Form survey_R2 A Survey on Homeowner Risk Reduction Behaviors Concernin

USDA Forest Service OMB 0596-NEW (Expiration xx/2010)

Homeowner Risk Reduction Behaviors Concerning Wildfire Risks

Month 200X

Please answer the following questions by circling the number that best fits with how you feel.

1. How vulnerable do you feel about the possibility of a wildfire physically affecting you or your family:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

not at all extremely

vulnerable vulnerable

2. How vulnerable do you feel about the possibility of a wildfire affecting your property and/or possessions:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

not at all extremely

vulnerable vulnerable

3. What is the perceived likelihood of fire happening near your home within the next couple of years:

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

No probably 50-50 probably certain

chance will not chance will to

happen happen happen

4. On a scale of 0 to 10, how severe will the impact of a wildfire be where you live:

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

no harm extremely

at all devastating

Check the answer that best fits with what you have done on your property. If you will not do one or more of these actions, please provide a short explanation of why in the space provided (for example, costs too much, won’t do any good, etc.).

5. What is the likelihood of doing the following actions to your property:

   1. Creating a minimum 30-foot defensible space around your home:

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not?

2. Putting a fire resistant roof on your home

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not?

What is the likelihood of doing the following actions to your property?

3. Removing any dead branches from your home’s roof and around the chimney

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not?)__________________________________________

4. Making sure that your home is easily identifiable and accessible from a main road

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not? __________________________________________

5. Making sure that all the trees on or near your property are planted away from structures

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not? __________________________________________

6. Stacking firewood and scrap wood piles at least 30 feet from any structure

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not? __________________________________________

7. Contacting your local fire department to get a personal fire safety inspection at your home and property

_____ Already done

_____ Will do in next month

_____ Will do in next 3-6 months

_____ Will do next year

_____ Probably will not do (Why not? __________________________________________

6. How confident do you feel in your ability to protect your property and yourself from the risk of wildfire:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

not at all very

confident confident

7. What would you say is the biggest impediment to taking some action to protect your property from the impact of wildfire? Please specify:

Please circle the number that indicates the effectiveness of these actions at reducing the risk of fire.

8. How effective are the following actions at helping to reduce the risk of fire impacting your property and lives:

ACTION	Not at all effective Very effective  
Creating a minimum 30-foot defensible space around your home:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Putting a fire resistant roof on your home:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Removing any dead branches from your home’s roof and around the chimney:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Making sure that your home is easily identifiable and accessible from a main road:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Making sure that all the trees on or near your property are planted away from structures:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Stacking firewood and scrap wood piles at least 30 feet from any structure:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
Contacting the local fire department to get a fire safety inspection at your home & property:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7

9. By doing any of the above actions on your property, how effective can you be at preventing wildfires from impacting your personal property and your life:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

not at all very

effective effective

We are interested in the extent of your experience with issues related to wildfires:

10) What type of experience have you had with catastrophic wildfire: Check all that apply.

_____ My house and/or structures on my property were destroyed (partially or totally)

_____ There have been fires very near my property (less than 5 miles)

_____ There have been fires 5 to 50 miles from my property

_____ There have been fires 51 to 100 miles from my property

_____ I\we have been evacuated from my\our house because of the threat of a catastrophic fire.

_____ Other. Please explain: ____________________________________________________

11) How well informed do you consider yourself to be about wildfire and wildfire risks:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

all informed informed

12) To what extent do you find information about wildfires to be personally relevant:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

all relevant relevant

13) I am motivated to learn more about the connection between wildfire risks and undertaking the actions stated above to create defensible property:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

all motivated motivated

14) Have you received any information about wildfire risks from the following sources in the last year? Please check each source that has provided you wildfire information. Also, how helpful is this information in preparing your property to be defensible? Please rate each source of information that you received on how helpful it was using the following scale:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at all very

helpful helpful

Information Source Degree of helpfulness

U.S.D.A. Forest Service (e.g. Firewise

Community info, educational brochures) ______

_____ County/City Fire Department ______

_____ Local and State Law Enforcement ______

_____ Media reports, including TV, newspaper, radio ______

_____ Neighbors and/or friends ______

_____ Environmental Organizations ______

_____ Other (please specify_________________) ______

15. We are interested in your experiences with the following organizations and individuals. How credible are these organizations from your perspective? Please rate each entity that is relevant to you using the following scale:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

not at all very

credible credible

Social Entities Degree of Credibility

U.S.D.A. Forest Service ______

U.S.D.I. National Park Service ______

County/City Fire Department Individuals ______

State Forestry Office ______

Neighbors and/or friends ______

Research Reports ______

Environmental Organizations ______

Media Reports, including TV, newspaper, radio ______

Other (please specify__________________) ______

16) How responsible should YOU be for protecting yourself and your property from the impact of wildfire:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

All responsible responsible

17) How responsible should your homeowners’ association be for protecting you and your property from the impact of wildfire:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

All responsible responsible

18) How responsible should the US Forest Service be for protecting you and your property from the impact of wildfire:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

All responsible responsible

19) Consider a scenario in which you have undertaken and finished considerable defensible space work around your home and property. If your neighbors do not do any defensible space work around their homes, how vulnerable do you feel about a wildfire affecting your property and home.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at very

Vulnerable vulnerable

20. Below is a picture and description of the fire danger ratings used by the USDA Forest Service to describe the degree of fire risk in a particular area. We are interested in knowing what you believe is the risk of fire happening near your home within the next couple of years.

Please draw an arrow from the center of the picture to the level of fire danger that represents your belief about the risk of fire happening near your home within the next couple years:

start here

21) Two of the primary techniques used for active fire management in forests are prescribed fires (controlled burns) and mechanical removal (logging). Please rate each method based on how you feel about the use of each and the no active fire management option:

1. Prescribed fires:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Least preferable Most preferable

2. Mechanical removal or logging:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Least preferable Most preferable

3. No active fire management:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Least preferable Most preferable

For the following questions, please check the appropriate category or fill in the appropriate information.

1. Please identify your age group:

18-25________ 45-54 ________

26-34 ________ 55-64 ________

35-44 ________ 65 and over ___

2. Please identify your gender: _____ Male _____ Female

3. What is your highest level of education completed:

Some high school ______ High School _______

Some college ______ College degree _______

Postgraduate work _____ Graduate degree ______

Other (please specify ______________________________)

4. How long have you had a home in this area? years

5. How many months per year do you live in this home? _______ # of months

6. Please check the category which best fits your household income level per year:

Less than $15,000 ______ $35,000 - $49,999 _____

$15,000 - $24,999 ______ $50,000 – 74,999 _____

$25,000 - $34,999 ______ $75,000 – over _____

7. How close is your home to the closest National Forest or Grassland?

______ less than 1 mile ______ 21 to 50 miles

______ 1 to 10 miles ______ more than 50 miles

______ 11 to 20 miles ______ Other (please specify_________________)

8. Please identify the zip code for your primary residence: ________________

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PARTICIPATION!

Burden and Non-Discrimination Statements

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