Pacific Southwest Region

Southern California Hazardous Fuels Rehabilitation and Restoration

San Diego Fire Safety and Fuels Reduction Program

• Cleveland National Forest
• San Diego County
• Natural Resource Conservation Service

There are 72 communities-at-risk in San Diego County due to the proximity of homes to dead and dying chaparral and trees. The Forest Area Safety Taskforce (FAST) is a collaborative effort between community organizations, local fire districts, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF), Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), San Diego Gas and Electric and other stakeholders. FAST was formed to focus on the tree mortality issue within Palomar Mountain, the Julian area, Laguna Mountain, and Lost Valley.

Membership in FAST includes over 120 persons many of which participate on the following committees: Outreach/Education; Evacuation/Community Protection; Legislative Outreach and Funding Development; and Forest Health/Restoration.

There are two major priorities at this time. The first is to complete development of an Incident Command System organization to respond to this emergency situation. Members of NGO's, tribal representatives, and businesses are working collaboratively with local, state, and federal agencies to do this. Another priority focuses on utilization of the large amounts of biomass currently being generated. Innovative solutions are being developed and implemented, in many cases by entrepreneurs. One major success in biomass utilization is a small portable sawmill, owned by Sierra Cedar Products, which has located at Mesa Grande.

Grant funding for faster removal of dead and dying trees in high risk areas has been authorized, including - clearing of road right of ways, public lands, private property and high-risk subdivisions adjacent to public lands. These grants include:

• Emergency Watershed Protection - $30 million - Administered by Natural Resources Conservation Service for the surrounding counties;
• State Fire Assistance - $7.8 million - Administered by U.S. Forest Service with matching funds from San Diego Gas & Electric of $2.6 million;
• Economic Action Funds - $1.7 million - Administered by U.S. Forest Service.

For more information on FAST, or on San Diego County's Fire Safety and Fuels Reduction Program, please call Grace Terrazas, USDA Forest Service, District Ranger, Palomar Ranger District, 760-788-0250.

Success Stories

• Barton Flats
• Breaking Barriers
• Burn Area Restoration Projects
• Carveacre Community Protection
• Charlton Flats
• Crystal Lake
• Evacuation Route Clearing
• Forest Area Safety Taskforce
• Grant Successes
• June Aerial Flight Results
• Kuffel Canyon Road
• Laguna Mountain Community Protection
• Lake Arrowhead Log Storage Facility
• March Aerial Flight Results
• Mistletoe Eradication
• North Lake Arrowhead Fuels Reduction
• Seeds for Forest Renewal
• Skyline Fuels Reduction Project
• Student Conservation Association Partnership
• Take Pride in America

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