Following years of devastating wildfires in California, the state is drafting stricter rules for vegetation and landscaping in fire-prone areas. Public pushback is expected to be intense.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
In many neighborhoods, homes are hugged by greenery, but experts say in some areas that greenery can increase a home’s wildfire risk. Officials in California are drafting rules that would strictly limit landscaping within 5 feet of a home in high-risk areas. Lauren Sommer from NPR’s Climate Desk saw a demonstration of why that zone is important.
LAUREN SOMMER, BYLINE: Even in a wildfire, most fires start small.
ANNE COPE: We’ve got spot fires here. See that beautiful circle of spot fire?
(SOUNDBITE OF FLAMES CRACKLING)
SOMMER: Two buildings in Sacramento, Calif., side by side, are being set on fire. It’s a demonstration being led by Anne Cope of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. It’s a nonprofit that studies what makes buildings vulnerable. The buildings are surrounded by bark mulch, and that’s where firefighters started the flames.
COPE: And this one is lit.
SOMMER: This is how many houses burn in a wildfire. Embers blown ahead of the fire get caught in mulch or plants. Around one building, that mulch fire spreads to the shrubs.
COPE: All of this vegetation is healthy and green. And you can see that one in the corner there. Look how quickly it’s flaming, the one right in front of the window.
SOMMER: From there, the fire goes up the building wall, eventually consuming the whole thing.
COPE: There goes the window. You can see the pieces have melted.
(SOUNDBITE OF FLAMES CRACKLING)
SOMMER: But next door, the other structure is fine, because between the house and the bark mulch is a stone walkway. The fire stopped when it hit that hardscaped barrier. This zone within 5 feet of a house is key, Cope says, and it’s what needs to change.
COPE: We need to take our beautiful landscaping and our flowers that we…
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