Fire Safe Council updates supervisors on fuel-break projects, mapping and maintenance; board OKs letters of support

Amanda Watson, coordinator of the Amador Fire Safe Council, told the Amador County Board of Supervisors the council has completed several large fuel-break projects, is developing a countywide maintenance and mapping strategy, and is seeking grant funding to sustain work already underway.

Watson said the council’s mission is “to improve the protection of Amador County residents, their properties from catastrophic wildfire through action, partnership, education, and outreach.” She told the board the council is entirely grant-funded and partners closely with Cal Fire, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), local fire agencies and private landowners.

The council described several near-complete projects: the Upper Rancheria fuel break (267 acres on private land and 36 acres on BLM ground), a River Pines treatment that has treated about 131 acres surrounding the town, and maintenance and expansion work on the Pine Acres fuel break (about 102 acres treated). Watson said the Amador County Forest Health Project has treated about 282 acres on a set of BLM-managed parcels and that a Crestview treatment (13 acres) used programmatic NEPA to allow targeted herbicide follow-up to improve treatment longevity.

Watson said ingress-and-egress work treated 66.5 miles of county roads and 11.5 miles of private roads in 2024; across funding sources the council reported about 127 miles of road treatments. She told the board that in 2024 the direct risk-reduction funding put on the ground totaled about $1.6 million and that landowners contributed roughly 34,655 volunteer hours, producing about $1.3 million of estimated match. The council reported total 2024 expenses of about $2.1 million, with roughly 81% going to contractors performing on-the-ground work and 11% to contracted staff and project management.

Watson said the council has 37 recognized Firewise communities in Amador County and helped seven communities achieve or renew recognition in 2024. She also described a planned update to the countywide Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP), with a target completion date in April 2026, and requested a countywide mapping tool to show fuel breaks and projects across multiple agencies for better long-term coordination.

Board members asked about federal funding delays and herbicide use. Watson said some federal notices of funding opportunity were paused earlier in the year but are moving again, and she confirmed the council has used programmatic NEPA on at least one site to permit targeted herbicide follow-up this year. She also noted maintenance is a significant ongoing need: “the maintenance of these fuel breaks, vegetation grows back,” she said, adding that the council is working on monitoring and a maintenance protocol and is exploring options to use Cal Fire crews for recurring maintenance work.

Supervisor Onetto moved to authorize the county to send letters of support for the Fire Safe Council’s listed grant applications; Vice Chairman Crew seconded. The motion passed 5-0.

The council requested continued coordination with the Resource Conservation District, the Ag Commissioner and BLM for invasive-species control and green-waste disposal, and staff said several funding applications are pending in the current grant cycle. Watson said the council will continue to seek federal and state funding for planned projects including Volcano Hills, Upper Jackson Gate and Thompson Ridge (the latter funded by BLM resources), and to finalize the CWPP and a countywide mapping system.

Next steps identified by the council include maintaining completed fuel breaks, pursuing funding for ingress/egress work, finishing the CWPP by April 2026 and continuing outreach and Firewise-community support.