Report to County Board of Supervisors on Wildfire Risk and Response
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Report to Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors WILDFIRE RISK & RESPONSE April 2019 County of Santa Clara Fire Department BACKGROUND At the December 4, 2018 Board of Supervisors meeting, a board referral was given to the County Fire Chief due to the implications of the huge increase in wildland fires in the region and the potential risks to Santa Clara County. Specifically, the referral requested information on tools, technology, strategies, policies, procedures and resources available in the County as well as what additional resources are needed to protect our community. The Santa Clara County Fire Department (Central Fire Protection District) Fire Chief was asked to coordinate with the other fire districts (Los Altos Hills and South Santa Clara County), the Roads and Airports department, and County Parks and report back to the Board no later than April, 2019. The Board’s request came shortly after the Camp fire destroyed the communities of Concow, Magalia, and Paradise in Butte County, ending the deadliest and most destructive year of wildland fires in California history. More than 20,000 structures were destroyed, over 1.9 million acres burned, and 98 people were killed. The Camp fire alone is estimated to have cost over $120 million to contain1 and burned more than 18,000 structures, becoming California’s most destructive wildland fire ever. This is remarkable considering just 13- months prior the Tubbs fire in Sonoma County had been the most destructive fire in California history burning 5,636 structures and killing 22 people. These fires fueled by dense, dry vegetation and warmer, drier weather have unfortunately become increasingly more common over the last several years and have resulted in rising suppression costs. In fact, the last ten fire seasons have produced 7 of California’s most destructive wildland fires (Table 1). Table 1. Most Destructive California Wildland Fires Incident Acres Structures Deaths Date Camp Fire 153,336 18,804 86 Nov 2018 Tubbs 36,807 5,636 22 Oct 2017 Tunnel 1,600 2,900 25 Oct 1991 Cedar 273,246 2,820 15 Oct 2003 Valley 76,067 1,955 4 Sep 2015 Witch 197,990 1,650 2 Oct 2007 1 Camp Fire, Incident Status Summary (ICS-209), November 25, 2018 Santa Clara County Fire Department Page 2 of 17 Wildfire Risk & Response County of Santa Clara Fire Department Woolsey 96,949 1,643 2 Nov 2018 Carr 229,651 1,604 8 Jul 2018 Nuns 54,382 1,355 3 Oct 2017 Thomas 281,893 1,063 2 Dec 2017 Source: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection It is clear we are seeing unprecedented fire behavior and destruction and need to take immediate action to reduce our risk and ensure Santa Clara County can respond effectively to the, “new normal.” To do this I recommend establishing a County Wildland Fire program, adopting the Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) annexes 1, 2, 4, 13, 18, and approval of a 2- year workplan for the newly established Wildland Fire Program with a focus on operationalizing the CWPP. A Wildland Fire Program within the County Fire Marshal’s Office staffed with a program manager/interagency coordinator, a pre-fire planner and a Senior Deputy Fire Marshal will serve as the foundation of the workplan and provide countywide coordination amongst the many stakeholders. In addition, the program will immediately develop a best practices report summarizing the county level wildland fire preparedness efforts in other counties (Alameda, Marin, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties) to ensure our long-term strategy is based on the combined experience of our partners throughout the State. Specific recommendations include: • The creation of a County Wildland Fire Program within the County Fire Marshal’s Office to coordinate a unified approach to wildland fire risk reduction countywide, including program funding out of the general fund and workplan authorization (Attachment B – Workplan). • Board adoption of all Community Wildfire Protection Plan Annexes (Attachment C – CWPP incl. Annex 1, 2, 4, 13, 18) over which the County has authority. • Funding for one Type 6 fire engine and one brush masticator tractor to accelerate implementation of Department of Parks and Recreation hazardous fuels reduction projects. • Establish a policy for effective, integrated roadside vegetation management (fire fuel reduction) for County roadways, including chemical herbicide application and mowing in areas designated as high or very high fire hazard severity zones as defined by the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, and authorize the administration to Santa Clara County Fire Department Page 3 of 17 Wildfire Risk & Response County of Santa Clara Fire Department provide exemptions for the use of effective, economical pre- and post-emergent herbicide on roads in the designated high fire areas. Funding these four recommendations would have a FY2019-20 impact to the general fund of $1,211,511 recurring and $437,500 in