PNW Quantitative Wildfire Risk Asssessment

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Pacific Northwest Quantitative Wildfire Risk Assessment
2023 Update

Since the first PNW QWRA was released in 2018, landscapes in Oregon and Washington have changed significantly. The primary reason for updating the assessment is to capture the effect those changes might have on risk across the region. A second reason for the update is to take advantage of improvements in fire modelling and related data. A lot has changed in five years, and advancements in data and technology will yield more refined estimates of fire behavior and risk. Finally, QWRA end-users have provided great feedback since the first PNW QWRA was released and, where appropriate, that feedback will be incorporated into the updated PNW QWRA.

Timeline

February 2022 - November 2022 | Fire Behavior Modeling.

We conducted a 3-day workshop with regional fire and fuels professionals in coordination with Pyrologix LLC. Attendees adjusted existing fuels data based on their in-depth knowledge and experience. Project leaders continue to work with Pyrologix to finalize wildfire model outputs, conducting targeted outreach with fire and fuels professionals as needed.

 

October 2022 - January 2023 | Mapping Resources and Assets.

We will begin soliciting detailed feedback from stakeholders regarding resources and assets using a detailed online survey. Participants will be able to provide feedback on the existing list of resources and assets and to offer suggestions for new ones. We are working with conveners like Sustainable Northwest to help distribute the survey.

 

January – February 2023 | Assigning Response Functions

We will convene specialists for the development of response functions for the final list of HVRAs.

 

January – February 2023 | Determining Relative Importance

We will conduct regional workshops with regional planners and decision-makers to establish relative importance among the final list of resources and assets.

 

March – April 2023 |Finalizing and Publishing Updated QWRA

We will assemble the updated QWRA and publish the data and related analytics.