First of Four Community Fuels Reduction Projects Complete

What is a Community Fuels Reduction Project? It is comprised of four vegetation management units that were selected to be treated through the recently awarded grant project.

Funding for the four project areas is provided by a National Fire Plan grant from Cooperative Fire Program of the U.S. Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, Pacific Southwest Region, thorugh the California Fire Safe Council.

Through these projects, our goal is to modify the existing vegetation to change fire behavior and improve the survivability and safety of both lives and property within Santa Barbara's foothill high fire hazard areas. Work through these projects occurs outside of a property owners required defensible space area and require that property owners maintain the work that was completed.

The four grant project areas include Las Tunas/Mountain Drive; Hillcrest Road; Coyote/Westmont/Circle Drive; and Eucalyptus Hill. Over the past 18 months, the fire department has worked very closely with over 200 property owners who are within the project boundaries. Actual work on the ground began on the Las Tunas/Mountain Drive and Hillcrest Projects this past fall with the remaining two areas expected to be finished during the fall of 2012.



Before and After of a large, overgrown and unmaintained hedge.



Last week marked the full completion of the Hillcrest Road project. This was our largest vegetation managment unit project area completed since the start up of the Wildland Fire Suppression Assessment District. Over the past 6 months we treated 12.77 acres, performed actual work on 40 properties and havd a per-acre cost of $5,068.77. This doesn't include, however, all of the hard work that the property owners have put in to strengthen the area within their defensible space. In addition to the work being performed through the grant, defensible space chipping services were provided to property owners as an additional incentive.

Each week we see more and more property owners fully understand what defensible space means and taking steps towards insuring that they meet the City's requirements. The neighborhoods that run along Mission Ridge, Hillcrest Road and Franceschi Road are looking great and the fire department is very glad to have had the opportunity to work with everyone involved.

Opening "boxed canopies" on Franceschi Road