Last chance to use RFD dumpster program

The Reno Fire Department (RFD) today announced the second year of a program to assist homeowners in protecting their homes from wildfire will wrap up on September 4, 2022.

Dumpsters for vegetation disposal will be located at the following stations:

• August 13 and 14: Station 11 located at 7105 Mae Anne Ave
• August 20 and 21: Station 3 located at 580 W. Moana Lane

The Reno Home Wildland Fuels Reduction Program assists homeowners bordering the wildland-urban interface communities of Reno to provide defensible space on their property. Creating defensible space is a key element critical to reducing the threat and effects of a wildland fire. The green waste dumpsters at the stations will be made available to the public until full.

If you are located in a Reno community that borders the wildland-urban interface you may qualify for a neighborhood dumpster to haul away dead vegetation and overgrowth. If available you can reserve a dumpster at no cost, but you need to hurry because the program ends on September 5.

RFD requires a neighborhood responsible to monitor that only vegetative waste is placed in the dumpster and that the dumpster is secured closed once full. The program is made possible through grants obtained from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Waste Management. The 30-yard dumpsters are delivered every Thursday and picked up every Monday.

The program dumpsters are only for disposal of "vegetative waste" or "yard debris/refuse" - plants that grow on the property. Construction materials and manmade materials are not allowed.

The purpose of this program is to give our community a tool to reduce the amount of fuel immediately surrounding your home. As we have seen with the Pinehaven and Caughlin fire, embers from a wildfire can travel a great distance before landing on combustible vegetation in your yard.

To check for dumpster availability please call our main office at (775) 334-2300. Priority is given to neighborhoods that border the Wildland Urban Interface.

The fire safety goal of landscaping and maintenance is very simple. Reduce the amount of fuel immediately surrounding your home. This does not mean your property has to be barren. Some plants are more fire resistive than others. One of the most important things a homeowner can do is to create a safety zone or fire break around the house using space and fire resistive planting.

You can reduce your chances of being a wildfire fire victim by doing the following:

0 feet to 5 feet from your home:

The Immediate Zone is closest to your house and the most vulnerable.

• Remove any combustible outdoor furniture. Replace jute or fiber door mats with fire-resistant materials.
• Remove or relocate all combustible materials, including garbage and recycling containers, lumber and trash
• Clean all fallen leaves and needles regularly. Repeat often during fire season.
• Remove tree limbs that extend into this zone. We recommended no combustible vegetation within five feet of structures.
• Do not store firewood, lumber or combustibles under decks or overhangs.
• Use only inorganic, non-combustible mulches such as stone or gravel.

5 feet to 30 feet from your home:

• The Intermediate Zone may include buildings, structures, decks, etc. Keep this area "Lean, Clean, and Green."
• Remove dead plants, dead grass, dry leaves and pine needles from your yard, roof and rain gutters.
• Trim trees regularly to keep branches a minimum of 10 feet from other trees.
• Remove branches that hang over your roof, and keep dead branches 10 feet away from your chimney.
• Relocate piles of wood or debris 30 feet from any structures.
• Remove vegetation and items that could catch fire from around and under decks.

30 feet to 100 feet from your home:

The Extended Zone may even include space of more than 100 feet if you live on a steep south-facing slope.

• Cut or mow annual grass down to a maximum height of four inches.
• Try not to allow fallen needles and leaves to exceed a depth of 3 inches.

For more information, contact the Reno Fire Department's Division of Fire Prevention at (775) 334-2300.

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