The Reagan Ranch in Santa Barbara, California now has greater protection from wildfires, courtesy of Perimeter Solutions. The producers of high-quality firefighting products recently treated the 688-acre property with PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY long-term fire retardant, a ground-based retardant that is formulated so that one application provides protection from wildfires that will continue to remain effective even after a significant rain event.
Perimeter Solutions and its team treated the Reagan Ranch with thousands of gallons of PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY, applying it to areas around the property that are at risk for wildfires. Once PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY is applied it helps render vegetation and other fuels where it’s applied non-flammable. PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY is formulated to have extended durability and greater adherence to vegetation and other fuels in order to provide protection for an extended period of time. Unlike retardant dropped from aircraft, which is coloured red to help pilots track where the retardant is dropped, the solution is clear.
This innovation in long-term retardants is relatively new and is starting to be widely adopted by utilities, railroads, insurance companies, homeowners and other high hazard industries who are helping to prevent wildfire ignitions and proactively protecting their property from wildfires.
The contribution of PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY to protect the Reagan Ranch stemmed from a meeting Perimeter Solutions CEO Edward Goldberg had with representatives from the Ranch at a political event in California this past summer.
‘The 2021 wildfire season is highly active in the Western United States, and it is important for everyone whose home or business is at risk from wildfires to take the necessary steps to protect their property,’ says Goldberg. ‘The Reagan Ranch is an important, historical site and it is facing the same danger. I am proud of the fact that Perimeter Solutions is helping to preserve our nation’s history by protecting the Reagan Ranch from the devastation that can be caused by wildfires.’
President Ronald Reagan purchased Rancho del Cielo in 1974, planning to retire there with his wife Nancy after the conclusion of his second term as governor of California the next year, but history had other plans. Following his Presidential election in 1980, Rancho del Cielo was transformed into the Western White House, the place where President Reagan signed major legislation, hosted dignitaries including Queen Elizabeth and Mikhail Gorbachev, and spoke by phone with the crew of the Challenger space shuttle.
In 1998, the Young America’s Foundation acquired the property directly from the Reagan family ‘to preserve, protect, and utilize the Ranch as a unique and impactful tool to pass on Ronald Reagan’s ideas and lasting accomplishments to future generations,’ according to the Ranch’s website. Young America’s Foundation continues to protect the property to this day.
‘During the summer of 2018, the Sherpa wildfire ignited about a quarter of a mile from the Reagan Ranch and consumed nearly 8,000 acres. Fortunately, it never reached the Ranch, but wildfires continue to present the greatest threat to the preservation of the property. We want future generations to be able to visit and learn about President Reagan, and we are grateful to Perimeter Solutions for working with us, and for donating PHOS-CHEK FORTIFY to protect the Reagan Ranch from wildfire,’ says Brent Kilpper, Associate Director for the Reagan Ranch.
For more information on Perimeter Solutions, visit www.perimeter-solutions.com
