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News from District 1

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News from District 1
Published on: 4/24/2013 12:00 AM
Direct links to Supervisor Beason's News Releases,  Letters to the Editor and Announcements, including Town Hall Meetings, can be accessed below under Related Items as they are released to the media.
 
CAL FIRE Proposes to Redirect Engine Crew from Nevada City to Carnelian Bay
 
The Board recently learned that CAL FIRE plans on moving the staff for one of two wildfire response engines from Nevada City (Station 20) to Carnelian Bay in Placer County this fire season.  The fire engine itself would basically sit idle at the station with no staff to operate it unless a staffing pattern is justified by backfilling with station personnel. 
The move is a result of a change in Direct Protection Authority (DPA) from Federal to State for the State Responsibility Area (SRA) lands around the lake, and in portions of Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows; approximately 30,000 acres.  Two years ago, Governor Schwarzenegger authored an executive order temporarily funding two engines—one on the north side in Placer County and one on the south side in El Dorado County.  Then last year, staffing for the engines was not funded, allegedly due to budget constraints.  CAL FIRE is moving the Nevada City engine staff to Placer County to serve the northern area, about 17,000 acres, for this fire season with the anticipation that a Budget Change proposal will fund the Tahoe engine staff next year and the Station 20 staff will return to Nevada City.

Supervisors Beason (whose District includes Nevada City) and Weston find the news troubling for two key reasons:  (1) the staff is being taken from an extremely high fire danger area as we are entering a potentially dangerous fire season; and (2) there was no prior community notification, pre-briefing or other open public communication about this decision.

The Supervisors are jointly bringing an agenda item forward at this Tuesday’s meeting asking for approval of a letter to CAL FIRE Director Ken Pimlott opposing the plans.

 
 
 
 
 
Nate Beason
District 1 Supervisor, Vice Chair
Supervisor District 1

Hours: 8am-5pm M-F
Phone: 530.265.1480
Fax: 530.265.9836
nate.beason@co.nevada.ca.us