Wildfire season ramps up quickly during the summer and fall months. But in addition to preparing for the sudden onset, year-round efforts to reduce wildfire risks on your rural property generally enhances the safety of buildings, livestock, and people.
Factors affecting wildfire risks include everything from vegetation to equipment and hay storage. That’s why preparing a wildfire risk reduction and response plan is crucial before one happens.
To help you prepare, we’ve developed a guidebook on wildfire risk management on country properties. Read on to learn about how to enhance your structures, equipment, hay, and animal safety and better manage wildfire risks.
Understanding the Unique Challenges of Wildfires on Ranches and Farms
Wildfires pose a risk everywhere, whether in a city or the country. However, ranches and farms often have unique wildfire challenges you don’t see in urban areas. These include:
- Longer distance to fire departments
- Haystack storage
- Livestock and pets
- Limited access to water
- Fuel storage
- Surroundings, including forests and fields
Farmers have a lot on their hands, unlike those living in towns with faster access to fire departments and fewer animals and buildings. Therefore, mitigating the risk of wildfires on rural properties proves crucial to improving safety measures.
Factors Affecting Wildfire Severity on Farms and Ranches
Wildfire risk frequency and severity continue demonstrating upward trends worldwide, including popular areas for farms and ranches. But why? Common factors include:
- Climate change
- Drought
- Temperature
- Wind patterns and speed
- Lightning
- Human activities
- Resource availability
Many farms already experience climate change impacts more and to a greater degree than before, including droughts, higher temperatures, and severe weather. When combined with remote locations and less water access, it can take longer for firefighters to put out fires, increasing severity.
Proactive Wildfire Preparation for Rural Properties and Farms
Whether you live on your farm or ranch or not, you should consider how to prepare for a wildfire. Start by creating a safety plan that includes evacuation routes for yourself, livestock, and anyone else on the property. You’ll also want to:
- Create firebreaks around your ranch, especially near fuel, hay, and equipment storage.
- Check your water supply and, if necessary, create an irrigation ditch or pond.
- Prepare an emergency supply kit filled with items like wire cutters, N95 masks, and maps.
- Install and maintain smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in homes and buildings.
- Ensure you have adequate insurance coverage for your property, crops, and animals.
Consider this your “quick guide” to wildfires. Below, you’ll discover in-depth information about how you can protect and reduce fire risk to your rural land or farm.
Creating Fire-Resistant Zones Around Your Property
One of the most effective ways to protect your farm is by creating fire-resistant zones or defensible spaces. In general, you’ll want to focus on three zones:
Immediate Zone (Within 5 feet of Homes and Structures)
Start in the closest zone before moving to the others. Tips for handling the first zone include:
- Remove leaves and debris from rooftops and gutters.
- Opt for fire-resistant and low-growing plants with ample space between them.
- Trim vegetation or remove it.
- Create a non-combustible zone around buildings using stone, gravel, or pavers.
- Clear any dead leaves, needles, and twigs from the area.
- Trim tree limbs to at least 10 feet from the structures.
Regularly clean and maintain this area to ensure ample safety for the buildings on your property.
Intermediate Zone (5 to 30 feet of Homes and Structures)
After the immediate areas outside your home, barn, or other structures, you can move to the next 30 feet. Steps to take in this zone include:
- Prune bushes, shrubs, and branches.
- Remove plants, weeds, or mulch from around trees and fuel tanks.
- Thin groups of trees, so there are at least 18 feet between canopies.
- Keep lawns and vegetation trimmed to four inches or less.
These proactive measures help reduce the chance of wildfires starting or spreading to buildings on your rural land.
Extended Zone (30 to 200 Feet From Structures)
Even though this zone is farthest from your home, barn, or other outbuildings, you should still take wildfire precautions. Start by cleaning up any litter and brush lying around. Mow grass and fields regularly and remove any dead trees.
Continue to thin out trees and remove any highly flammable ones within this range. You can also create firebreaks or strips of bare soil, driveways, or roads. These can reduce the risk of fire spreading into structures, homes, or livestock areas.
Building Maintenance and Construction Tips for Fire Safety
Aside from preventing fire from reaching your property, you can also do “structure hardening” to help keep your home or buildings safe. Here are some structure maintenance and retrofitting tips to consider:
- Seal gaps and cracks in the roof or walls to prevent embers from entering.
- Clean and maintain gutters regularly.
- Add metal mesh screens to vents and chimneys.
- Trim or remove vegetation or flammable materials near doors and windows.
- Store non-critical materials or equipment in any barns you cannot update.
- Avoid attaching a wooden fence to a structure or replace the five feet closest to the building with non-combustible material.
If you plan to build new structures, consider locating them a safe distance from existing structures, such as 30-50 feet apart. Keep the area between buildings free from overgrown plants.
Effective Hay Storage Practices to Reduce Fire Risk
Hay is a common sight on farms and ranches—so it’s crucial to mitigate the risks of it catching fire. Here are some top tips for storing hay during wildfire season:
- Mow the areas around the hay storage.
- Store hay in more than one location to reduce the risk of a mass burn.
- Create firebreaks around hay storage areas.
- Bale hay when it has 15% or less moisture to avoid spontaneous combustion.
- Store hay on bare ground and away from highly flammable plants.
