Box Elder County adopts wildfire protection plan and signs cooperative agreement with state

The Box Elder County Commission on Feb. 25 unanimously approved the county’s updated Wildfire Protection Plan and a cooperative agreement with the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands that formalizes roles, reporting and funding expectations for wildland fire prevention and response.

Fire Marshal Kevin Lloyd told commissioners that "the state has signed off on the agreement," and explained the package includes both a Protection Plan and a Cooperative Agreement that together guide preparedness, initial attack and extended suppression responsibilities.

The plan updates the county’s Community Wildfire Preparedness Plan (CWPP) and lists mitigation priorities and projects across four identified focus areas, including planned fuel breaks and treatments in Marble Hills and Cedar Ridge and larger landscape work the county expects to pursue through 2030. The CWPP and agreement describe training and equipment expectations for local responders, minimum wildland firefighter training (NWCG S-130 and S-190), standards for engines and water tenders, and annual reporting through the Utah Wildfire Assessment Risk Portal (UWRAP).

Under the cooperative agreement the county retains primary responsibility for initial attack on nonfederal lands; the agreement sets conditions for state delegation of fire management authority and financial responsibility for extended attack when FFSL assumes command under the statutory criteria described in the document. The county plan also records a multi-year fuel treatment program the county fuels crew expects to pursue and lists an annual target (the plan states an average of about 10,000 acres annually across county initiatives and contractors, subject to funding and approval).

County leaders said the plan is intended to coordinate local fuel-reduction work, firefighter training and community outreach. Lloyd told the commission the state reviewed and approved the plan before the vote. The commission’s action was unanimous.

Next steps in the document include implementing the county fuel-treatment work, maintaining fuel breaks, tracking Participation Commitments in UWRAP and continuing public outreach and chipping/burn-trailer days to reduce hazardous fuels around communities.