BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 1867 Page 1 ASSEMBLY THIRD READING AB 1867 (Patterson) As Amended April 22, 2014 Majority vote NATURAL RESOURCES 7-1 APPROPRIATIONS 17-0 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Chesbro, Grove, Bigelow, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bigelow, | | |Garcia, Muratsuchi, | |Bocanegra, Bradford, Ian | | |Patterson, Williams | |Calderon, Campos, | | | | |Donnelly, Eggman, Gomez, | | | | |Holden, Jones, Linder, | | | | |Pan, Quirk, | | | | |Ridley-Thomas, Wagner, | | | | |Weber | |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------| |Nays:|Stone | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Authorizes the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Board) to exempt some or all requirements of the Forest Practices Act to allow the cutting or removal of trees to reduce flammable materials and create defensible space. Specifically, this bill extends the exemption that allows vegetation clearing from a radius of 150 feet to 300 feet of habitable structures. EXISTING LAW : 1)Prohibits any person from conducting timber operations unless a Timber Harvest Plan (THP) has been prepared by a registered professional forester and approved by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). (The Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency has certified that a THP is the functional equivalent of an environmental impact report under the California Environmental Quality Act.) 2)Requires a person who owns, leases, controls, operates, or maintains a building or structure in, upon, or adjoining a mountainous area, forest-covered lands, brush-covered lands, grass-covered lands, or land that is covered with flammable material, to at all times maintain a defensible space of 100 feet from each side of the structure, but not beyond the property line. AB 1867 Page 2 3)Allows a state or local fire official, at his or her discretion, to authorize an owner of property, or his or her agent, to construct a firebreak, or implement appropriate vegetation management techniques, to ensure that defensible space is adequate for the protection of a hospital, adult residential care facility, school, aboveground storage tank, hazardous materials facility, or similar facility on the property. Allows the firebreak to be for a radius of up to 300 feet from the facility, or to the property line, whichever distance is shorter. 4)Creates a THP exemption for defensible space timber operations conducted not more than 150 feet on each side from an approved and legally permitted structure. Under this exemption, requires all of the following: a) Timber operations shall be limited to cutting or removal of trees that will result in a reduction in the rate of fire spread, fire duration and intensity, fuel ignitability, or ignition of the tree crowns; b) Clearcutting shall not be used; and, c) Surface fuels (e.g., logging slash and debris, low bush, deadwood) that could promote wildfire shall be chipped, burned, or otherwise removed from all areas of the timber operations. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, negligible, if any state costs for the Board. COMMENTS : Background on Fire. Fire is an integral part of most California landscapes. Many of our native plants, including trees, are adapted to burn periodically; they need fire to be healthy, reproduce, and survive. Fire suppression activities over the last 100 to 150 years have largely taken fire out of the system, causing far-reaching changes in habitats and forest health. Many of the forest plant communities are not adapted to today's exceedingly hot fires. During these fires many mature trees succumb from top kill while others have their roots killed due to decades of accumulated debris burning down into the root AB 1867 Page 3 zones. At the same time, growing numbers of people moving into forested areas (the wildland urban interface) increase the risk of fires, place more lives and property in danger, and complicate efforts to restore fire to the ecosystem. Defensible Space. The vegetation surrounding a building or structure can be fuel for a fire. Even the building or structure itself is considered fuel. Research and experience have shown that fuel reduction around a building or structure increases the probability of it surviving a wildfire. Good defensible space allows firefighters to protect and save buildings or structures safely without facing unacceptable risk to their lives. Various fire programs throughout the state and country teach that fuel reduction through vegetation management is the key to creating good defensible space. State law requires a home owner to at all times maintain defensible space of 100 feet from each side of the structure, but not beyond the property line. However, various defensible space-related programs recommend a much large defensible space area if possible. For example, the Firewise Communities Program (a program co-sponsored by the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the National Association of State Foresters) provides advice on how to manage defensible space up to 200 feet and recommends an even greater distance depending on the site. Another program worth citing is the Tuolumne County Fire Safe Council (TCFSC). Tuolumne County was seriously affected by the 2013 Rim Fire, which burned 257,314 acres. Certain communities, such as Pine Mountain Lake, were ordered to evacuate the area during the fire. The Pine Mountain Lake Association practices defensible space activities pursuant to recommendation established by the TCFSC. For certain areas, TCFSC recommends more than 150 feet of defensible space. State law currently has a THP exemption to conduct defensible space fuels management up to 150 feet from each side of an approved and legally permitted structure. In this context, the term "structure" is broad: it can be a structure designed for human occupancy, a garage, a barn, a stable, or a structure used AB 1867 Page 4 to enclose fuel tanks. Under this exemption, clearcutting is prohibited and timber operations shall be limited to cutting or removal of trees that will result in a reduction in the rate of fire spread, fire duration and intensity, fuel ignitability, or ignition of the tree crowns. Additionally, surface fuels (e.g., logging slash and debris, low bush, deadwood) that could promote wildfire must be chipped, burned, or otherwise removed from all areas of the timber operations. This bill essentially extends the 150 foot defensible space exemption to 300 feet. However, the bill limits the extension to 300 feet from habitable structures (the 150 foot exemption applies to various types of non-habitable structures). The bill also requires minimum stocking standards and the involvement of a registered professional forester to ensure that the fuel treatment is carried out correctly. Analysis Prepared by : Mario DeBernardo / NAT. RES. / (916) 319-2092 FN: 0003300