The state’s controversial wildfire map may go. But the risk to communities won’t.

When the temperature hits triple digits and wind gusts through Eugene and Springfield on a summer day, fire danger is quite literally in the air. 

But how Willamette Valley cities are categorized in the Oregon Statewide Wildfire Hazard Map has clouded many people’s understanding of their risks. 

The Wildfire Hazard Map — first published and then rescinded in 2022 when it was called the Wildfire Risk Map — is the state’s second attempt to help lawmakers and agencies decide where to direct limited wildfire prevention resources. It categorizes parcels of property as low, moderate, or high risk. Properties along the city limits of Eugene and Springfield are at moderate risk. 

Lawmakers also intended the original map to serve as a public education tool. Instead, the map created confusion about whether it contributed to rising insurance costs. 

The Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) released a revised map earlier this year with a new name and updated hazard categories.

But frustrations persist. This legislative session, elected officials testified in support of scrapping the map once again.

Should the map go away, wildfire risk won’t, experts say.

Our communities have always been in fire-prone landscapes, said James Johnston, Associate Professor in the Institute for Resilient Organizations, Communities, and Environments at the University of Oregon, but now our weather has become hotter and drier.

“Oregon has always been a place where wildfire has thrived,” he said. “Climate change, population growth, and expanding development into wildlands all make the problem worse.”

Which areas in Eugene and Springfield are most at risk for wildfires? 

Nearly all of Springfield falls within a Wildland-Urban Interface boundary, a transitional zone where forested landscapes or grasslands meet developed residential areas or city centers. 

Parts of Eugene are also designated as Wildland-Urban Interface zones, particularly in neighborhoods along the city limits, such as those near Moon Mountain where a wildfire burned in 2022. It  was small and short-lived because of a quick response from the ODF and Eugene Springfield Fire. 

While scientists can estimate how likely a fire is to spread in forested areas near homes, they can’t predict where a wildfire will ignite, especially because most are human-caused. 

Looking at wildfire risk means considering how different scenarios overlap. Under the right conditions, when it’s extremely windy, for instance, the line between wildfire and urban fire can quickly blur. That growing overlap was brought into sharper focus by the Los Angeles fires earlier this year.

No matter where you live in Lane County, don’t discount your wildfire risk, said Timothy Ingalsbee, executive director of the Eugene-based Firefighters United for Safety, Ethics, and Ecology.

“Once it enters the city, what begins is house to house ignition, kind of like a chain nuclear reaction,” Ingalsbee said. “So that’s why even in the center of Eugene, we’re still vulnerable.”

With much of Eugene and Springfield categorized as low hazard in the wildfire map, he worries the map has given people a  “false sense of security” at a time when city resources are already stretched thin.

The fate of the map 

Lawmakers introduced the map under Senate Bill 762, part of a broader wildfire response package following the devastating 2020 Labor Day fires. 

Misinformation spread about the map: It was driving up insurance premiums. It was government overreach, an attempt to tell property owners what to do. The backlash prompted the state to withdraw the first version of the map.

ODF published a revised version in January, but shortly after, Governor Tina Kotek ordered state agencies to pause all action related to it. 

The state senate committee on natural resources and wildfires unanimously voted April 7 to remove the requirement of a state wildfire map from state law, moving it to the senate floor for discussion. Committee Chair Jeff Golden (D-Ashland), who supported creating the map years ago, will now carry a rollback measure to the full Senate floor. Depending on the outcome of the vote, the map may be removed from public view. 

In a statement to Lookout Eugene-Springfield, Senator Golden said repealing the map clears the way for alternative approaches.

Lookout also requested an interview with the ODF to discuss what the repeal could mean for wildfire programming in our region. The agency declined to comment, citing its decision to wait until the full Legislature finalizes its direction on the map. 

The office of the Oregon State Fire Marshal did not respond to a request for comment before publication.

Staying safe

With or without the map, Johnston urges people to learn about their risk and prepare. Other tools exist to help, he said. 

The state fire marshal’s office offers free assessments of the defensible space around your home. An expert comes to your house and explains how to create a buffer between your home and grass, trees, and shrubs. Allow one to three weeks to schedule an appointment. 

Another way Eugene and Springfield residents can prepare: have a clear evacuation plan, Johnston said. Map an escape route in advance, and have a go-bag packed. Learn about survival kits from the American Red Cross.

It’s a way to take a bit of control in unpredictable situations. 

“Preparing for the contingency that is a wildfire, in terms of having an evacuation route, having important things packed and itemized are things we can do as human beings living in a complex society to help us manage risk,” Johnston said.