BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
AB 1958 (Wood) - Forestry: timberlands: restoration and
conservation forest management activities
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|Version: August 4, 2016 |Policy Vote: N.R. & W. 6 - 2 |
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|Urgency: No |Mandate: No |
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|Hearing Date: August 8, 2016 |Consultant: Narisha Bonakdar |
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This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Summary: AB 1958 creates an exemption for the restoration of oak
woodlands that would allow landowners to remove conifer trees
that are crowding out oak without a timber harvest plan, if
various restrictions are met.
Fiscal Impact:
One-time costs of $132,000 (Timber Regulation and Forest
Restoration Fund) to the California Department of Fire and
Forestry (CalFIRE) for equipment purchases.
Ongoing costs of $433,000 annually (Timber Regulation and
Forest Restoration Fund) to CalFIRE for staffing necessary to
implement the exemption.
Minor costs to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife
(CDFW) and the regional water quality control boards to review
required report and provide comments.
AB 1958 (Wood) Page 1 of
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Background:1)
Forest Practices. California has regulated forest practices on
private lands since at least 1945. In 1973, after discovering,
among other things that logging was a primary factor in an 80
percent decline of salmon and steelhead populations, the
legislature passed the Z'Berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act (Act).
The Act prohibits timber operations unless a timber harvest
plan (THP) has been prepared by a registered professional
forester and approved by the CalFIRE. The THP is a functional
equivalent of an environmental impact report required under the
California Environmental Quality Act.
AB 1492 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 289, Statutes of 2012)
extended the life of THPs from three years to five years with an
option for a two-year extension. AB 1492 also shifted state
fees for a THP to an assessment on all lumber products.
However, a THP can still cost tens of thousands of dollars to
complete.
Existing law exempts various tree removal activities from THPs.
These include Christmas tree farms; right-of-ways for utility
lines; conversions of less than three acres; fire prevention;
defensible space; and dead, dying, and diseased trees. However,
a ministerial permit, called a notice of exemption (NOE), is
required for certain exemptions, and exempt projects are subject
to inspection by CalFIRE.
Oak woodland restoration. According to a presentation from
various academics at the University of California and Humboldt
State University, California black or Oregon white oak woodlands
and associated grasslands are being lost because of conifer
encroachment. These oak woodlands support very high levels of
biodiversity and provide valuable food sources and habitat for
wildlife. Oak woodlands are also deeply connected to Native
American tradition and culture. Most of these oak woodlands
contain oaks more than 100 years old, with some oak trees over
300 years old. As a result of fire suppression, douglas-fir
will often spread into oak woodland and will overtop oak trees,
robbing the oak trees of sunlight and other needed resources.
AB 1958 (Wood) Page 2 of
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Restoration of this important habitat requires removal of the
encroachment, restocking of the area with oaks, and protection
of oak seedlings. The Board has developed an Oak Woodland
Management Alternative Prescription, which is pending approval.
This alternative prescription will allow THP's to incorporate
oak woodland restoration, but would still require anyone wishing
to do oak woodland restoration to obtain a THP.
Proposed Law:
This bill creates an exemption from the THP for the
restoration of oak woodland. Specifically, the bill:
1)Requires the Board, on or before January 1, 2018, to adopt
regulations.
2)Allows the cutting or removal of trees to restore and conserve
California black or Oregon white oak woodlands and associated
grasslands, if all of the following requirements are met:
a. A registered professional forester prepares and
submits an NOE containing, among other things, a map of
the area of timber operations, a certification that a
minimum of 35 square feet of basal area per acre of
California black or Oregon white oak, or both, occupy the
proposed treatment area and the timber operation is
designed to restore and conserve the woodlands, and a
description of the prearrest stand structure and a
statement of the postharvest stand stocking levels
b. No tree larger than 26 inches in diameter at stump
height is harvested for any commercial purposes.
c. Only conifers within 300 feet of a California black
or Oregon white oak that are at minimum four inches in
diameter at breast height may be harvested.
d. The total area exempted does not exceed 300 acres
per property per five-year period.
e. Conifers are reduced to less than 25 percent of the
combined hardwood and conifer postharvest stand stocking
levels.
