Winegrape growers and ranchers will have to wait another year for California to consider easing endangered species rules to expedite wildfire mitigation activities. Governor Gavin Newsom has vetoed a measure to better coordinate those projects with wildlife officials.
Assemblymember Chris Holden, D-Pasadena, filed Assembly Bill 2330 with the aim of “striking the right balance between public safety and environmental protection.”
The measure sought to expedite permits for activities that reduce fuel loads in high wildfire severity zones near homes. It would have tasked the California Department of Fish and Wildlife with coordinating more closely with county and city governments on incidental take permits for endangered species. Local agencies would submit a plan for conducting the activities while minimizing impacts to sensitive species. CDFW would then decide within 90 days if the project needed a permit and to provide details on any potential exemptions or streamlined pathways.
CDFW would also have had to work with the state fire marshal to update its critical habitat maps to indicate lands within fire hazard severity zones.
Asm. Chris Holden, D-PasadenaAB 2330 gained support from Southern California cities that are racing to protect their neighborhoods from explosive grassland blazes. It also gained the backing of the Association of California Water Agencies, the California Association of Winegrape Growers, the California Cattlemen’s Association and the Wine Institute, which represent businesses and districts investing heavily in vegetation management practices to ensure they maintain wildfire insurance coverage.
As the lead supporter of the bill, the League of California Cities stressed that if prevention activities in these areas are not accelerated, “the threat of wildfire could continue to pose extreme risk of future catastrophic wildfire events to both communities and the environment.”
During a policy committee hearing on the bill earlier this year, Holden lamented that long delays and a lack of guidance are preventing local jurisdictions from clearing vegetation in these areas.
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“It has been acknowledged and documented that eight of the 20 largest wildfires in California's recorded history have occurred in the past seven years,” said Holden, emphasizing the need to support proactive prevention measures. “In many instances, [the Legislature] looks to the expertise of our local governments, who are often on the front lines of wildfire preparedness.”
According to Chris Nigg, fire chief for the city of La Verne in Los Angeles County, the mapping component of the bill alone would have been a tremendous resource, offering clarity and alleviating confusion over what the state views as critical habitats.
Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher commended the bill and said similar efforts to streamline the process have faced such an uphill battle that committees have typically blocked them from hearings.
“The problem is fuel 100%,” said Gallagher. “It’s been allowed to accumulate for decades now in our wild lands, in our forested lands, and we have to be able to get in there and do this work quickly.”
Holden took amendments to drop opposition from environmental groups and the bill sped through hearings with unanimous support and no opposition, except for the Newsom administration. CDFW estimated the measure would require $1.6 million to finance seven positions to oversee the streamlining process. The “significant, ongoing costs” led Governor Gavin Newsom to veto the measure.
Holden warned reporters that, despite the rejection, the issue is “urgent and ongoing” and the state needs to get ahead of these disasters. He called for the Legislature to push more solutions like this forward. Nigg called the veto a “setback for public safety, our communities and preventing the next wildfire calamity.”
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