Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan FOR THE COUNTIES OF BUTLER, CASS, GAGE, JOHNSON, LANCASTER, N EMAHA, OTOE, PAWNEE, RICHARDSON, SARPY, SAUNDERS, AND SEWARD Photo courtesy of Chris Helzer AUGUST, 2020 Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan ii Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan August, 2020 Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan FACILITATED BY THE Nebraska Forest Service IN COLLABORATION AND COOPERATION WITH BUTLER, CASS, GAGE, JOHNSON, LANCASTER, NEMAHA, OTOE, PAWNEE, RICHARDSON, SARPY, SAUNDERS, AND SEWARD COUNTIES LOCAL VOLUNTEER FIRE DISTRICTS COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT DIRECTORS SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA CWPP STEERING COMMITTEE LOCAL MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS LOCAL, STATE, AND FEDERAL NATURAL RESOURCES AGENCIES AREA LANDOWNERS Prepared by Sandy Benson, Forest Fuels Management Specialist Nebraska Forest Service Phone 402-684-2290 • [email protected] http://nfs.unl.edu Photo courtesy of Chris Helzer It is the policy of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln not to discriminate based upon age, race, ethnicity, color, national origin, gender, sex, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, veteran’s status, marital status, religion or political affiliation. Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan August, 2020 iii Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan (This page intentionally blank) iv Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan August, 2020 Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan Approved By: Butler County Board of Supervisors Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Cass County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Gage County Board of Supervisors Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Johnson County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Lancaster County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Nemaha County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Otoe County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan August, 2020 v Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan Pawnee County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Richardson County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Sarpy County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Saunders County Board of Supervisors Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Seward County Board of Commissioners Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________ Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________ Nebraska Forest Service Signature: ______________________________ Title: ____________________________State Forester Name __________________________________ Date: ____________________________7/28/2020 vi Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan August, 2020 Southeast Nebraska Community Wildfire Protection Plan Table of Contents Overview Map ............................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................................... iii Signature Pages ............................................................................................................................................. v Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................................... vii List of Acronyms .......................................................................................................................................... viii Introduction, Legislative Background, Plan Integration ............................................................................... 1 Goals and Objectives ..................................................................................................................................... 2 Priority Landscapes ....................................................................................................................................... 4 Process ......................................................................................................................................................... 5 Overview ....................................................................................................................................................... 5 Wildfire Hazard: History and Impacts ......................................................................................................... 10 Emergency Operations ................................................................................................................................ 15 Community-Specific Considerations Butler County .............................................................................................................................................. 17 Cass County ................................................................................................................................................. 19 Gage County ................................................................................................................................................ 21 Johnson County ........................................................................................................................................... 23 Lancaster County ........................................................................................................................................ 25 Nemaha County .......................................................................................................................................... 28 Otoe County ................................................................................................................................................ 30 Pawnee County ........................................................................................................................................... 32 Richardson County ...................................................................................................................................... 34 Sarpy County ............................................................................................................................................... 36 Saunders County ......................................................................................................................................... 39 Seward County ............................................................................................................................................ 41 Action Plan .................................................................................................................................................. 43 Wildfire Risk Assessment ............................................................................................................................ 43 Wildfire Risk Reduction ............................................................................................................................... 45 Recommendations for Increasing Emergency Preparedness ..................................................................... 46 Training and Education; Fuels Mitigation Strategies .................................................................................. 48 Maintenance ............................................................................................................................................... 49 Monitoring and Evaluation ......................................................................................................................... 49 Five-Year Action Plan .................................................................................................................................. 50 Endnotes ..................................................................................................................................................... 52 List of Appendices ......................................................................................................................................