A Chipper Day

A Chipper Day is a day in which the Fire Safe Council Chipper is brought to a community or neighborhood by the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council and the Kern County Fire Department. The chipper will turn branches and shrub material piles into small piles of chips. The chips will be left on the properties. The chipper is maintained and operated by Kern County Fire Department personnel. Cutting and piling material for the chipper is the responsibility of individual property owners.

The Council's policy is to provide chipper days as a community service, regardless of the number of participants, to residence, business, and other groups, so long as the work is done for fuel reduction and the creation of defensible space, and the event is coordinated to make a reasonable day's work for the crew. Experience in the past is that in a typical residential community, service to ten or more properties is needed to provide a reasonable day's work.

The council schedules the chipper day for a neighborhood, working with property owner associations or other neighborhood groups. These groups must actually organize the chipper day.

The following materials describe how a chipper day works. For questions, contact Don Davis, 760-376-4116 or krvchipperdays@aol.com

To organize a Chipper Day

I  - Elect a representative to approach the Fire Safe Council, contact Lloyd Smith, 760-377-3542.

II - There are 3 components to a Chipper Day Project:

1. Selecting a date and time for a Fire Safe Council Survivable Space Presentation.

2. Ideally, schedule a fuels reduction project with community members two months prior to the scheduled Chipper Day.

3. Select a weekend date (with 3 alternatives) for the Chipper Day confirming with Fire Safe Council representative.

III - Before the Chipper Day, submit a Project Application indicating the number of contributing households.

• Designate a property owner's representatives to be present on the chipper day.

Once a date is confirmed for the Chipper Day

I - Arrange for an on-site Port-A-Pottie for the chipping crew and the camp Erwin Owen Boys.

• Please understand that the cost of furnishing a Port-A-Pottie (approximately $50) is the responsibility of the property owners.

II - Select an outdoor area for the crews to have lunch and rest.

• It is traditional, and greatly appreciated, for the property owners to provide a modest lunch for the chipper crews.

III - Consider advertising your Chipper Day Project.

• Contact the Fire Safe Council for templates and media contact information.

• Press Releases and / or public announcements (Kern Valley Sun, QAB Radio)

• Property Owner’s Association Newsletters

IV - The Fire Safe Council suggests contacting your community / neighborhood, reminding them they only have a few days left to provide dead and down fuel to be chipped.

V - Please take; BEFORE, DURING and AFTER pictures of the Chipper Day.

After the Chipper Day

Submit to the Fire Safe Council:

• BEFORE, DURING and AFTER pictures of the Chipper Day

• Post Chipper Day Report with estimates of the co-operators, man hours, equipment, fuel chipped and people effected by the Chipper Day

Thank you & your community, for helping to make the Kern River Valley more Survivable against Wildland Fire!

Myers Canyon Chipper Day:  Photos

Squirrel Valley Chipper Day:  Photos

Walker Pass Chipper Day:  Photos