Washington Revised Code Title 76. Forests and Forest Products § 76.04.187. Wildfire risk assessment--Public safety evacuation strategies--Emergency disaster and evacuation plan messaging--Other departmental duties

(1)(a) The department must assess areas at significant risk for wildfire, by decade, for a period encompassing not less than 30 years. The assessment must include an analysis of the predicted climate influence on wildfire risk in the state and provide enough detail for landowners, the public, local governments, and federally recognized Indian tribes to develop strategies to address wildfire risk. The department must provide the first risk assessment to the appropriate committees of the legislature by July 1, 2027, covering a risk assessment period of July 1, 2027, through June 30, 2037. A subsequent decadal assessment is due to the appropriate committees of the legislature every 10 years thereafter. The department must also provide a mid-decade interim report to the appropriate committees of the legislature by July 1, 2032, and every 10 years thereafter.

(b) The department must coordinate with counties on an update to wildland urban interface maps consistent with RCW 43.30.580.

(a) Expand its community resilience and preparedness programming, for community-level and property-level wildfire readiness, and the associated supporting programs such as community resilience grants and service forestry, within the wildland urban interface in counties or regions of western Washington where risk of wildfires and smoke exposure exist as determined by the department;

(b) Participate in cross-agency emergency management planning and response efforts related to wildfire smoke plans developed under chapter 38.52 RCW. The department shall incorporate smoke readiness into community resilience programming and coordinate with state, county, federal agencies, and federally recognized Indian tribes to collaboratively share information and guidance for Washington communities affected by wildfire smoke. This includes providing updated wildfire information to air quality and health agencies and to the public through online information sources.

(c) Leverage community resilience programming to ensure residents and community organizations are provided information about services and programs to improve indoor air quality in the home. This may include connecting residents with their local contracted weatherization agency, which may provide home weatherization services to eligible applicants and residents. Weatherization upgrades may save energy, reduce utility costs, and improve indoor air quality;

(d) By July 1, 2028, implement a postwildfire debris flow program. The department shall identify areas prone to hazards from postwildfire debris flows, assess burned areas to determine potential for increases in postwildfire debris flow hazards, improve modeling to determine triggers for postwildfire debris flow early warning for at-risk communities and infrastructure, and communicate to emergency managers, local governments, stakeholders, state agencies, and the public both for preparedness and response; and

(e) By December 30, 2027, have established a structure for a state sponsored burned area emergency stabilization and response team and make recommendations regarding the appropriate number of teams needed, the funding necessary to support team deployments, and the implementation of hazard mitigation. The department shall provide capacity-building to local communities to establish local teams. The purpose of the burned area emergency stabilization and response team is to determine the need for emergency postfire treatments for public safety and resource protection. The department must consult with emergency managers, the military department, and the Washington conservation commission when developing the organizational structure of the teams established in this section.