BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1867
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Date of Hearing: April 7, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 1867 (Patterson) - As Introduced: February 19, 2014
SUBJECT : Timber harvest plans: exemption: reducing flammable
materials
SUMMARY : Repeals the Timber Harvest Plan (THP) exemption for
the cutting and removal of trees for the purpose of creating a
defensible space within 150 of an approved and legally permitted
structure and replaces it with a similar exemption for creating
a defensible space within 300 feet of an approved and legally
permitted structure.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Prohibits any person from conducting timber operations unless
a 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 (EIR) under the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).)
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.
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.
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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.
5)Establishes the Forest Fire Prevention Exemption, which is a
THP exemption for tree harvesting that meets specific
conditions, including the following:
a) The harvesting must occur on parcels of 300 acres or
less;
b) The harvesting must decrease fuel continuity (both
vertically and horizontally);
c) The harvesting must result in making the average
diameter of the trees that remain in the stand larger than
the average diameter of the trees in the stand prior to the
fuel reduction activities;
d) A registered professional forester must prepare the
notice of exemption;
e) The level of residual stocking must be consistent with
maximum sustained production of high-quality timber
products;
f) The activities must comply with the regulations that
protect archaeological sites; and,
g) Only trees less than 18 inches in stump diameter,
measured at 8 inches above ground level, may be removed.
(However, within 500 feet of a legally permitted structure,
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if the goal of fuel reduction cannot be achieved by
removing trees less than 18 inches in stump diameter, trees
less than 24 inches in stump diameter may be removed if
that removal is necessary to achieve the goal of fuel
reduction.)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)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 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.
2)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
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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. Committee staff visited
Tuolumne County to see the aftermath. On this visit, the Pine
Mountain Lake Association explained the defensible space
measures it takes 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 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. This may be too broad, especially
since this bill's exemption would apply to non-habitable
structures where the threat to life is likely far less.
Additionally, according to defensible space literature, the
farther out the defensible space, the less thinning is needed
to protect the structure.
The author and committee may wish to consider amendments that
limit the scope of the bill to only habitable structures. The
author and committee may also wish to consider amendments that
apply residual stocking standards between the 150 to 300 foot
area to prevent over cutting. These standards could be
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modeled off of the Forest Fire Prevention Exemption with some
exceptions. To ensure that the 300 foot exemption is executed
correctly, the amendments could require a registered
professional forester to be involved. To minimize the impact
that these operations have on the environment, the Board of
Forestry and Fire Prevention could be given the ability to
make the ultimate decision on whether this exemption should be
totally, partially, or not at all exempted from the Forest
Practice Rules. Lastly, as a result of a drafting error, the
existing 150 foot exemption would be repealed by the current
version of the bill. The amendments could fix this error .
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Association of Realtors
Personal Insurance Federation of California
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Mario DeBernardo / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092