EDITORIAL: Newsom, Legislature making real progress in addressing wildfire risks

Oct. 3--In response to the grim and growing threat poised by dangerous and deadly wildfires, the state government has had an appropriately broad response. That was on display Wednesday when Gov. Gavin Newsom signed 22 bills related to wildfires and the related issue of energy procurement.

Two measures are particularly important because they promote the most cost-effective way to limit fire damage: creating defensible space free of flammable material around homes. One would develop best practices for community-wide projects. The other sets new standards for "home hardening" and construction to make defensible space easier to establish around new and rebuilt homes.

Another measure promotes forest clearing to reduce dead trees and other fuel feeding fires.

Another requires the California Public Utilities Commission to do more safety reviews of power infrastructure that can trigger blazes.

Another mandates the improvement of emergency notification networks during 911 outages to more quickly warn the public about fire threats.

These bill signings build on Newsom's strong record addressing wildfire risk. His first budget included an extra $1 billion for state firefighting efforts, allowing Cal Fire to add C-130 air tankers, new fire engines and Black Hawk helicopters specially modified for firefighting at night. He also signed an executive order authorizing Cal Fire to hire nearly 400 seasonal firefighters for the peak wildfire threat months. And while there's a perception the state and the Trump administration are often at odds, the governor worked with the federal government to get access to advanced defense technology that can quickly detect new wildfires.

Given that the U.S. Forest Service says California has 140 million-plus dead trees ready to fuel blazes, this flurry of activity may not prevent new infernos. But Newsom and the Legislature are making real progress that they must continue in coming years.

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