Fire Safe Landscaping for Hazardous Fire Areas - UWI
Certain areas within the City of Gilroy are considered Hazardous Fire Areas. This is due to those areas being adjacent to Wildland Areas or near enough to Wildland Areas to be called Urban –Wildland Interface Areas (UW I). Once a fire gets into Wildland Areas, there is very little that can be done by the Gilroy Fire Department to fight the fire. The State and other agencies will have to attack the fire using aircraft and many
firefighters on foot. Our goal is to make sure that no fires get into the Wildland Areas and to protect homes adjacent to Wildland Areas if there is a wild fire.

The areas in Gilroy that are considered Hazardous Fire Areas or UWI are as follows: The Country Estates Subdivision –Starting on Mantelli, and west of Rancho Hills Drive, The Forest Subdivision, Homes on Rancho Real Drive-- south from Welburn Ave, The Carriage Hills Subdivision--west of Rancho Hills Dr. (includes Colony, Carriage, Cresthill, Valley Oaks & cul-de-sacs off these streets), Lands on Hecker Pass Highway--west
of Santa Theresa, The Eagle Ridge subdivision, and other homes west of Miller and South of Eagle Ridge including Mesa Ranch, Mesa Ridge, Wildflower Court.

Defensible Space
If your home is in a Hazardous Fire Area – UWI a defensible space will give firefighters a head start to protecting your home against a fire. It means clearing all dry grass, brush and debris at least 30 feet from your home, more if you are in a heavily wooded area. See the diagram on the other side.

Planning
Having a Defensible space doesn't mean a ring of bare dirt around your home. A properly planned and irrigated landscape area does a fine job as a defensible space. When establishing your landscape, keep trees furthest from your house, shrubs can be closer, and bedding plants and lawns are nearest the house. There is a listing of prohibited plants at the bottom of the page. Do not plant these and if some are existing, plan to
remove them and replace with more fire safe varieties. Group plants of similar height and water requirements to create a "landscape mosaic" that can slow the spread of fire and use water most efficiently. Space trees at least 10 feet apart, and keep branches trimmed at least 10 feet from your chimney.

Maintenance
Keep your landscape healthy and clean. Prune and thin shrubs, trees and other plants to minimize the fuel load. If you have natural vegetation, from April through November, keep weeds mowed in a 15 foot wide fire break around the perimeter of your property. Also keep a mowed area of a minimum 10 foot wide along roadways. Remove small tree branches within six feet of the ground. During hot, dry weather, do weed mowing before 11:00 am. before it gets hot and humidity low. Any spark in the dry grass can start a fire. Dispose of prunings and debris at the landfill or transfer station. No outdoor burning is allowed within City Limits unless it is for an Agricultural Business Entity and a permit is obtained from both the Fire Marshal and Bay Area Air Quality Management Agency.

Prohibited Plants
•Fir •Acacia •California Sagebrush •Arborvitae •Cedar •Cypress •Brooms •Chamise •Eucalyptus (Gum) •Juniper •Coyote Brush •Pampas Grass •Larch •Palm •Eualia Grass •Black Sage •Spruce •Pine •Fountain Grass •Arborvitae •Pepper Tree •Tamarisk •Bamboo •Japanese  unnysuckle •Buckwheat •Hemlock •California Sagebrush •Brooms •Red Shanks •Algerian Ivy

See the Diagram on the other side for other Hazardous Fire Area / UWI Safety Requirements.
Gilroy Fire Marshal's Office 408-846-0439

Download PDF