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Board backs regional forest-health grant including work at 6 Sigma Ranch, supervisors ask for clearer private-match terms
Summary
The board approved a letter of support for a CAL FIRE Forest Health Grant led by Napa County RCD that would fund vegetation management projects including 200+ acres at 6 Sigma Ranch in Lake County. Supervisor concerns focused on private-land benefits and the size and nature of owner match commitments.
The Lake County Board of Supervisors voted to send a letter of support for a CAL FIRE Forest Health Grant application led by the Napa County Resource Conservation District (RCD). The proposal covers a multi-property effort that includes more than 800 acres across Napa and Lake counties and—within Lake County—about 200 acres of fuels reduction and oak woodland restoration at 6 Sigma Ranch.
Matthew Rothstein, chief deputy county administrative officer, said Napa County RCD is the grant lead and that Lake County Resource Conservation District (Lake RCD) is a partner. Julia Sullivan, executive director of Lake RCD (participating by Zoom), told the board that 6 Sigma’s landowner had committed to follow-up maintenance, including prescribed broadcast burning coordinated with a burn boss, as part of the project. Sullivan said the Lake RCD has planning funding already secured for the site that makes it “CEQA-ready” in the timeframe the grantor prefers, and that the partnership offers training and capacity-building opportunities for Lake RCD staff.
Supervisor Sabatier raised concerns that the proposed use would primarily benefit a single private property and business while public funds are limited. He asked whether 6 Sigma would provide a defined, verifiable match beyond future maintenance promises; Sullivan said the landowner’s commitment includes carrying out prescribed burns and follow-up maintenance but that exact cost-estimate calculations for that match were still being developed.
Other supervisors noted that Cal FIRE funding commonly supports treatments on private lands and that private lands comprise much of the county’s at-risk acreage. The board approved the letter of support and authorized the chair to sign.
Ending Staff said the project would, if funded, include multiple ecologically minded treatment methods and also contribute to building Lake RCD’s capacity to manage forest-health projects elsewhere in the county.
