The Hazard Level serves as a decision support metric used by the North Carolina Forest Service (NCFS) to assist district foresters in determining Daily Readiness Plans, including appropriate staffing levels. Fire hazard is one of several factors considered when establishing daily operational readiness.

FireFamilyPlus software was used to develop fire business thresholds for each Fire Danger Rating Area (FDRA). These thresholds are derived from statistical analyses of historical fire occurrence and associated weather conditions within each FDRA. The resulting thresholds were used specifically to determine the Hazard/Staffing component of the Daily Readiness Plan.

The daily Hazard Level (from 1 to 5) is based on the Energy Release Component (ERC-Z) in combination with either the Burning Index (BI-Z) or Ignition Component (IC-Z) for the forecast period. These values are calculated as the average of available "SIG" stations located within each FDRA.

When a district or federal ownership unit spans multiple FDRAs with differing Hazard/Staffing Levels, it is recommended that the highest Hazard Level be used when determining the Daily Readiness Plan.