Information and Photo Courtesy of the Scottsdale Fire Department
As the wildfire season approaches, the city of Scottsdale is continuing fire/fuel mitigation projects in and around the North Scottsdale area. The city continues to work in cooperation with the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management, Arizona State Land Department, and the U.S.D.A. Tonto National Forest. Scottsdale Preserve and Scottsdale Fire Department staff are also coordinating with adjacent communities, Maricopa County, adjacent cities, and other Scottsdale City departments in these efforts, including Parks and Recreation, Transportation, Sanitation, and Field Services.
The purpose of this work is to reduce fire/fuels in strategically targeted areas to reduce the threat of wildfires starting, and to provide defensible spaces that can slow the spread of a fire. Attention is being focused along roadway edges in and around the Preserve, School Trust Lands, and key alignments within the Preserve that function as fuel breaks to stop or slow the forward movement of potential wildfires.
Here are some recent projects that the city has completed to help wildlife fire fuel mitigation:
Rio Verde Drive Fuel Management Project:
Contractors working on behalf of the city of Scottsdale conducted a vegetation thinning project on the north side of Rio Verde Drive from 122nd Street to 136th Street, and on the south side of Rio Verde Drive from 122nd Street to 128th Street. Crews removed annual grasses, thinned the density of shrubs, and removed the lower branches on some trees to alleviate ladder fuels. This work reduced the threat of a fire starting and/or spreading north or south into the Preserve. Similar work was done by the same crews last year on the west side of 136th Street from Rio Verde Drive to the Tonto National Forest Boundary.
Arizona State Land Department (School Trust Lands) Project 1:
Contractors working on behalf of the city of Scottsdale conducted a vegetation thinning project in the square of Dynamite Boulevard and Pima, Jomax and Hayden roads. Crews removed annual grasses, thinned the density of shrubs, and removed the lower branches on some trees to alleviate ladder fuels. This work will reduce the threat of a fire starting and/or spreading outside of the state of Arizona lands. Similar work was done in 2019 and 2020 on the east side of North Pima Road between E. Dynamite and Legends Trail Parkway.
Arizona State Land Department (School Trust Lands) Project 2:
City contractors conducted a vegetation thinning project on the west side of North Pima Road from Dynamite Boulevard to Jomax Road over to 90th Street. Crews removed annual grasses, thinning the density of shrubs, and removing the lower branches on some trees to alleviate ladder fuels. This work will reduce the threat of a fire starting and/or spreading outside of the state of Arizona lands. Similar work was done in 2019 and 2020 on the east side of North Pima Road between Dynamite and Legends Trail Parkway.
Arizona State Land Department (School Trust Lands) Project 3:
Just completed on May 1, contractors working on behalf of the city of Scottsdale conducted a vegetation thinning project on the west side of Scottsdale Road between East Jomax Road and I-101 (approximately 4.5 miles). Crews removed annual grasses, heavy dead and down fuels, thinned the density of shrubs, and removed the lower branches on some trees to remove ladder fuels and reduce crown fire potential. This work will reduce the threat of a fire starting and/or spreading outside of the state of Arizona Lands into the wildland urban interface.
Residents can help these efforts by reducing fuels appropriately on their property. To learn more about how to reduce wildfires around your home and neighborhood, visit scottsdaleaz.gov/fire/wild-fire-prevention.
