Gavin Newsoms broken promises on wildfire prevention less than 1% done

Gavin Newsom promised last year to speed up “critical” wildfire-prevention projects, in the aftermath of LA’s devastating wildfires.Newsom issued an emergency proclamation to “cut bureaucratic red tape” and “fast-track critical projects,” including brush clearance, forest thinning, prescribed burning and other forms of fuels reduction.“These are the forest management projects we need to protect our communities most vulnerable to wildfire,” Newsom said last spring.

“[W]e’re going to get them done.”We filed a public records request to discover whether Newsom is keeping his word.As of last month, the Newsom administration had fast-tracked fuels-reduction work on roughly 87,000 acres of land.

But internal records we obtained from state fire authorities indicate that state-approved organizations had completed projects totaling about 781 acres — less than 1%. These numbers are disastrous.The governor’s office insisted that these projects, which are part of the state’s larger wildfire-prevention efforts, were “critical” and would help “protect communities from catastrophic wildfire.” The documents we obtained, which concern the fast-tracked projects, reveal that the Newsom administration has failed to protect the state.What has put so much of California at risk to burn? In part, the state’s environmental rules.

In California, fuels-reduction projects typically require environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).Under standard CEQA review, a vegetation-management project typically requires an initial study, an Environmental Impact Report, a public comment period, alternatives analysis and agency certification.

That process can take several months for simple projects, and a year or more for complex ones.  California's top news, sports and entertainment delivered to your inbox every day.Please provide a valid email.

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