CANYON CITY — The Grant County Economic Development Department, in partnership with the Grant County Soil & Water Conservation District, has been awarded a pair of grants from the Office of the State Fire Marshal totaling nearly $500,000 toward wildfire risk reduction in the region.

Two wildfire risk reduction areas are to receive the funding, officials said. A $229,869 grant will fund the Grant County Firewise/Community Wildfire Protection Plan coordinator as well as Firewise outreach activities, and a grant of $268,200 will fund a Grant County community fuels reduction project, officials said.

Kyle Sullivan, district manager of the Grant Soil & Water Conservation District, said a portion of the $229,869 will go toward funding the salary for the county’s contracted Firewise program coordinator, Irene Jerome, until her retirement sometime next year, after which the role will go to SWCD conservation technician Tyler Bales.

“Whenever you hire somebody new in a position, there can be historical knowledge lost, and so I think that’s one of the most exciting pieces coming out of it … is the fact we’re able to have a longevity plan for Irene’s program,” said Tory Stinnett, Grant County Economic Development Director. “And that frankly doesn’t happen enough for when somebody retires or leaves the position.”

A portion of the funds will also go toward Firewise public outreach materials, which help inform property owners of ways to help reduce the risk of property damage and danger from a wildfire, Sullivan said.

The soil and water district is expected to enter into an agreement with Grant County to receive the funds and administer the Firewise coordinator and fuels reduction projects, Sullivan said.

The $268,200 grant will go toward partnering with cities in Grant County to identify landowners who could use help in removing juniper trees and combustible grasses on their properties, Sullivan said. Sullivan said he has targeted the use of these funds for areas in and around Monument, Long Creek, Dayville, Mt. Vernon, John Day, Canyon City and Prairie City.

“It will really put all our towns at less risk of wildfire,” said Grant County Court Commissioner Jim Hamsher. “It’s been needed for years, so it will make money available and put these towns and properties at a lot less risk.”

Firewise is a national program that helps communities in fire-prone areas improve their defenses against wildfire.

Jerome said she has been the Grant County Firewise coordinator since 2010.

“When I first started, we had no Firewise communities. … That’s what I’ve been doing for the last 10 years, and we’ve been very successful in Grant County. It’s been a model for other counties in Eastern Oregon. We’ve helped them. It’s very good work. It’s rewarding work. We’ve made a difference.”

Seven Firewise communities have been established in Grant County under Jerome’s leadership, with Pine Creek becoming the first in Eastern Oregon to receive the designation in 2014. Other Grant County Firewise communities are Ritter, Middle Fork, Upper Laycock Creek Road, Canyon Creek Lane, Corral Gulch and Top Road.

Bales has already begun traveling with Jerome around Grant County to meet with Firewise community members and attending wildfire safety events prior to his transition into the role of Firewise coordinator in about a year.

“I want to make sure the program continues to grow and be sustained, and it looked to me like the Soil and Water Conservation District was a good model for that,” Jerome said.

Firewise communities are about building relationships and trust with neighbors, Jerome said.

“People would have been offended if I went out and left him and (they) didn’t know we were going to do this,” she said. “I’ll just contract with Soil and Water for a while as Tyler learns the job, and eventually I’ll transition out of it. Tyler is going to be wonderful. He comes from La Grande and he’s going to be a great addition and move things on to the next step.”