By-Laws

Article I

Mission Statement

The mission of the Lowcountry Wildland Urban Interface Council is to foster cooperation among all parties in South Carolina with an interest or stake in preventing wildfires in the wildland-urban interface and educating the public about home and community wildland-urban fire defenses to optimize firefighting efficiency and public safety by encouraging the exchange of information, techniques, and experiences among firefighters, communities and the public in South Carolina and by providing a forum for the cooperation of wildland and structure firefighters and promoting public understanding of wildfire prevention in the wildland-urban interface.

Article II

Objectives

The Lowcountry Wildland Urban Interface Council assembles Wildland and Structure Firefighters from our community and others concerned about wildland-urban fires into an organization to:

• Promote public education about the prevention of wildfire in the wildland-urban interface, and how to protect structures and communities from wildfire.

• Protect the ability to use prescribed fire as a management tool, esp. where it pertains to highly flammable fuels in the wildland-urban interface, like those experienced in the Lowcountry.

• Develop expertise in wildland-urban interface firefighting and prevention by sharing technical and any other useful information.

• Promote safety, training, and research in the art and science of preventing wildfires, of prescribed fire, and fighting fire in the wildland urban interface, and protecting home and other buildings in the wildland-urban interface.

• Review practices, regulations, and policy related to the prevention of wildfire, the design of communities to facilitate firefighting, the proper landscaping to protect homes from wildfire and anything else related to the safety of life and property from wildfire in the wildland-urban interface and suggest improvements.

Article III

Participation

Section 1. Council members shall be any agency, organization, corporation, institution, and individual with an interest in preventing catastrophic wildfires and protecting the public from the effects of a wildfire in the wildland-urban interface.

Section 2. A Steering Committee, composed of the following is established to guide the Prescribed Fire Council and to develop positions and coordinate meetings.

Government Agencies

SC Dept. of Natural Resources (DNR)
SC Forestry Commission (SCFC)
Clemson University (CU)
US Fish & Wildlife Service (F&WS)
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Local Structure Firefighters
The South Carolina Prescribed Fire Council
Private Sector Organizations
The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
A concerned citizen as a representative of public interests
 Ex Officio Members
Governor’s Office
Senate Committee- Fish, Game & Forestry
House Committee- Ag., Natural Resources, & Environmental Affairs

 Section 3. In the event that a Steering Committee member must be absent from a meeting, he/she may designate an alternate representative.

Article IV 

Officers

Section 1. The officers of the Wildland-Urban Interface Council shall be the Chair and the Treasure, who will be members of the Steering Committee. The SC Forestry

Commission representative will serve as Chair. The representative from the US Fish and Wildlife Fire District will serve Treasure

Section 2. The Chair shall preside at all meetings and shall see that all resolutions approved by the Steering Committee are acted upon.

Section 3. The Chair may appoint committees as needed.

Section 4. In the event that the Chair must be absent from a meeting, the any member can serve in this capacity provided they are familiar with our by-laws.

Section 5. The Treasure shall see to the financial concerns of the Council and will keep a record of these by-laws and any other important Council business. The secretary will maintain the official records of this Council.

Section 6. The Chair may authorize actions and public notices after a majority approval of the Steering Committee.

Article V 

Meetings

Section 1. At least one Council meeting and one Steering Committee meeting will be held annually.

Section 2. Notices of meetings shall be sent to members prior to all such meetings.

Section 3. The Steering Committee will assist the Chair in developing the meeting agenda and Council meetings. The Chair will organize and facilitate the meetings.

Article VI 

Amendments

Section 1. These By-Laws may be amended by a 2/3 (two-thirds) majority of the Steering Committee.

Limit the number of members on the steering committee to a maximum of twenty (20) and after the annual meeting at the business meeting review the steering committee roster for inactivity or non-participation and if so consider for removal that agency/organization from the steering committee.