Abstract:
"Ninety percent of the world's fires are caused by human beings -- mostly careless of their surroundings "-- Clay, 144.That's a scary quote, considering many new housing communities are popping up in remote areas where increasing amounts of uncontrollable forest deadwood, combined with poorly designed wildland/residential interface areas are causing numerous wildfires. What's a wildland/residential interface, you ask?Well, the wildland/residential interface is a landmass area were structures intermingle with previously undeveloped wildland. It is the desired area of new housing development for the majority of today's rural commuters.The increasing interest in living in these areas is understandable. Nature is calming. The views are inspiring, and removal from the "Big City" is appealing; but, currently "the verypresence of a home in a wildland region does threaten -ldlands -- not only because people can cause wildfires but because the priority given to protecting life and property could divert fire fighting resources from the surrounding wildland area" -- NFPA, 5. The odd thing is, it doesn't have to be this way. As in every situation, there is a compromise. In this one, it's called "Firescape Architecture.""I think that many landscape architects, as well as other design professionals, are not aware of all of the do's and don'ts of protecting structures and life within the wildland/urban interface. The best thing is cooperation from the start. Try to work out the problem areas, identify them, and then work out solutions to those problems as soon as possible" -NFPA (response by participant in satellite broadcast symposium), 11. This inadequacy in the profession is the main reason for the creation of what this project calls "Firescape Architecture." Firescape Architecture is the solution to the aforementioned problem. Firescape Architecture is the creation of techniques and standards that enable the Landscape Architect to design wildland/residential interface areas that are fire-safe.
