Oregon places new rules on homeowners living in certain high-risk wildfire areas
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Oregon homeowners who live in certain high-risk wildfire areas defined by the state must now meet new building codes and reduce vegetation around their homes under new “wildfire hazard maps” unveiled Tuesday. The release of the maps follows a record-breaking wildfire season last year and firestorms in 2020 that killed nine people and destroyed thousands of homes.
The state-developed maps — which will not affect homeowners’ insurance rates, under Oregon law — create new rules for those living in the most fire-prone areas that also border wildlands such as forests or grasslands. The provisions impact 6% of the state's roughly 1.9 million tax lots, a reduction from an earlier version developed in 2022 but retracted after homeowners raised concerns that it would increase insurance premiums.
Wildfire seasons are growing longer and more intense due to climate change, and Oregon isn't the only state grappling with how to manage the risk. Washington state and Colorado have also recently moved to address fire risk in their communities, and a new rule announced in California last week will require insurance companies to provide policies in high-risk wildfire areas in order to continue doing business in the state.
In Oregon, the new building and so-called defensible space codes will affect only about 106,000 tax lots. But experts say that's an important step in identifying and protecting fire-prone areas as the state continues to contend with record-breaking wildfires.
