The City of Walnut Creek is dedicated to wildfire prevention in our Parks and Open Space areas. When it comes to wildfire prevention and safety it takes a team effort. The City of Walnut Creek works closely with local agencies including CAL Fire and Contra Costa County Fire Protection District to ensure our Open Space areas are safe and meet the counties fire protection standards and requirements. 

What you can do 

Create and maintain a defensible space around your property. Defensible space is an area around a building in which vegetation, debris and other types of combustible fuels have been cleared or reduced to slow the spread of fire to and from a building. Be mindful of Red Flag Warnings and follow restrictions on burning and use of power equipment. A key action to prevent spread of a fire is separating plants from each other. This will prevent a fire from jumping from grass to brush to trees, or from bush to bush or tree to tree. Choose fire resistant plants for your property.

Within 5 feet of your house

• Remove everything flammable

Within 30 feet of your house

• Remove most flammable vegetation
• Thin and maintain vegetation, clear out dead vegetation and debris
• Irrigate plants and lawn within this zone

Out to 100 feet or to property line

• Reduce flammable vegetation
• Provide both vertical and horizontal separation of vegetation
• Remove grass and weeds below or near brush and shrubs
• Prune trees high enough that anything burning below wont catch them on fire (trim 6+ feet off ground
• Provide space in between trees and bushes, avoid continuous rows of trees and bushes

What we are doing 

• Reducing vegetation through rotational cattle and goat grazing. 
• Providing approximately 18 miles of disked fuel breaks where possible along ridge lines, fire roads, and property lines. 
• Providing over 10 miles of additional hand trimmed fuel breaks along Open Space property lines. 
• Removing hazardous trees and identifying and mitigating potential fire hazards. 

Open Space Closures 

Open Space areas are subject to closure when a Red Flag Warning has been issued by the National Weather Service and our region is being effected by wildfires that would limit response time and resources if a fire were to occur in Walnut Creek Open Space. In the event of a closure, signs will be posted at all trail heads and park entrances. For additional information or to report a fire hazard please contact 925-943-5899 x2665.