one-time funds (Attachment D, Detailed Costs). The detailed wildland fire program within this report, if implemented, will have a positive impact on seniors and children to the extent that improving wildland fire preparedness and response will enhance public safety. Seniors are often amongst the most vulnerable populations in our communities, particularly during emergencies that require evacuations. The “New Normal” Unfortunately, recent climate reports forecast our risk to wildland fire is increasing. According to the recently published, California’s Fourth Climate Change Assessment: California’s Changing Climate 2018 (Attachment E), “the science is highly certain that California will continue to warm and experience greater impacts from climate change in the future.” The report forecasts the area burned by wildland fire will increase as a result, and the last few fire seasons lend support to the prediction. Warmer, drier weather and dense vegetation adjacent to our communities are magnifying our historic wildland fire risk. This phenomenon can best be illustrated in the equation shown below. FUEL + WEATHER + WILDLAND URBAN INTERACE = DESTRUCTIVE FIRES Within the equation, historic fire suppression efforts and land preservation have created an abundance of dry, dense vegetation on our protected lands that are adjacent to communities. Hotter, drier weather driven by climate change has further stressed the vegetation leading to fires that grow explosively under certain weather conditions and burn through communities. The November 2018 fires in Northern California are currently estimated to have resulted in $11.4 billion in insured losses.2 While the County has limited ability to influence the changing weather conditions, it can take a more active role in managing the tremendous fuel loading present in the wildland areas. To provide a sense of the magnitude of the work to be done, in 2018 CAL FIRE’s Director established their goal for treatment of state responsibility area (SRA) lands was approximately 40,000 acres statewide, with 20,000 acres of prescribed fire and 20,000 acres of fuels treatment. It is estimated that between 1999-2009 the state was only able to achieve approximately 13,000 acres of fuels management per year, statewide. While CAL FIRE has been able to increase the pace of fuels treatment, Scott Stephens, a wildland fire expert from the UC Berkeley Center for Fire Research estimated in 2015 that California, “must increase 2 http://www.insurance.ca.gov/0400-news/0100-press-releases/2019/release14-19.cfm Santa Clara County Fire Department Page 4 of 17 Wildfire Risk & Response County of Santa Clara Fire Department fuel-reduction efforts to ten times the area that is currently treated.”3 It is also believed a more proactive approach to fuels reduction and prescribed fire may generate lower carbon emissions than the larger, uncontrolled fires.4 Furthermore, each CAL FIRE unit in the Northern Region, including the Santa Clara Unit, has been tasked with treating a minimum of 2,000 acres of the 40,000-acre statewide goal. If the Santa Clara Unit, which covers portions of Alameda, Contra Costa, San Joaquin, Santa Clara and Stanislaus counties, completed all of the assigned vegetation management work in Santa Clara County, that would represent just 0.4 percent (2,000 / 554,200) of the 554,200 acres of unincorporated wildland areas in the county. It is clear that the state has responsibility for the SRA watershed areas, which make up most of the unincorporated lands, however, the county is responsible for land use planning and development that occurs within the Santa Clara County unincorporated areas. Over the last 30 years, the county has seen an increase in urban sprawl/development in the unincorporated wildland urban interface areas, which in turn, has increased the risk to those communities should a wildland fire occur. This is not unique to Santa Clara County as many counties across the state are taking a more active role in supporting and augmenting the limited state resources to protect their citizens who reside in fire-prone, unincorporated areas. Despite significant efforts and spending to prevent future fires by the state, achieving greater vegetation management goals remains a significant challenge and cannot be accomplished by the state alone. To achieve greater vegetation management within Santa Clara County, greater coordination between local land owners, the state, local agencies responsible for fire protection and the County must occur. Historical Wildland Fire Risk in Santa Clara County As defined by the Probability and Consequence Matrix found on page 24 of Santa Clara County Fire Department’s Standards of Cover (SOC) document (Attachment F), a fire within the wildland urban interface is categorized as a maximum risk event. This is based on an assessment of probability of an event occurring and the associated consequence. A maximum risk event indicates the potential for a severe loss of life, severe loss of economic value, large loss of property, or it poses special challenges for emergency responders.