Fire chief presents revised CWPP; council offers support to submit plan

Mayor Ewing invited Chief Anthony Lott to summarize the updated Cooperative Wildland Protection Plan (CWPP). Lott said the CWPP is a five‑year guiding document that helps the town remain part of the cooperative wildfire system that provides state and national resources during catastrophic wildfires. “The CWPP is a sort of overarching plan that we make every 5 years that drives the year‑to‑year things that we do,” Lott said.

Lott explained the cooperative system’s obligations are met largely through in‑kind contributions — training, fuels mitigation and community burn efforts — and that recent changes reduced the annual fee to roughly $17. He said the community burn weekend Malia is organizing will substantially contribute to the town’s in‑kind hours. Lott said he will check the plan for required signatories and finalize council contact and business owner details, then submit the CWPP to Forestry, Fire and State Lands.

Council members voiced no objections and offered to provide contact information or signatures as needed. Staff also asked whether portions of the CWPP could be repurposed into public‑facing materials (for example, burn policy guidance); Lott agreed and asked staff to identify elements helpful for public distribution.