AB 1958 (Wood) Page 3 of
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f. No more than 20 percent of the total basal area of
preexisting oak stock is cut or removed.
g. The registered professional forester submitting the
notice, upon submission of the notice, to provide a
confidential archaeology letter that includes specified
information.
h. All slash created by the timber operations is
treated to achieve a maximum postharvest depth of 18
inches above the ground within 24 months of the date of
the director receiving the notice, and is configured so
as to minimize the risk of fire mortality to the
remaining oak trees.
i. The timber operations to comply with applicable
regulations.
3)Exempts the Southern Subdistrict of the Coast Forest District
and the Southern Forest District from the bill.
4)Defines "growing of timber" to include restoration and
conservation forest management activities, which may include
the removal of commercial species, if necessary to achieve
specific forest health and ecological goals, including the
restoration and conservation of oak woodlands, grasslands, wet
meadows, and other ecologically important or unique habitats,
that are not conducted in conjunction with the cutting or
removal of trees or other forest products during the
conversion of timberlands for other uses, including, but not
limited to, residential or commercial developments, production
of other agricultural crops, recreational developments, ski
developments, water development projects, and transportation
projects.
5)Sunsets the exemption on January 1, 2024.
6)Requires CalFIRE and the Board, on or before December 31,
2017, to submit a report to the Legislature on the trends in
the use of, compliance with, and effectiveness of the
exemptions and emergency notice provisions, and to make
recommendations to improve the use of those exemptions and
emergency notice provisions.
AB 1958 (Wood) Page 4 of
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7)Requires that the CDFW, regional water quality control boards,
and the public have the opportunity to participate in the
development of the report. Sunsets the report provision on
January 1, 2019.
Related
Legislation:
AB 417 (Dahle, Chapter 182, Statutes of 2015) expanded Board
authority to develop alternative stocking standards, when
necessary, to include the average residual basal area approach
of stocking.
AB 2029 (Dahle, 2016) extends the Forest Fire Prevention Pilot
Exemption by six years. This bill increases the size of trees
that are allowed to be removed to less than 26 inches in stump
diameter and allows for the construction of roads. This bill is
pending hearing in Senate Appropriations Committee.
Staff
Comments:
Purpose. According to the author, oak woodlands are the most
biodiverse terrestrial ecosystems in California and are
disappearing at a rapid rate. In some parts of the state, a
significant issue is the encroachment of conifers in oak
woodlands. Conifers grow rapidly and quickly provide excessive
shade that kills oaks, some of which have survived for hundreds
of years. Historically, low intensity, but frequent fires
prevented this phenomenon, but under our current fire regime the
firs are successfully choking out the oaks.
Fiscal notes. According to CalFIRE, CalFIRE would need 2.0
Forester I positions to conduct inspections during active
harvesting operations and following the conclusion of timber
operations, ensure the landowner complied with all applicable
rules and regulations, and monitor timber operations to
determine the effectiveness of the Timber Harvesting Plan
exemption created by this bill. The total cost would be $433,010
annually, with one-time costs of $132,000 for computers,
vehicles, hand radios, mobile radios, Personal Protective
Equipment, and to create new cubicles/office space.
Additionally, this bill would require the Board of Forestry and
Fire Protection to adopt regulations. These regulations would be
AB 1958 (Wood) Page 5 of
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limited in scope and generally model this legislation. The
approximate total amount of time to adopt these regulations
would be 8 to 10.5 months (elapsed time), of which 8 to 10 weeks
of staff time would be required. Although these regulations
would be developed using existing staff, the amount of staff
time required to develop these regulations is reflected in the
fiscal.
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