Week of 3.3.2019
Fixing the Wildland / Interface Fire Problem
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by Bill Neville
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I have read much lately about dealing with our States wildfire problems. Most of our politicians ideas seem to focus on getting more
money from the Federal Government, funding mini-homes for the homeless, or providing free health care for all inhabitants of our State.
Let me suggest some things our newly elected Governor, Legislature and Senate should consider if they are serious about mitigating
the urban-wildland fire problem:
1. Submit, for voter approval, a program to re-designate funds (approaching $80 Billion) now directed
to the "Super Train" to wildfire mitigation programs
2. Rethink the State forest maintenance priorities, making fire safety rather
than maintaining virgin forests the priority issue (no cost)
3. Provide low cost loans (from Super Train Account?) to utility companies
to move all power lines in the urban-wildland fire interface underground by a date certain ($10 Billion to be repaid - attainment
10 years*)
4. Provide funding (from Super Train Account?) for a program to hire the willing / able homeless to clear debris from the
forests while providing food and shelter for themselves and families. ($5 Billion - attainment 5 years*)
5. Provide funding (from
Super Train Account?) and take necessary legislative steps to allow fire protection agencies to fly fire sensing drones over wildland
and urban-wildland fire areas anytime a "Red Flag Day" is declared ($ 1Billion - attainment 2 years* )
6. Provide funding (from Super
Train Account?) to increase the number of California Office of Emergency Services fire engines "loaned" to local fire agencies so
those agencies have sufficient equipment to dispatch on mutual-aid assignments around the State without decimating their own fire
protection capabilities. ($500 Million [100 vehicles]- attainment 2 years*)
7. Provide funding (from Super Train Account?) for California
Office of Emergency Services to buy retired military helicopters, repurpose them for fire and rescue purposes, then loan them to those
local fire agencies currently operating helicopter programs, to use, with recalled off-duty local agency pilots, for pre-positioning
in effected areas where and when "Red Flag Days" are declared ($500 Million - attainment 4 years*)
8. Provide funding (from Super
Train Account?) for local fire agencies with Wildland-interface issues to bring staffing to max levels (using off-duty personnel)
during "Red Flag Days" in their region ($500 Million - attainment 2 years*)
9. Utilize Super Train account monies to build / improve
escape routes from urban / wildland communities ($5 Billion - attainment 5 years)
10. Use the funds left over in the Super Train account
to mitigate the State's drought issues by:
o building saltwater desalination plants up and down California
o building additional reservoirs
o providing low cost loans to convert all traditional commercial irrigation to Israeli type low demand irrigation systems
($40 Billion
- attainment 5 years *):
There is an obvious downside to these proposals: Governor Jerry Brown will be left without a significant
legacy - But I propose to medicate that calamity - the State should build a hi-tech mirror to reflect the moon's beams to illuminate
the unfinished Super Train Bridges to Nowhere- there should be plenty of funding left over from the Super Train account to accomplish
this (almost 20 billion).
I am personally convinced that the former Governor would hardily endorse this plan.
*All funding and attainment
dates are certified by the Super Train Accounting Group