The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and its partners are presenting a draft of the proposed template and suggested elements of a holistic wildfire mitigation strategy and approach for electric utilities to the public for comment. This template will provide a guide for the electric utilities operating in the State of Washington as they continue to develop and document their wildfire mitigation strategies.

 

As required following the passing of House Bill 1032 by the 2023 Legislature, DNR, the Washington State Department of Commerce, and other state agencies and stakeholders began developing a set of elements and template to standardize the organization of wildfire mitigation activities by electric utilities across the state.

 

The Wildland Fire Mitigation Plan Template is available for public comment here.

 

The current elements were selected by identifying best practices, aligning with state wildfire mitigation goals, and soliciting feedback from advisory stakeholders including the Utility Wildland Fire Prevention Advisory Committee. While the elements included are intended to capture a wide range of potential activities, it is neither exhaustive in scope, nor is it expected that all electric utilities will have programs or initiatives identified for all elements in the template. The template provides suggested topics, language, and guidance for completing each section.

 

This template will be finalized on April 1, 2024, and DNR requests that any feedback or comments be supplied via the above link no later than March 22, 2024. There will also be the opportunity for public comment during two sessions hosted via webinar by DNR. Those webinar options, from 2 to 4 p.m. on Feb. 28 and March 7 respectively, are available here and here.

 

All feedback received by this date will be considered by DNR and the Department of Commerce for inclusion in the final version of the template. Thank you for your participation in the review of this important document. 

 

 

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Thomas Kyle-Milward

Wildfire Communications Manager

Cell: 360-529-7184