Minutes August 16, 2004
Board Members in Attendance: John Bauer, Chuck Carroll, Clint Kearns, John Aziz, Susan Crew, Chris Gibson, Hank Hallmark
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm.
Agency reports
Jeff Bradford, USFS, said there are no updates to the Big Pines project at this time. He reported 25,000 acres have burned in his district so far this year. Although the number of acres is higher, there have been a lower number of starts thus far. Most have been on the west side of the district. The Spring fire burned slow overall, even though there were hot spots and plenty of smoke, it burned only 87 acres.
Forest closure may take place at the end of September. At this point, there are no stoves allowed and restrictions are severe. Triggers for closure include increased fire danger and the number of larger fires that occur as time goes on. ANF is looking at a six–tier plan to define fire danger.
John Aziz attended the MAC meeting and reported that Gabe Garcia announced the Lone Pine Canyon project was approved 8/2. Flagging of the fuel breaks will begin 8/17. In Gabe’s opinion, the fuel breaks will primarily provide an escape location and point of defense for firefighters. The main reason for the LPC project is concern for watershed due to the Blue Cut, Grand Prix, and Old fires from last year
The firebreak disking will take approximately 10 working days. This work will be completed under a category classification that carries several safety precautions. Crews will work until 1 pm only and then stay on site for two additional hours to ensure there are no problems (such as sparks from disking that could cause fire). Weather and moisture levels are also considered with disking procedures.
The first of the prescribed burns for LPC are tentatively scheduled to begin between December and March. Due to the forecasted El Nino conditions, a prescribed burn during that period is likely. John also reported that treatment on the remainder of LPC would be considered in 2006.
Jeff was asked about the success ratio on prescribed burns. He did not have a percentage, but said that millions of acres are burned nationwide. In the last 15 years, there has only been one escape in the ANF.
On the LPC project, breaking up the burn areas over a number of years will increase the effectivity. According to Jeff, this method will “break up the age class of the fuel” and has a significantly positive effect on fire behavior.
Tim (last name?), SBCF, Hazardous Tree Program, told the group that Wrightwood will be divided into two blocks for the NRCS dead tree removal program. The east portion of the town will be treated in the next phase (2) and the west portion in phase 5. Trees will be distinctly marked and numbered for removal.
Captain Wayne Bennett, Station 101, is looking at methods to treat the Pinon Mesa area below the streets of summit and Easter. This area is particularly vulnerable to fire due to a number of factors: 1) there is only one way in and out of this area, 2) extremely heavy fuel content, 3) topography, and 4) water pressure. A fire in that area would move uphill rapidly. Radiant heat from the heavy canopy and undergrowth would increase the speed of the fire and quickly ignite homes, continuing to spread the fire.
Although it is in the earliest stages of development, the goal is to reduce the brush in the area below the homes and work with homeowners to improve clearances. This will have a large impact on the fire safety in east end of the community. Efforts will be made to plan a neighborhood meeting to discuss the project with area residents. Carol Goss was asked for WWPOA involvement in the meeting.
MAST Meeting
The mountain Area safety taskforce (MAST) will hold a meeting in late September for the Wrightwood and Lytle Creek communities. Discussion will include NRCS funds/activities, Edison projects, and evacuations. Agency representatives will be on hand to answer questions.
Adopt-A-Hydrant
Wayne has secured paint for the project. He has tested the blue reflective tape for the poles that mark the hydrants. He has another type of tape he wants to try. He obtained some yellow reflective tape that he placed on hydrants along Mountain View. The tape is very effective—hydrants really stand out.
It was suggested the WWFSC board split up the list of adopting parties so they may be contacted to advise as to project status.
Phone Lines
John Bauer asked about tree removal with respect to phone lines. Verizon has no disaster provisions in the event that communications are disrupted. Apparently, Edison was mandated by the Governer to address tree removal. Verizon has been non-responsive on this issue.
NRCS Tree removal
There has been some discussion and confusion as to who is to be contacted to identify parcels (based on size and slope conditions). Fire Marshall Peter Brierty said that the FSC should let his office know the areas that require treatment and that he would assign the appropriate resources according to expertise. He said it is more important to address blocks (areas) that make sense to be worked as a unit regardless of size and slope. All efforts will be made to work with the USFS to build upon fuel modification projects in progress. In other words, if public land is being treated that borders on private parcels, the agencies will coordinate with contractors to continue work in adjacent private areas.
John Aziz commented that work the Wrightwood fuel modification project would not begin for 1-2 years. He asked if NRCS funds would be available then. Peter responded that Congressman Jerry Lewis assured him there would be “years of funds,” and that funds could be set aside for projects planned in the future. Peter would like to allocate the remaining funds (from the original 70 million) by November. If the project cost can be determined, those funds may be requested in advance. It was recommended that Teams be contacted to help identify blocks and costs.
John Aziz asked about the possibility of obtaining NRCS funds for Cal trans sections of highway 2 that have a large amount of brush such as the area between the fire station and the levels. Peter said he would look into this.
Jeff said it would be acceptable to use an herbicide on this area after brush removal to prevent immediate regrowth.
Community Fire Plan
There has been some progress on the development of the plan. John A., Clint, and Susan got together to work on some of the WWFSC sections. Wayne and Jeff have discussed and agreed on the priority of addressing hazardous areas. The prioritized list will be part of the plan.
By Laws
The first draft of the By Laws has been completed. The FSC board will meet at the end of September to discuss additions and revisions to the draft.
Recognition
There was some discussion about some type of recognition in honor of Jim Wilkins retirement.
Parcel Maps
There has been no success in obtaining contiguous parcel maps of the Wrightwood area. Clint has been working to piece together a map. This is a time-consuming process since the maps vary in scale. Peter will look into obtaining electronic versions of the parcel maps.
Adjourned 9:05 pm.