Board unanimously adopts Fire Management Plan.

by Mark Dolson

The June 3 rd Board Meeting for the SLVWD was relatively brisk (less than two and a half hours)
and fairly straightforward. The meeting began with a presentation from Panorama
Environmental on its proposed Fire Management Plan for the District. The District began
working with Panorama about a year ago, and Panorama proved exceptionally helpful to the
District during the CZU Fire last August. With the SLV at even higher risk for a devastating
wildfire in 2021, the new plan identifies a number of recommended projects aimed at
minimizing fuel loads, increasing fire resiliency, and helping reduce wildfire impacts to critical
water infrastructure.

For near-term post-fire recovery, the plan concentrates on inspection and removal of
hazardous trees and on reforestation in suitable locations. For future-proofing, the plan
focuses on vegetation management around water infrastructure and roadways together with
specific types of infrastructure installation or upgrades to fire-harden and improve emergency
access to water tanks. In addition, numerous grant opportunities are identified with two grants
(both with CAL FIRE) already approved or headed toward approval. (The District also
announced this week that it has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the State Coastal
Conservancy to clear vegetation and fire fuels surrounding its water infrastructure.)The Board approved the Panorama plan and instructed the Staff to proceed with its
implementation. It also authorized a $37,000 reimbursement for the additional work that
Panorama ended up performing for the District.

The June 3rd Board Meeting for the SLVWD was relatively brisk (less than two and a half hours)
and fairly straightforward. The meeting began with a presentation from Panorama
Environmental on its proposed Fire Management Plan for the District. The District began
working with Panorama about a year ago, and Panorama proved exceptionally helpful to the
District during the CZU Fire last August. With the SLV at even higher risk for a devastating
wildfire in 2021, the new plan identifies a number of recommended projects aimed at
minimizing fuel loads, increasing fire resiliency, and helping reduce wildfire impacts to critical
water infrastructure.

For near-term post-fire recovery, the plan concentrates on inspection and removal of
hazardous trees and on reforestation in suitable locations. For future-proofing, the plan
focuses on vegetation management around water infrastructure and roadways together with
specific types of infrastructure installation or upgrades to fire-harden and improve emergency
access to water tanks. In addition, numerous grant opportunities are identified with two grants
(both with CAL FIRE) already approved or headed toward approval. (The District also
announced this week that it has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the State Coastal
Conservancy to clear vegetation and fire fuels surrounding its water infrastructure.)
The Board approved the Panorama plan and instructed the Staff to proceed with its
implementation. It also authorized a $37,000 reimbursement for the additional work that
Panorama ended up performing for the District.

Two routine agenda items concerned requests for bids for work on the long-anticipated, state-
mandated Fall Creek Fish Ladder project. The District granted the bidding contractors an
additional three weeks to complete their bids. There is some time pressure here because
regulatory agencies require that construction within the stream channel be completed prior to
mid-October of this year (or else next year – the goal is to avoid disrupting seasonal fish
activities).

Lastly, the Board continued to sort through details of the District’s plan to impose a 5-year fire-
recovery surcharge on monthly water bills. For most residential customers, this will add about
$10 per month to cover the estimated $5 million in CZU-Fire-related expenses that the District
will not be reimbursed for via FEMA. Proposition 218 requires that the District pursue a very
specific procedure to allow potential public objections to be adequately taken into account.
The District has designated its August 5 th Board Meeting for a public hearing and tabulation of
formal objections.

The next Board meeting will be Thursday June 17 th at 6:30 PM. The agenda is fairly lengthy and
will include – among other topics – formal public review of the District’s updated, state-
mandated Urban Water Management Plan, final Board approval of the District’s operating
budget for the next two fiscal years, and further discussion of the District’s revised Utility Billing
Policy and its Fire Recovery Surcharge approval process.