Saint Helena Rd Shaded Fuel Break Upper Mark West Watershed Fire - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Saint Helena Rd Shaded Fuel Break Upper Mark West Watershed Fire Safe Council

St Helena Road Corridor Risks  High Fire Severity Zone by CAL FIRE  Top priority of Upper Mark West Watershed (CWPP)  Top priority in CAL FIRE's Sonoma Strategic Fire Plan  Overgrown vegetation creates difficult ingress and egress for both emergency vehicles and residents  Residents need to evacuate safely  Emergency responders need to gain entry without excessive risk to crews

Shaded Fuel Break – Fuel Reduction  Reduce's duration and intensity, fuel ignitability, and wildfire spreading from the surface to canopy  Can reduce fire intensity by the elimination of ladder fuels  Ladder fuels, small trees and brush removed  The effectiveness of shaded fuel breaks is improved with width  Power & communication lines will have increased protection

St Helena Road Project – CAL Fire Grant  Fire Safe Sonoma to submit grant to CAL FIRE  Treatment to 30’ from pavement on both sides  Work provided free of charge to property owners  Work will be done according to CAL FIRE standards  Helps defensible space for structures <30’  Comply with homeowner’s insurance standards for renewing policies and avoiding cancelations

Project Specifics  Early summer over 2+ years with contractors, fire fighters, residents, and community members  15’ vertical clearance upward from road  Small limbs cut back to tree trunk  All ground cover (ivy, grass, etc.) cut to <4 inches height  Vegetation treatment to 30’ from road on both sides  Trees <4” diameter at 4’ above ground removed

Project Specifics  No tree limbs lower than 6’ off the ground  Shrubs/vegetation removed to provide 4- 40’ spacing  Root balls left in place to reduce erosion  Remove dead/dying trees or potential to fall into the road  Biomass created chipped and left on site unless:  Landowner preference is not to leave it on site  Environmental mitigation requires it to be hauled away

Environmental Specifics  Contracted professional forester available for homeowners to develop specific treatment plans in the 30-foot perimeter. Homeowners to review and approve treatment plans before work initiated.  Work done according to CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) guidelines and environmental review.  Consultants provide input and oversight to ensure that vegetation removal does not cause erosion issues on homeowner’s property or create additional erosion concerns for properties along Mark West Creek.

Homeowner Specifics  Provided free of charge to property owners  Stop at fences (0-30 feet from edge of road) unless property owner agrees to treatment  Treatment will stop where erosion potential present  No vegetation removed from fences without owner approval  Improves defensible space if structures <30’ of road  “Green Fences” (bamboo/oleander) removed only with homeowner approval

What “Good” Looks Like (Calistoga Grade)

Shaded Fuel Break Along Driveway

Shaded Fuel Break On Calistoga Grade

Property On St Helena Road

St Helena Rd- What Bad Looks Like

What We Want To Avoid-Burned Ladder Fuels

The Goal

Frequently Asked Questions:  Will we be allowed to do fuel removal within the riparian corridor due to county restrictions  The Riparian corridor restrictions appear to be primarily pertaining to construction within 200’ of creek. This doesn’t apply to fuels reduction for fire prevention as long as it’s not excessive. The county is working on a definition of excessive. The critical element is to maintain the shade over the creek.

FAQ’s continued  Who will determine the criteria and limitations of the removal of trees and brush? Will the contractors be knowledgeable and careful in their methods?  CalFire has given general guidelines. A state environmental review is required before work can begin. There will be a number of botany and archeological surveys prior to starting work. A forester will be hired in the grant supervise the project.

FAQ’s continued  Will the grant include herbicide treatment to prevent regrowth of sprouts?  No, CalFire does not support herbicide treatment as part of the grant. However, given the community’s concern we will try to include hand-pruning of spouts to inhibit multiple stems. We could look at including such treatment in the second year of the scope of work. We can also organize community workdays to do brush removal and thinning maintenance along the road. Individual property owners might want to consider using other methods (herbicide, grazing, etc.)

FAQ’s continued  Will landowners have a voice and veto rights over work that is proposed for their land.  Yes, there will be a lot of education and information involved in helping landowners understand the best ways to prevent fires by fuel removal. Property owners can state their preferences. However, Sonoma County Code requires that "Flammable vegetation and other combustible growth within ten feet (10") of neighboring structures and roadway frontage shall be removed".

Next Steps  We need signed approval forms back by November 15, 2019  Our goal is to get agreements from >50% of the landowners by mid-November.  Talk it up with your neighbors!  The grant is due December 4 th

Discussion and Questions