE DEVELOPMENT OF 7 LOCAL PLANS. A CWPP PROVIDES A ROAD MAP OF ACTIONS FOR COMMUNITIES TO ADDRESS THE WILDFIRE THREAT. THROUGH A COLLABORATIVE, INTERACTIVE PROCESS, THE CWPPS WILL PRIORITIZE FUEL REDUCTION ACTIVITIES; AND RECOMMEND MEASURES THAT HOMEOWNERS AND OTHERS CAN TAKE TO SAFEGUARD THEIR COMMUNITIES. VI. VENTURA REGIONAL FIRE SAFE COUNCILS GROWING CAPACITY: THE VENTURA REGIONAL FIRE SAFE COUNCIL PROVIDES ESSENTIAL WILDFIRE MITIGATION AND AWARENESS PROGRAMS THAT ENABLE VENTURA COUNTY'S RESILIENT AND TREASURED COMMUNITIES TO LIVE MORE SAFELY WITH WILDFIRE. WE ARE LED BY A SKILLED BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND AN ACTIVE ADVISORY BOARD. THE BOARD BRINGS A DEEP AND BROAD UNDERSTANDING OF WILDFIRE MITIGATION, RESOURCES, MAPPING, LOCAL LEGISLATORS, AND CONTENT EXPERTISE. THE STAFF LEADERSHIP INCLUDES THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PROGRAMS MANAGER AND ADMINISTRATIVE/FINANCE MANAGER WITH SUPPORT FROM SUPPORT STAFF AND OVER A DOZEN VOLUNTEERS AND CONSULTANTS. THE FIRE SAFE COUNCIL HAS STRONG POLICIES AND PROCEDURES IN PLACE, A WELL-COORDINATED STRUCTURE BETWEEN BOARD AND STAFF, FUND-RAISING EXPERTISE AND PROGRAMS THAT REFLECT COMMUNITY DRIVEN PRIORITIES.