State grants are helping Yorba Linda step up fire prevention efforts – Orange County Register

Using the new grant, Yorba Linda plans to spend the next four years implementing an ambitious fire prevention program. CalFire awarded the city, in partnership with the Orange County Fire Department, $866,610.

Yorba Linda and OFCA will reduce fuel burn around habitable structures and other sensitive areas such as Chino Hills State Park. Removal of combustible and non-natural vegetation is being done strategically to benefit the most people and in high fire risk areas.

As the city’s Public Affairs Office, which will be involved in the effort, said: “The best way to fight a fire is to make sure it never starts.”

Reducing burning fuel has the added benefit of reducing the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere if a wildfire breaks out in the area.

“What we want, at the end of the day, is a real natural ecosystem, so get rid of all the non-native plants,” City Engineer Jamie Lai said in a post. recent presentation to City Council.

In addition to vegetation removal and control, the city, OFCA and the Orange County Sheriff’s Department will work together to develop an evacuation plan. After the 2008 freeway complex fire, some residents raised concerns about the difficulty of evacuation, especially as more homes in the area were considered.

Another aspect of the fire prevention program is educating the community about health, safety and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Yorba Linda and the contracted fire agency, OFCA, applied for the CalFire Community Fire Prevention Grant last May, accepting funding and the program was completed last month.

“Fire prevention and mitigation is one of the most important things to our city, if not the most important to our proximity to Chino Hills State Park and animals wild as well as our unfortunate history with several fires,” said Councilmember Tara Campbell. She commended the city’s employees for taking the initiative.

To limit shrub planting, the city and OCFA are using hand-cranked teams and grazing goats in hard-to-reach areas, and machines are one option.

Goats are especially useful on slopes that are inaccessible to manipulators. Earlier this year, a herd of 100 goats was used as part of a pilot program to clear the West Bastanchury estate, a city-owned site. A company brought in the goats and barriers were erected to keep them confined and safe from predators while the goats did what was natural: eat.

“While there are many methods to eradicate weeds, many communities have grown fond of using goat grazing as a natural method to remove fuel,” said Geoff Spencer, a city spokesman. in mountainous terrain too difficult for workgroups. “A herd of goats can quickly eat their way even with the thickest of trees.”

Part of the outreach plan will focus on educating homeowners about the different methods available to reduce fuel burn so they can choose the best method to protect their property from fire. .

Before the outreach can begin, the city’s first step will be to hire a part-time project manager, an environmental consultant, and a community engagement consultant. Environmental impact studies are needed and then fire reduction activities and active management of non-natural plant species can begin.

Officials say Yorba Linda has performed some fire prevention operations in the past, but this is a much larger program than previous efforts. The city’s current weed removal program ensures property owners maintain areas prone to overgrowth.

The CalFire grant gives the city until 2025 to complete its project.