GREATER LAKE TAHOE AREA, Calif. – Tahoe Basin fire districts are preparing for changes brought about by Governor Gavin Newsom’s early February executive order in response to the Los Angeles wildfires, which burned neighborhoods, took lives, and were largely wind driven, something Lake Tahoe is no stranger to.

“Our region faces periodic similar wind events and has abundant fuel,” South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue Fire Marshal, Kim George, says, “underscoring the importance for residents to take notice, recognize the seriousness of the situation, and remain vigilant.”

Although it’s been over three years since residents endured the Caldor Fire, there are ever present reminders of the event that was also wind driven and fed by a fuel bed primed from an extended drought.

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The executive order, signed Feb. 6, aims to combat the urban conflagration seen in Los Angeles when the fires spread beyond natural or artificial barriers and homes became the fuel that spread the fires. Newsom’s order calls for measures that bolster community and home hardening as well as wildfire mitigations efforts. It does so through actions to accelerate the adoption of more stringent defensible space regulations, updating fire severity zones and improving the system for ordering federal resources for wildfire response.

Fire hazard severity zones

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The executive order tasked the State Fire Marshal with updating Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps, particularly for areas under local government responsibility. This includes incorporated cities like Truckee and South Lake Tahoe as well as urban regions where local government is responsible for wildfire protection.

These maps designate areas on a scale of fire hazard severity from moderate to very high.

“The recent tragedy in Los Angeles serves as a poignant reminder,” George says, “for all those residing in ‘very high’ fire severity areas.”

Portions of the Los Angeles fires were in zones of Very High Fire Hazard Severity, according to CAL FIRE’s map.

The poignant reminder lies in the fact that a majority of Truckee and South Lake Tahoe as well as the California perimeter of Lake Tahoe also lie in Very High Fire Hazard Severity zones.

Fire hazard severity is based on criteria such as fuel loading, slope, fire weather and areas where the State Fire Marshal has identified winds as a major cause of wildfire spread as well as other relevant factors.

The State Fire Marshal’s updates add 1.4 million new acres of land into the two higher tiers of fire severity (high and very high). This is significant for the communities within these areas because it updates the building and local planning requirements.

Ember resistant Zone 0

A forthcoming requirement to very high fire severity zones, so Truckee and South Lake Tahoe, is an ember-resistant zone within five feet of structures, known as Zone 0. The goal of Zone 0 is to eliminate materials that would likely be ignited by embers. This adds to a Zone 1 within 30 feet and a Zone 2 within 100 feet of structures.

The Board of Forestry is still working out exact regulations and enforcement measures related to the five foot zone. The governor’s executive order aims to accelerate this process and ultimately the adoption of Zone 0 regulations, leading to enforcement. Tahoe’s fire districts are already ahead of the curve and have taken action on the new zone.

“The concept of Zone 0 is not new,” Truckee Fire Protection District Battalion Chief, Ryan Ochoa, said. When legislators passed the Zone 0 bill in 2020, Truckee Fire Protection District went right to work and incorporated Zone 0 in its defensible space inspection program by educating homeowners on the importance of Zone 0, ahead of its state required enforcement. Their website also offers educational materials on the ember-resistant zone.

South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue is currently implementing Zone 0 with vegetation through an ordinance passed last July. Once the state starts enforcing it, the zone could include anything combustable within the first five feet of a building, likely including furniture, sheds, and other flammable items.

“In particular, wooden fences tend to act like a wick for fire and will burn until the fire reaches the structure,” Fire Marshal George explains.

Newsom’s order fast-tracked the early workshop and presentation of Zone 0 draft regulations. The Board of Forestry is now in the process of engaging public input on draft regulations and other formal rule-making processes with the goal of completing the process on Zone 0 by the end of this year. This will lead to the enforcement of the zone.

The executive order is also requiring CAL FIRE and the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) to work with local, federal and tribal partners on improving the system for ordering federal resources for wildfire response.