Listen 37 min MORE The Woolsey Fire is seen from Hollywood Hills. The fire ignited in November 2018 and burned nearly 100,000 acres of land, according to the National Park Service. Photo by By Jeff Pinette/Shutterstock.
“California is a fire-prone landscape,” says Don Hankins, professor of geography and planning at California State University, Chico. But generations of Native Californians prevented disaster by controlled burning, which protected their villages and the environment they built.
Then the state government made it illegal for Native Californians to start a fire, watch a fire, or extinguish it. That’s according to Willie Pink, chairman of the Agua Caliente Tribe of Cupeno.
California burn bosses set controlled forest fires Should they be safe from lawsuits? insurancenewsnet.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from insurancenewsnet.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
California burn bosses set controlled forest fires. Should they be safe from lawsuits?
Sacramento Bee 1 hr ago Ryan Sabalow and Dale Kasler, The Sacramento Bee
Apr. 22 Across California, property owners and their burn bosses are setting fires. When the weather is cool, calm and wet enough, these planned forest fires are designed to clear overgrown vegetation that could accelerate a wildfire in dry months.
They do this knowing they risk financial ruin from a lawsuit if something goes wrong.
Now, Native American tribes, ranchers, timber companies and conservation groups are teaming up to reduce those liability risks in a battle that pits them against the state s powerful trial lawyers and insurance industries.
Governor Gavin Newsom visited a fuel break made possible by executive action in 2019 that helped firefighters respond to last year’s devastating Creek Fire, and highlighted the agreement on a $536 million legislative package to accelerate fire prevention projects that protect communities.
“Perhaps nowhere is the threat of wildfires caused by climate change more evident than here in Fresno County, where the state’s tree mortality caused by drought stress is greatest. Fuel breaks, like the one we toured today, play a key role because they can disrupt fire behavior, slow progression and provide crews with a place to take a stand against the fire,” said Governor Newsom. “This year, we are budgeting more than $1 billion, with more than $500 million in early action spending for fire prevention including fuel breaks, forest health and home hardening to help protect Californians from catastrophic wildfires.”