Jackson Morrill
President & CEO of the American Wood Council
The first month of this year saw a dramatic increase in catastrophic wildfires in California. In the first eleven days of January, California experienced more than a hundred wildland fires with more than 38,000 acres burned. The Palisades and Eaton fires are now considered the second and third most destructive fires in the states’ recorded history, with 30 fatalities and estimates of well over $100 billion dollars in damages. This level of destruction and loss of life is devastating and is being met with calls for action and prevention.
While experts are still assessing the damage, there have been some notable initial findings. Among these is the observation that embers played a primary role in the loss of many structures. Simple measures such as the use of mesh screening within vents likely could have reduced the number of losses in areas where ember transmission occurred.
Additionally, the importance of defensible space has once again been confirmed by post-fire investigations after the Palisades and Eaton fires. Homes having greater separation from external exposure sources such as vegetation and other combustible items outside the house tended to have a greater chance of survival.
These wildfires underscore the importance of proper building codes and forest management. California has some of the nation’s most rigorous Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) codes, which set minimum construction and land use requirements for Wildland-Urban Interface zones where development and wilderness intermingle. California’s WUI codes (i.e., California Building Code Chapter 7A) first took effect in 2008 for new construction and additions.
However, older homes were not required to update to the WUI requirements. A McClatchy analysis after the 2018 Camp Fire in California found that 51% of the structures built after 2008 (according to WUI code requirements) escaped damage, while only 18% of the 12,100 structures built prior to 2008 escaped damage. 1
WUI codes include requirements related to exterior building elements such as walls, roofs, eaves, vents, windows, and even vegetation management and defensible space practices. These code provisions support home hardening methods that are proven to help protect people and property and focus on preventing flame spread and ember intrusion into buildings. AWC supports performance-based approaches that provide a reasonable level of protection to human life and the built environment against wildland fire exposure.
We expect WUI codes to continue to play an important role in mitigating the continued threat of catastrophic wildfires in California and across the nation. There are several plans to incentivize home hardening expected from the state legislature and the supplement for the 2025 California WUI code will begin development this year. On a national level, the International Code Council’s 2027 International Wildland-Urban Interface Code (IWUIC) is in development, with the next public comment deadline in early Spring. AWC has longstanding relationships in these arenas and will continue to stay engaged and advocate for performance-driven codes and standards to help protect against loss of life and property.
Solving our nation’s growing wildfire problem requires a multifaceted approach; it includes important performance-based provisions like those in California’s WUI code, proactive forest management and regulatory frameworks that balance safety and affordability. We are already working with partners on the ground to support post-fire analyses, engaging with key legislatures as they seek to understand WUI and the code development process, and building on our longstanding work in fire testing and research. AWC will continue to be deeply engaged in these important conversations on wildland-urban interface construction, seeking solutions that ensure the ongoing, safe use of wood products.
1 – Phillip Reese, “Dissecting Data: Pinpointing Houses Threatened by Wildfire,” April 12, 2019, https://apnews.com/article/ca-state-wire-california-wildfires-destined-to-burn-paradise-e688e34240bb4217a13d9ddbe5062ffe
