JOINT NEWS RELEASE

April 15, 2019

Media Contact:
Kirsten Cook, Okanogan Conservation District community outreach director, 509-422-0855 (Mon.-Thurs.)
Libby Siebens, community relations executive director, 509-682-6436 (Mon.-Thurs.)

Wenatchee Valley College Continuing Education, in partnership with Okanogan Conservation District, is hosting Landowners Wildfire Bootcamp for landowners of one or more acres of forest or sageland who want to be better prepared for wildfires. The bootcamp consists of four free classes. Students may attend one or more of the classes in the series. The same classes will be offered at different times to accommodate different schedules.

The Landowners Wildfire Bootcamp series begins April 27. Most classes will take place at the WVC at Omak campus. Off-campus locations will be provided at registration. Register through WVC Continuing Education by calling (509) 682-6900, visiting wvc.edu/CED or in-person with Cindie Martin at the WVC at Omak campus registration office.

The Beginning Chainsaw Skills and Safety class is for those with little or no chainsaw experience. The class will cover how to safely use this tool and keep it running well. There are two class options: a coed class (April 27) and a women’s class (May 4).

• Beginning Chainsaw Skills and Safety (co-ed): April 27, 8 a.m. to noon
• Beginning Chainsaw Skills and Safety (women): May 4, 8 a.m. to noon 

The Managing Your Land for Wildfire and Wildlife class will cover how thinning, grazing, and prescribed fire can reduce wildfire risks while also maintaining quality wildlife habitat. There are two class options: one class for owners of forested properties (May 8 or 11), and one class for owners of sageland properties (May 11 or 15). Landowners with both types of vegetation should plan to attend both classes.

• Forest properties: May 8, 6-8 p.m. or May 11, 10 a.m. to noon
• Sageland properties: May 11, 1-3 p.m. or May 15, 6-8 p.m.

The Fire Ready Home and Landscape class will cover the science of home ignitions and best practices to keep a home from igniting during a wildfire event. Since embers from wildfires can travel over a mile from the main fire, homeowners in more developed areas or surrounded by irrigated agriculture can be at risk along with those in forested or sageland areas.

• Fire Ready Home and Landscape: May 18, 9-11 a.m. or May 22, 6-8 p.m. or June 3, 6-8 p.m.

Okanogan Conservation District’s Firewise Coordinator Kirsten Cook said that the course topics were selected based on the responses from a community survey conducted in fall 2018.

“Most people who responded to the survey wanted us to focus on two key areas: preparing one’s home and landscaping for fire season, and managing one’s forest or sageland property to be resilient in the face of wildfire,” she said. “Chainsaw skills also came up, so we included a class on that as well. We’ve got some great instructors who are looking forward to helping people learn and implement best practices to be more fire ready.”

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Wenatchee Valley College Continuing Education offers noncredit classes designed to provide lifelong learning and job skill training opportunities. Visit their website, wvc.edu/CED.

Okanogan Conservation District works collaboratively with land managers to care for natural resources in Okanogan County. Okanogan CD is a non-regulatory local governmental entity formed to provide stewardship planning, education, and conservation incentives to landowners and lessees. All District services are voluntary and provided free of charge without discrimination. Visit their website, okanogancd.org.

Wenatchee Valley College is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in employment and student enrollment. All programs are free from discrimination and harassment against any person because of race, creed, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a service animal by a person with a disability, age, parental status or families with children, marital status, religion, genetic information, honorably discharged veteran or military status or any other prohibited basis per RCW 49.60.030, 040 and other federal and laws and regulations, or participation in the complaint process. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies and Title IX compliance for both the Wenatchee and Omak campuses:

• To report discrimination or harassment: Title IX Coordinator, Wenatchi Hall 2322M, (509) 682-6445, title9@wvc.edu.
• To request disability accommodations: Student Access Coordinator, Wenatchi Hall 2133, (509) 682-6854, TTY/TTD: dial 711, sas@wvc.edu.