Our History

The Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Council formed following the

Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Roundtable and Conference

in Steamboat Springs, May of 2019.

At the conference, resource professionals, county and city stakeholders and the general public gathered to assess the wildfire mitigation needs of Routt County and provide information on fire mitigation and management.

The Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Council is comprised of county and city representatives, local state and federal officials, non-governmental organizations, homeowners associations as well as local businesses and private landowners.

What we do

The mission of the Routt County Wildfire Mitigation Council (RCWMC) is to create resilient fire-adapted communities to minimize potential impacts of wildfire.

RCWMC will work to facilitate fuel reduction by coordinating with all of our stakeholders to address the risk at a landscape level by working all the way down to the neighborhood level; provide resources, information and learning opportunities for individual landowners; and change social norms related to wildfire mitigation and preparedness in our community.

The Goals of the Council are to:

Increase partnerships and collaboration among individuals, property owners, and public, private, and nonprofit organizations to share information, identify risks, and prioritize and implement mitigation actions in Routt County.

Promote public awareness and understanding of wildfire risk to foster community-driven action to reduce risk and the impacts of wildfire in Routt County.

Support property owners through technical assistance to take action to protect their property from wildfire.

Coordinate countywide information on wildfire risk and the prioritization and completion of forest management projects to protect property, infrastructure, watersheds, and ecosystems.

Encourage local planning and land use and building codes to incorporate wildfire mitigation principles.

Membership

Board of Directors

Chair

Chuck Cerasoli

Fire Chief, Steamboat Springs Fire Rescue

Secretary

Carolina Manriquez

Forester, Colorado State Forest Service

Treasurer

Phil Lauinger

Citizen

Committees & Board Leadership

Education & Outreach Committee

The Education and Outreach Committee leads the Council’s work to promote public awareness and understanding of wildfire risk to foster community-driven action to reduce risk and the impacts of wildfire in Routt County.

Members

Sarah Jones

Director of Sustainability and Community Engagement, Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation

Tim Sullivan

Natural Climate Solutions Director, Yampa Valley Sustainability Council

Values at Risk & Mitigation Committee

The Values at Risk Committee leads the Council’s work to support property owners through technical assistance to take action to protect their property from wildfire and helps to coordinate countywide information on wildfire risk and the prioritization and completion of forest management projects.

Members

Frank Alfone

General Manager, Mt Werner Water

Plans and Policies Committee

The Plans and Policies Committee leads the Council’s work to Encourage local planning and land use and building codes to incorporate wildfire mitigation principles and helps to coordinate countywide information on wildfire risk and the prioritization and completion of forest management projects.

Members

David “Mo” DeMorat

Emergency Manager, Routt County

Finance and Fundraising Committee

The Finance and Fundraising Committee works to protect the Council’s assets and provide proper financial oversight and reporting and helps to develop sustainable funding sources.