It's too soon to determine what caused the ravenous Waialua wildfire, but it's not too early to figure out what measures can be taken to prevent it from happening again.

According to reports, one of the main reasons the blaze was difficult to contain was that dry brush surrounding the area allowed it to spread quickly. In the end, the wildfire burned more than 7,000 acres.

Honolulu City Councilman Donovan Dela Cruz has introduced Bill 64, which would enable the Honolulu fire chief to require landowners to maintain a fire break around their homes. This means clearing the area of combustible material, such as dry brush. It's a reasonable plan that merits serious consideration.

The North Shore, Dela Cruz points out, is rich with designated agricultural land that sits unused. "We want to make sure residents are going to be protected," he said. "So instead of this open space and brush coming straight against residences, we would ask for a clear area called a fire break."

The bill, however, is sure to face an uphill battle. Two similar bills were introduced in the past, and failed. Surprisingly, the Honolulu Fire Department opposed the idea because of concerns over a lack of staffing to enforce the law.

While this is a valid concern that needs to be hashed out, it bears mentioning that the Wai-alua wildfire required more than 125 firefighters, as well as workers from numerous other city departments, at its peak.

It's a matter of paying now or paying later — and providing extra staff to enforce preventative safety measures, such as fire breaks, would appear to be much less costly than battling a brushfire.

Other details such as fines and size and scope of the fire breaks have yet to be worked out, but Dela Cruz is hopeful that by working with the fire department, previous concerns can be addressed.

Surely, when it comes to protecting two precious resources — land and people — it's worth taking an extra step to be safe.