Presentation 1.1: What is the Wildland-

Urban Interface?

Outline

Introduction Exercise 1.1: Piecing Connections Together Various WUI Perspectives

Spatial Fire Sociopolitical Natural Resource

Exercise 1.2: Describing the Interface Summary

Introduction

Is the WUI a sharp delineation between developed and undeveloped lands?

An area where development occurs within forests?

How do you define the WUI based on your own experiences and perspectives?

Exercise 1.1:Piecing Connections Together

Exercise 1.1:Purpose and Directions

This exercise will get us thinking about interface issues, possible solutions to interface problems, and the connections between interface issues.

• Pick a puzzle piece and a partner.

• Identify how your pieces are related and share that with the group.

• Put the puzzle together.

Exercise 1.1: Discussion Questions

Who are the players in WUI issues? Who can we work with to solve problems?

Where in our district/region are interface issues characterized by fire and where are water issues of most concern?

Can we manage interface resources differently to reduce problems?

The WUI can be defined from many perspectives. Some of the major ones are:

•Spatial

•Fire

•Sociopolitical

•Natural Resource

How do you define the WUI?

The Classic InterfaceClassic Interface is an area of urban

sprawl where subdivisions and

other development press against natural

areas

From a spatial perspective the WUI has been variously defined

The IntermixIntermix is an area going

through a transition from agriculture and forest uses to

urban land uses

The Isolated InterfaceIsolated Interface is an area where isolated structures are surrounded by large

areas of vegetation

Wildland-Urban Interface IslandsWildland-Urban Interface Islands are pockets of isolated natural areas within cities and/or

surrounded by urban areas

From a fire perspective…

the WUI is a zone where structures are located in or adjacent to areas prone to wildfire

From a sociopolitical perspective…

the WUI is an area where there is an interaction of different political forces and

potentially competing interests

From a resource management perspective….

the WUI is an area where increased human influence and land conversion are changing natural resource goods,

services, and management

With so many definitions, how can I know where the WUI is in my area?

A project supported by the USDA Forest Service and the University of Wisconsin-Madison addressed this question by mapping the WUI based on two components:

1) human presence 2) wildland vegetation

They defined two types of WUI – interface and intermix. The two together make up the WUI.

What is most important is not where it is located but how key interface issues influence how natural resources are managed and conserved!

Exercise 1.2:Describing the Interface

Exercise 1.2: Purpose

This exercise will help us to think about how to define the interface based on our own experiences and perspectives.

The WUI may mean different things to each of us and this exercise helps us to understand these differences.

Pretend you are a tour guide and describe the wildland-urban interface for a visitor. What would you see, hear, and smell? What else would you point out?

Exercise 1.2: Introduction

Exercise 1.2: Discussion Questions

What characterizes the WUI in this region?

What are the common characteristics described across all the groups?

What differences have you noted among the groups responses?

What are some of the unique characteristics in the region?

However the interface is defined, it is clear that increased human influences are changing forest ecosystems and creating new challenges and opportunities for natural resource professionals.

Summary

CreditsPhotos:•Slides 7, 8, 13, 14: Larry Korhnak•Slides 7, 12: Cotton Randall •Slide 9: Hans Riekerk•Slide 10: VA Dept. of ForestryWUI Maps: •Slides 17-19: Joint project between the

USDA Forest Service, North Central Research Station and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Susan Stewart, Roger Hammer, Volker Radeloff

http://silvis.forest.wisc.edu/library/wuilibrary.asp