A new High-Risk Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) map has been developed to identify structures and development facing the highest risk from wildfire impacts in Utah. The initiative follows Utah House Bill 48, which was passed during the 2025 Legislative Session to improve statewide wildfire safety by helping homeowners mitigate property risks.
The map is accessible through the Utah Wildfire Risk Assessment Portal at wildfirerisk.utah.gov and includes approximately 60,000 structures within the high-risk boundary, including locations in Draper.
The DNR-FFSL developed the high-risk WUI layer by using a structure exposure score. This score is rated on a scale of 1 to 8, where 1 represents the lowest risk and 8 represents the highest. Structures assigned a score of 7 or higher that are located near two or more structures within a 250-meter radius were included in the high-risk boundary.
To create a standardized statewide boundary for HB 48 implementation, scientific modeling utilized several datasets. This data includes wildfire likelihood, weather, ember load, flame-length potential, topography, vegetation, fuelscape datasets, structure density, and historical fire-occurrence patterns.
Structures identified as high-risk on the map may eventually be subject to an annual State assessment intended to support fire suppression and mitigation efforts. While this assessment program is not yet active, the State expects it to be available later this year.
Draper City noted that it had no role in creating the map or managing the program. Individuals with questions after viewing the map can visit the HB 48 FAQ web page, though additional inquiries should be directed to DNR-FFSL.