- Reduce damage risks to equipment and buildings by keeping hay in another location.
Following these guidelines when storing hay helps protect property, structures, and animals if it catches on fire.
Best Practices for Storing Farm Equipment Safely
Much like hay, equipment storage also contributes to wildfire risk reduction. You’ll want to keep all machinery and vehicles in appropriate working order with annual inspections and maintenance.
You should generally park equipment at least 20 feet from buildings or homes. Store it on cement pads, gravel, or bare ground. Before parking, you should also regularly remove any vegetation or windblown debris, including leaves or tumbleweeds.
Carry a bucket, shovel, and fire extinguisher in any tractors or other farm vehicles you use in case of emergency.
Safeguarding Livestock During Wildfire Threats
Keeping your animals safe during a wildfire should be one of your top priorities. Be prepared by keeping diligent records and creating an evacuation plan for your livestock, including:
- Ensuring animals have permanent identification
- Keeping a record of the species type, location, and number
- Taking up-to-date pictures of your animals
- Storing vaccination, medical, and registration records with your evacuation kit
- Securing a place to move your animals in the event of an oncoming fire
- Mapping out multiple evacuation routes
- Including food, medication, tools, and animal care instructions in your evacuation kit
You’ll want to avoid herding any animals in front of an oncoming fire. Adding firebreaks in and around pastures can help reduce risks, though you’ll still want to have an evacuation plan in mind.
Listen to any warnings provided by fire officials and start evacuating ahead of time. Think about the number of chicken crates or livestock trailers you’ll need and how long it will take to move all the animals out of harm’s way. It’s better to be over-prepared than under.
Risk Management and Insurance Considerations for Wildfire Damage
Do you need insurance against wildfire damage for your farm or ranch? The short answer is yes. However, you’ll want to ensure you have adequate coverage, so it’s crucial to speak with your advisor. Ask them about:
- The extent and amount of damage covered by your insurance
- Whether your policy covers animals that are harmed or killed by wildfire
- Specific items covered by insurance, such as hay storage, equipment, fences, and outbuildings
Sometimes, one policy won’t cover everything in one go—so you may need to purchase multiple from different companies. Regardless of how you insure your farm, you should remember to store copies of critical documents in fireproof boxes.
You should also keep an updated inventory of your animals, equipment, and anything else under your insurance.
Buy or Sell Country Farms in the United States With the Land.com Network of Pros
Preparing your rural farm or ranch for the fall wildfire season helps protect your assets, ranging from livestock to homes, structures, and people. Whether you’re ready to sell your land or you want to buy a rural property in fire country, our team at Land.com is here to help.
Find a land pro in your area, or browse our farm and general listings to search for the agricultural land of your dreams. Looking to sell your wildfire-prepped ranch? Add a listing or connect with a real estate agent to reach thousands of users with a simple platform and customer support.
Sources:
Environmental Protection Agency. Climate Change Indicators: Wildfires. https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/climate-change-indicators-wildfires
Farm Bureau Financial Services. How to Protect Your Farm or Ranch from Wildfires. https://www.fbfs.com/learning-center/protecting-your-farm-and-ranch-from-wildfires
Oregon State University. Keeping Your Home and Property Safe from Wildfire. https://extension.oregonstate.edu/catalog/pub/em-9184-keeping-your-home-property-safe-wildfire
NFPA. PREPARING HOMES FOR WILDFIRE. https://www.nfpa.org/Education-and-Research/Wildfire/Preparing-homes-for-wildfire
CAL FIRE. Defensible Space. https://readyforwildfire.org/prepare-for-wildfire/defensible-space/
FEMA. Wildfire | Mitigation (Property: Defensible Space). https://community.fema.gov/ProtectiveActions/s/article/Wildfire-Mitigation-Property-Defensible-Space
National Wildlife Federation. Defensive Steps for Landowners Facing Wildfire Threats. https://blog.nwf.org/2016/11/defensive-steps-for-landowners-facing-wildfire-threats/
University of California. Wildfire Preparedness for Farms, Ranches, and Agricultural Operations. https://ucanr.edu/sites/fire/files/393244.pdf
Nationwide. Learn about wildfire safety and fire prevention tips. https://www.nationwide.com/lc/resources/farm-and-agribusiness/articles/wildfires
International Fire & Safety Journal. The importance of careful hay baling to prevent fire risks. https://internationalfireandsafetyjournal.com/the-importance-of-careful-hay-baling-to-prevent-fire-risks/
Travelers. Reducing Haystack and Hull Pile Storage Fire Risk. https://www.travelers.com/resources/business-industries/agribusiness/reducing-hay-stack-and-hull-pile-storage-fire-risk
U.S. Department of the Interior. 10 Tips to Prevent Wildfires. https://www.doi.gov/blog/10-tips-prevent-wildfires
AirNow. Wildfire Smoke Factsheet. https://www.airnow.gov/sites/default/files/2021-06/protect-your-large-animals-and-livestock-from-wildfire-smoke.pdf
Pacific Northwest Ag Network. Four Steps To Protect Your Farm or Ranch for PNW Wildfire Season. https://pnwag.net/ag-wildfire-prep/
OSU Extension. Wildfire: Preparing the Ranch and Farm. https://extension.okstate.edu/fact-sheets/wildfire-preparing-the-ranch-and-farm.html
