In October, Governor Brown requested federal aid to assist in the removal of dead trees from California forests. The alarming rate of tree deaths in California began amid a historic draught that has plagued the state and given rise to a significant bark beetle infestation in vast areas of forest land. With the threat of destructive wildfires looming, the Governor took a further step last month declaring a state of emergency and calling for rapid, controlled burns immediately.
Governor Brown’s declaration was accompanied by a request for federal money to remove hazardous dead and dying trees as the threat of forest fires peaks during the fall and winter months. In addition to wildfires, the trees pose other safety and environmental concerns including damage to property, personal injury, erosion, and mudslides in which tree debris can flow downstream. The governor has asked state agencies to isolate the geographical areas where dead trees are causing the most dangerous conditions and provide equipment and resources for their disposal.
Officials estimate that 22 million trees have already died as a result of the state’s drought conditions. Some of the hardest hit tree populations are in the Angeles and San Bernardino national forests. The extreme scarcity of water over the last several years has given rise to a massive beetle infestation. Under normal rainfall amounts, the trees are naturally able to protect themselves from such infestations. In light of the significant damage that affected trees have suffered, it is not likely that even modest amounts of rain at this point will be sufficient to save trees that are faltering.
The governor has not ruled out the possibility of instituting other emergency measures such as increasing the amount of days allowed for tree burning or requesting assistance from the California Public Utilities Commission to accelerate the introduction of new bio-fuel plants with the use of tree debris.
Contact Shane Coons at 949-333-0900 or visit his website at www.ShaneCoonsLaw.com to find out more about his practice.