Community Wildfire Protection Plans for the State of Hawaiʻi

Unlike the contiguous United States, wildfire is not a natural part of Hawaii's ecosystem. In Hawaii, wildfires destroy native ecosystems, which impacts watersheds and traditional cultural activities. Wildfires have also caused the demise of or have fragmented the habitats that support native flora and fauna, many of which are listed as endangered or threatened. Sixty-five percent (65%) of Hawaii Island's dryland forest ecosystems have been lost primarily due to wildfire carried by invasive grasses. Consequently, Hawaii's dryland habitats are mere remnants of what was once referred to as the most diverse dryland ecosystem in the state. Wildfires in Hawaii also cause soil erosion, which negatively impacts our ocean reefs. The overwhelming majority of wildfires in Hawaii are caused by arson or human error. Wildfires in Hawaiʻi are a mauka to makai issue — what burns in the uplands reaches down to the coast, threatening the safety of our communities, the health of our watersheds, and the resilience of our natural and cultural resources. Uncontrolled fire endangers people and the homes they live in, placing families and entire neighborhoods at risk while straining the fire departments and emergency responders who protect them. It also damages the lands and resources that sustain us — grazing lands, forests, sacred sites, and the places that carry cultural meaning and identity across generations. HWMO works alongside ranchers, cultural practitioners, fire departments, landowners, and local partners to reduce the number of wildfires and lower wildfire risk for communities and the precious natural resources throughout the State of Hawaiʻi, recognizing that protecting our people, our homes, and our ʻāina is a shared responsibility.

The purpose of wildfire protection planning is to motivate and empower local government, communities, and property owners to organize, plan, and take action on issues impacting the safety and resilience of values at risk. It aims to enhance levels of fire resilience and protection to the communities and infrastructure, identify the threat of wildland fires in the area, identify strategies to reduce the risks to structures, infrastructure, and commerce in the community during a wildfire, identify wildfire hazards, education, and mitigation actions needed to reduce risk, and transfer practical knowledge through collaboration between stakeholders toward common goals and objectives.