Sonoma County Vegetation Management Gets Additional $2-Million

Another $2-million has been given to Sonoma County for vegetation management projects. The Board of Supervisors authorized the funds at yesterday’s meeting for projects that protect residents from wildfires by creating fuel breaks, expanding defensible space around homes, and removing vegetation along evacuation routes and in fire-prone landscapes. The board also approved changes to the vegetation management grant program that will allow the county to prioritize projects that align with the objectives of local and state fire agencies and county departments. The first three rounds of grants have reduced fire danger for over 3,000 acres by reducing fuel loads using prescribed burns, grazing, hand crews and equipment to manage vegetation. The grants have also created defensible space around 630 homes, constructed 82 miles of shaded fuel breaks and reduced vegetation along 64 miles of roads that serve as critical evacuation routes.