05/09/2008 Print Version
WHEREAS last year
California experienced devastating wildfires that destroyed lives, property,
businesses, and the environment and resulted in the largest deployment of
firefighting resources and the highest number of evacuations in state history;
and
WHEREAS this year, California once again
finds itself facing an imminent threat of devastating wildfires and imminent
peril to people and property; and
WHEREAS the number of dead, dying and
diseased trees continues to increase as a result of bark beetle infestation in
Southern California, providing a readily available fuel load which creates an
imminent threat of catastrophic fires; and
WHEREAS current
below-normal precipitation, seasonally higher-than-normal temperatures, strong
winds, and low relative humidity have contributed to heavy fuel loads and the
early drying of wildland vegetation; and
WHEREAS reductions in federal aviation
assets limit federal initial attack capabilities;
and
WHEREAS coordinated fire prevention,
aggressive fuel reduction programs and strong initial attack resources are
essential to protect people, property and the environment in California; and
WHEREAS the increased risk of catastrophic
wildfires throughout California may result in harmful, secondary environmental
effects, including increased emissions of air pollutants; diminished air and
water quality; impacted watershed and soil stability; and compromised
populations and habitats of sensitive and endangered fish and wildlife species;
and
WHEREAS the increased risk of catastrophic
wildfires could significantly impact state efforts to reduce greenhouse gases
due to significant uncontrolled emissions of greenhouse gases caused by
wildfire; and
WHEREAS immediate action is
needed to respond to these conditions and to protect the people, property,
economy, and environment in California.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, Arnold
Schwarzenegger, Governor of the
State of California, in accordance with the
authority vested in me by the Constitution and statutes of the State of
California, do
hereby issue the following orders to become effective
immediately:
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the California
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) shall secure and deploy
additional resources that are necessary, as determined by the Director, to
protect the safety of persons and property from wildfires during periods of
elevated fire risk as follows:
(a)
Staff additional fire crews, fire engines, helitack crews, fire bulldozers,
equipment and aviation resources as warranted based on fire threat
conditions.
(b)
Assign a crew of four firefighters to selected CAL FIRE fire engines as
warranted based on fire threat conditions.
(c)
Provide for immediate availability and utilization of the Supertanker
aircraft.
(d)
Assign additional resources in the CAL FIRE Contract Counties as warranted based
on fire threat conditions.
(e)
Coordinate with the Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES) and the
California National Guard for those military resources that may be available for
assistance during emergencies in California.
(f)
Assign additional fire safe inspectors where and when beneficial to reduce fire
risk, assist with fire hazard reduction, conduct defensible space inspections,
and promote fire safe practices, public education and prevention
programs.
(g)
Assign fire lookouts during peak fire conditions as part of CAL FIRE staffing
patterns.
(h)
Increase staffing for command and control functions at CAL FIRE
Unit Emergency Command Centers, Northern and Southern Operations Centers and
the CAL
FIRE Sacramento Coordination Center when necessary to respond to
significant fire events.
(i)
Assign additional staff as necessary to provide emergency incident support and
burn area emergency assessment and response
activities.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that CAL FIRE utilize
staff as necessary to support a heightened level of fire prevention public
awareness and education utilizing CAL FIRE Volunteers in Prevention, Fire Safe
Councils, and the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that CAL
FIRE develop and implement aggressive interdiction plans for the enforcement of
laws regarding arson and illegal and dangerous fireworks, focusing on high
traffic, high impact, high volume distribution and transportation points which
may be the sources for the ignition of wildland fires in
California.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that CAL FIRE
continue, within its authority, to expedite the processing of contracts and
grants of federal funds to communities, and continue to support local and
regional responses to the bark beetle affected tree eradication and community
emergency planning efforts.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that OES shall, in
consultation and coordination with CAL FIRE and as fire threat conditions
warrant, (a) deploy OES fire engine strike teams to ensure a substantial
response capability to any wildland fire situation in California, with the costs
of the deployment to be reimbursed consistent with the California Fire and
Rescue Mutual Aid Plan and the California Fire Assistance Agreement, and (b)
augment personnel at OES operations centers and emergency incident support teams
as necessary to respond to significant fire events.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the California
National Guard prepare its aviation assets, and pre-position ground support
equipment, as appropriate for immediate response to major wildfires and report
to OES weekly on the status of all aircraft.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the California
Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, including the Division of Juvenile
Justice, establish the highest priority for assignment of minimum custody or
camp-approved inmates and wards to Conservation Camp Fire
Crews.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the California
Conservation Corps (CCC) report to CAL FIRE daily on the readiness of all CCC
support crews for response to wildfires.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that OES review the
preparedness of state agencies and departments to ensure readiness for response
to wildfires.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that CAL FIRE and OES
work closely with federal, state and local government agencies, bordering
states, and the Mexico
border states to maximize California's fire
prevention and fighting capabilities and to provide appropriate reciprocal
assistance when requested.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, to the extent
authorized by applicable law, the purchasing authority of CAL FIRE and OES (and
other state agencies and departments as deemed necessary by the Director of OES)
shall be raised to $100,000 to expedite the contracts necessary to prepare and
respond to emergencies during this fire season.
IT
IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Department
of General Services (DGS), in coordination with OES, shall establish short and
long-term procurement mechanisms to secure the unique goods and services that
may be required to support communities in an
emergency.
IT IS FURTHER
ORDERED that OES, in consultation and
coordination with the California Resources Agency and the California
Environmental Protection Agency, initiate preparedness and training efforts for
local governments to ensure that post-fire watershed assessments, emergency
protective measures, effective debris removal efforts, post-fire burn area
assessments, and mitigation efforts to evaluate potential hazards, are
implemented to address needed remediation.
IT
IS FURTHER ORDERED that the California Environmental
Protection Agency and the California Resources Agency shall oversee the Climate
Action Team's development of measures for wildfire fuels reduction and biomass
utilization.
IT IS FURTHER
ORDERED that CAL FIRE shall provide
educational information to homeowners on defensible space and California Building and Fire Codes ignition-resistant
building materials, and shall develop training for defensible space inspection
and building ignitability in consultation with the Department of Insurance, OES,
and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
IT
IS FURTHER ORDERED that CAL FIRE shall
conduct vigorous defensible space inspections, and shall impose fines and/or
liens pursuant to applicable authority if
necessary.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that
to assist landowners to meet their
100-foot defensible space requirements to reduce hazardous vegetation and
landscaping, CALFIRE, in consultation with the California Biomass/Biofuel
Collaborative, may enter into contracts, agreements, and arrangements for the
chipping, hauling, burning, or other methods of disposal of hazardous vegetation
removed by landowners as required by Public Resources Code section 4291 and
Government Code section 51182.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that
OES shall continue to support the
development of fire hazard information and shall continue to make it available
to the public.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that
OES shall assist local communities
to help ensure that federal hazard mitigation grants are focused on the areas of
greatest vulnerability in the Wildland Urban Interface in California.
This
Order is not intended to, and does not, create any rights or benefits,
substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity, against the State of
California, its agencies, departments, entities, officers, employees, or any
other person.
I FURTHER DIRECT that as soon as
hereafter possible, this Order be filed in the Office of the Secretary of State
and that widespread publicity and notice be given to this
Order.
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set
my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of California to be affixed this
9th day of May 2008.
______________________________
Arnold
Schwarzenegger
Governor of
California
ATTEST:
_______________________________
DEBRA
BOWEN
Secretary of State
