During the 2013 Idyllwild Earth Fair, the Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council was honored to receive the Greenwood Award for protecting the environment. The award was presented to the MCFSC by Richard and Karen Greenwood. The Council makes great efforts to balance the need with keeping our community safe from fire in conjunction with protecting this beautiful forest we call home.
As part of the presentation it was stated that catastrophic wildfire could destroy not only our human communities, but it could change our local ecosystem as we know it. The Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council has actively been striving to make our communities as fire safe as possible, through education and direct action through work with the public and governmental agencies. The grants we have obtained have helped many homeowners abate their properties — removing hazardous “fuels” and bringing their properties into compliance with fire code. The removed trees are cut into firewood, often made available to low-income and senior individuals within the community of Idyllwild. Other “green” waste is chipped into mulch or taken to a bio-mass plant where it is turned into energy. And with the threat that the Gold Spotted Oak Borer (GSOB) presents to our native oaks, the Fire Safe Council has taken a lead role in addressing the issue and providing volunteers who can inspect for signs of the insects presence in our community.
