Challenges in Josephine County relate to the high level of wildfire risk, as well as the rural population. The 2002 Biscuit Fire burned close to 500,000 acres and cost over $150 million dollars. Josephine County also has the 6th highest poverty rate in the State of Oregon (according to the 2000 Census) and over 50% of the population lives outside of the two urban growth boundaries in rural and largely forested areas.

The partners involved with the Josephine County Integrated Fire Plan include citizens, firefighters, and county employees, as well as representatives from state and federal agencies, watershed councils and community-based organizations. The partners are involved with various elements of the fire plan through the committees established during plan development. These committees and their objectives are listed below:

Emergency Management Board: to strengthen emergency management, response and evacuation and build relationships between county government and local fire districts; also responsible for monitoring the overall implementation of the fire plan and serving as a liaison to the Board of County Commissioners.

Risk Assessment/Fuels Planning Committee: to identify communities at risk and the wildland-urban interface, conduct the risk assessment, and to identify strategies for coordinating fuels treatment projects, administer grants for fuels reduction across fire districts, provide special need citizens with an opportunity to participate in programs, and identify opportunities for biomass marketing and utilization;

Education and Outreach: to develop strategies for increasing citizen awareness and action for fire prevention, and to reach out to all citizens of the county

Along with strong parternships, the Josephine County Integrated Fire Plan has resulted in numerous on-the-ground succeses.

Risk Assessment
Using maps to identify cumulative risks occurring in the landscape, the risk assessment identifies Communities-at-Risk and the Wildland-Urban Interface by taking into account a combination of factors including:

Risk - potential and frequency for wildfire ignitions based on past occurrences;
Hazards – Ecological conditions that contribute to wildfire including fuels, slope, aspect, elevation and weather;
Values - locations of people, property, natural and other resources that could suffer losses in a wildfire event;
Protection Capability - ability to respond to and suppress wildland and structural fires;
Structural Vulnerability – roof type and building materials, access to the structure and whether or not there is defensible space or fuels reduction around the structure.

Based on the locations of the Communities-at-Risk identified through this process, strategic planning units based on watersheds were designated to create a preliminary list of fuels treatment projects. Parameters for prioritizing projects are established and listed in the JCIFP. Projects were then prioritized to address the risk equitably across the landscape.

Fuels Reduction
The JCIFP identified and prioritized local fuels reduction projects and helped secure funding through the National Fire Plan to implement over 250 acres of defensible space, roads and evacuation routes and landscape treatment on private land in 2004 and 2005. These projects have also resulted in priority fuels treatment projects on adjacent public land.

Education and Outreach
The JCIFP includes a detailed framework for developing a complex education and outreach program. The program takes brings together local and regional partners, including the Rogue Valley Fire Prevention Cooperative (RVFPC), which unites agencies involved in fire prevention, as well as the Siskiyou Field Institute which is engaged in educational programs about fuels reduction and fire. The JCIFP Education and Outreach Committee worked with the RVFPC to design a new logo promoting wildfire preparedness in Josephine County and neighboring Jackson County. In 2005, the committee is launching a campaign called, "Wildfire: Are You Prepared?" using flyers, logos and posters, developing in-school programs and coordinating mobile displays to present fire plan information at community events and fairs throughout Josephine County. The committee has also created a recognition program in Josephine and Jackson Counties for homes that meet the counties’ standards for wildfire safety. The Applegator Newspaper in Applegate Valley has been providing special semi-annual fire issues for several years. The Education Committee will coordinate with the Applegator to bring this same information to the entire county.

Other outreach activities include maintaining resource clearinghouses at libraries, rural fire protection districts and video stores, and coordinating a free dump days at Josephine County Composting Facility in April 2005.