This wake-up call has underscored the importance of cabin owners working together on mitigation efforts. (2) One proven strategy is participation in the National Firewise USA® Program, a nationwide initiative administered by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).
This post explains what the Firewise USA® program is, outlines its annual requirements, discusses its relevance to Pinehaven’s cabin owners, and offers five practical steps each of us can take to improve wildfire safety.
What Is the Firewise USA® Program?
For a community like Pinehaven, situated near the San Isabel National Forest, this means engaging in wildfire education, mitigation, and collaborative risk reduction. Communities that meet the program’s criteria can become officially recognized as Firewise USA® sites, demonstrating a commitment to ongoing wildfire safety. The NFPA supports these communities with educational materials and technical guidance to help implement local protection plans. (4)
Benefits of Firewise USA® recognition include a clear structure for risk reduction, stronger community awareness and cooperation, greater peace of mind for residents, and potential financial advantages such as reduced insurance premiums.
Annual Requirements for Firewise USA®
Achieving Firewise USA® recognition requires meeting and maintaining the following four requirements each year.(5)
- Organize. The community forms a small volunteer committee (including residents and partners like the local fire department) to lead the effort and serve as the point of contact with the state Firewise liaison. This group defines the site’s boundaries (from as few as 8 homes up to 2,500) and serves as the liaison with state officials. Steve Johnson is currently Pinehaven’s Firewise coordinator and can be reached at digitalelintsys@gmail.com
- Plan. With guidance from wildfire experts (e.g., the Colorado State Forest Service or local fire officials), the committee conducts a wildfire risk assessment, updated at least every five years, and develops a three-year action plan outlining projects and education efforts to reduce hazards.
- Do. The committee mobilizes residents to carry out the mitigation projects and educational activities identified in the plan. Each year, the community must invest a minimum of one volunteer hour per cabin. That’s just sixty minutes a year and less time than it takes to watch a Broncos game, but it could help save your cabin. This could include clearing brush, thinning trees, improving defensible space, or hosting a “Firewise Day” event to raise awareness. These efforts count toward the site’s annual Firewise reporting.
- Apply. Once the above criteria are met initially, the committee submits an annual application through the NFPA’s Firewise USA® portal, documenting the assessment, action plan, and work completed. Upon approval, the community is officially recognized and awarded a Certificate of Recognition. Firewise recognition is all-or-nothing: a community is either an active recognized Firewise USA® site in good standing or it is not. There are no tiered levels such as gold or silver.
Earning Pinehaven’s annual Firewise USA® Certificate of Recognition is more than a formality. It’s national validation that the community is actively reducing wildfire risk and strengthening neighborhood pride. Each year’s certificate confirms Pinehaven met all NFPA mitigation requirements and authorizes the use of Firewise signage to show its ongoing commitment to safety. It also signals to residents, visitors, insurers, and grant agencies that Pinehaven is organized, resilient, and serious about protecting lives, property, and the forested legacy it calls home.
Firewise Resources
Fortunately, Pinehaven residents and leaders don’t have to figure out wildfire mitigation all on their own. After all, none of us were born knowing the safe distance for a propane tank or the flammability rating of mulch. That’s why Firewise USA® provides comprehensive guides and resources explaining how to implement the program. The NFPA provides a wealth of information on its website (nfpa.org/Firewise) about starting and sustaining Firewise efforts. Key documents include the Firewise USA® Program Toolkit and the Firewise Communities/USA Recognition Program User Guide. These resources are linked above and also included on the Resource page for this blog.
Five Things You Can Do
- Clear forest debris at your cabin. Regularly remove pine needles and debris from your roof, gutters, decks, and the ground near your cabin to prevent embers from igniting them.
- Create a 5-foot noncombustible zone. Replace wood mulch or dry plants next to your cabin with gravel, rock, or bare soil to keep fire from starting at your walls.
- Prune trees and thin vegetation. Trim overhanging branches and dead limbs, raise lower limbs, and thin the oak brush to prevent fire from climbing into the tree canopy.
- Relocate combustibles. Keep firewood, propane tanks, and other flammable materials at least 30 feet from your cabin and never under decks.
- Take advantage of Pinehaven's biannual debris haul-off. Pinehaven’s biannual free pickup collects pine needles and small debris twice a year to reduce wildfire risk and support the community’s Firewise safety efforts. The biannual haul-off is like spring cleaning with a community twist of less clutter, fewer sparks, and a safer forest for everyone. You can read more about this in Journal 27. (6)
Final Takeaway
The Firewise USA® program gives Pinehaven a clear path to greater wildfire safety and community resilience. Steve Johnson, Pinehaven’s Firewise Coordinator, proudly shared that in 2025 our community’s volunteer hours and funds spent exceeded the Firewise certification requirement by more than tenfold. Let’s keep that momentum going!
Each hour of work, each cleared branch, and each shared reminder adds up. Because in the mountains, wisdom isn’t just knowing how to fight fire, it’s knowing how to live smarter than it.(7)
Footnotes
Parenthetical numbers in the text (e.g., 5) correspond to the sequentially numbered citations listed below.
1. “Spring Fire highlights need for mitigation in Huerfano County,” KOAA, August 17, 2018, https://www.koaa.com/news/2018/08/17/spring-fire-highlights-need-for-mitigation-in-huerfano-county/#:~:text=LA%20VETA%20–%20Colorado’s%20second,burning%20nearly%20two%20months%20later.
2. “Spring Fire Highlights Need for Mitigation in Huerfano County,” KOAA News, August 17, 2018, accessed October 25, 2025, https://www.koaa.com/news/2018/08/17/spring-fire-highlights-need-for-mitigation-in-huerfano-county/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CDue%20to%20our%20drought%2C%20due,La%20Veta%20Fire%20Protection%20District.
3. “NFPA Firewise USA,” International Association of Fire Chiefs, August 17, 2018, accessed October 25, 2025, https://www.iafc.org/topics-and-tools/resources/resource/nfpa-firewise-usa#:~:text=The%20national%20Firewise%20USA®%20recognition,path%20to%20wildfire%20risk%20reduction.
4. Firewise® Community Requirements,” Western Fire Chiefs Association (WFCA), May 2 2023, edited September 17 2024, accessed October 25 2025, https://wfca.com/wildfire-articles/firewise-community-requirements/#:~:text=Firewise%20USA®%20is%20a%20national,1.
5. “Firewise® Community Requirements,” Western Fire Chiefs Association (WFCA), May 2, 2023; edited September 17, 2024, accessed October 25, 2025, https://wfca.com/wildfire-articles/firewise-community-requirements/#:~:text=Create%20a%20volunteer%20board%2Fcommittee%20to,your%20Firewise%20USA®%20State%20Liaison
6. “Bi-Annual Forest Pick-Up,” Cabin in the Pines, May 2025, accessed October 25, 2025, https://cabininthepinescuchara.blogspot.com/2025/05/bi-annual-forest-pick-up.html
7. Author’s note: In preparing this article, the author used AI-assisted tools for research support, proofreading, fact-checking, and stylistic refinement. The narrative, analysis, and historical interpretations are the author’s own, and responsibility for accuracy rests solely with the author. The blog’s research methodology statement is available at:
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