|
There is more to wildfire defense than just defensible space. That space doesn't do you much good if burning embers rain down and catch your asphalt roof on fire or pine needles in your gutters that you never bothered to clean out. I recently rode through the burned out areas along Highway 22 near Detroit Lake and it didn't take long to notice that a lot of the remaining houses had metal roofs.
Oregon just passed a bill with almost $200 million in funding for wildfire prevention. I found it odd that the sticking point wasn't how much logging to do but instead building codes. Apparently building codes for new construction are "an unlawful seizure of Oregonian’s property rights" according to Sen. Art Robinson, R-Cave Junction
|