Depending on who you talk to, the proposed new defensible space rules for “Zone Zero” will help save your home with a very high fire hazard severity zone. Or it will help destroy most of the tree canopy in cities in Southern California without actually stopping the type of wild fire that destroyed Altadena, the Pacific Pallisad and Malibou earlier this year.
In any case, the state Forestry Commission may hear comments during a public meeting at the Pasadena Convention Center from 10:30am to 5pm. The committee presents proposed rules for creating a “fire-protectable space” or “resistant zone” within five feet of a building in a very high fire hazard severity zone protected by city and county firefighters and all areas protected by state firefighters. These 5-foot-wide buffers are now widely known as “zone zeros.”
The Forestry and Fire Prevention Committee was initially tasked with creating certain Zone Zero Regulations in 2020 after the legislature passed.
However, on February 6, in the wake of the devastating Eaton and Palisade fire, Gov. Gavin Newsom gave the committee members until December 31st, finalizing restrictions.
The main points released in August are as follows:
- “Landscape material that can be fired by embers is not permitted within Zone Zero” (i.e. within 5 feet of the structure). “This includes, but is not limited to, grasses, ornaments or native plants, shrubs, fallen leaves and tree needles, weeds, flammable mulch containing bark and wooden chips.”
- According to the proposed rules, trees within Zone Zero can be maintained as long as dead and dying branches have been removed and all living tree branches are 5 feet above the roof, away from the sides of the structure, and 10 feet away from the chimney or stove pipe.
- Two exemptions are listed. The initial allow potted plants less than 18 inches tall in non-fire containers of 5 gallons or less, and “not located directly in front of windows, glass doors, or ventilated, above or in front of the air.”
- The second exemption is “a single specimen of trees that are well guided and maintained to effectively manage fuel and fuel ladders.” “The committee is still working to define the exemption more specifically, said Tony Andersen, executive officer of the board. For example, the committee could clarify the exemption to read that well-propelled trees (i.e. trees whose branches are five feet apart from the roof or walls) are permitted and that allow fire to be spread, unless the canopy that serves as fuel ladders are overlapped, he said.
- The roof and rain grooves must avoid needles and leaves. “The areas under decks, balconies and stairs must be free of nutrients and flammable items.”
- Other proposed Zone Zero rules prohibit “flammable items that are likely to be fired by embers.” A flammable gate cannot be directly adjacent to or connected to a building or structure. A fence directly connected to a building or structure must have a 5-foot non-flammable span at the time of attachment, and new flammable fences or connected decks within 5 feet of the building or structure will not be permitted after the rules are enforced.
- Zone Zero requirements will come into effect within three years of existing buildings, soon after approval of all new constructions.
- In areas protected by city, county, or state firefighters, jurisdictions may “choose to develop alternative practices of zone zero compliance that take into account regional variations, as long as the jurisdictions determine that the local jurisdictions’ powers “provide practical effects substantially similar to those described in the regulations.” Andersen said he was not sure whether the committee would make “substantially similar” language even more clear, but “the full draft rules are still being considered and discussed.”
Advocates argue that the proposed regulations are necessary to keep communities safe, given the recent rise in southern California wildfires.
“As a society, we have seen the fire and fuel issue as someone else’s problem. We have been completely dependent on firefighters to save our home,” Balachovich said. “But does the usual business protect us?
“We have lost 57,000 structures in the state over the past decade. Over the past decade, 200 people have been killed in wildfires and one has been burned in seven acres in the state,” she said. “It takes time for people to understand the new changing environment we live in, but what these Zone-Zero Regs do is give them the opportunity to better understand what is constructed as fuel that could pose a risk to their homes and families.
Varachovich said the rule production has experienced many revisions and food stalls, and the board said the committee sifted through hours of testimony, dozens of studies and hundreds of comments.
Opponents say the rules are driven by insurers seeking to limit exposure and do not consider studies showing that urban fires spread from home to home rather than plants, and many irrigated trees and other plants can actually protect the structure from fire. In fact, Valachovic points out that insurance company lobbyists and researchers frequently contribute to testimony about the proposal, and is strongly insisting on removing all combustible materials near the home.
Furthermore, areas in extremely high fire hazard severity zones such as Silver Lake, Beechwood Canyon and Eagle Rock can see major losses of green as they have trees and other landscaping within five feet of buildings and structures, and are built close to small lots.
“We’re a Community Forest Advisory Committee member for Los Angeles,” said Cyndi Hubach, a member of the City of Los Angeles Community Forest Advisory Committee. Habach, who lives in Silver Lake, wrote that he outlined the proposed regulatory issues and what the organization thinks should change.
Essentially, (approved by the CFAC on September 4th) claims that reducing irrigated healthy vegetation around the home will result in more problems than it would be solved by eliminating shade, increasing the risk of erosion and destroying habitat. The report recommends that regulations move away from “all approaches in one size”, allowing for an appeal process, and is well-poured and maintained with protected native trees and shrubs, historical and heritage trees, as well as “healthy, hydrated, well-maintained vegetation… less likely to be fired by embers.”
The state does a poor job of revealing the word about these regulations, Hubach said. “Most people don’t know this is coming. When they know the (suggested rules), they don’t think they’ll make them safer.
Opposition has swelled around Southern California this summer as words spread about the proposed regulations. In a recent online talk, he is an environmental scientist and former president of the Los Angeles Audubon Society.
In his speech, Longcore agrees with Varachovic that certain parts of the proposed regulations make no sense, such as removing dead leaves from wood fences and roofs connected to buildings and pine needles. “However, we need to require healthy living vegetation to be acceptable if it is unlikely to catch embers. So plants that accumulate dead trees, such as juniper and Cypress trees, are constantly building up dead material.”
Longcore also said it is unclear how the proposed regulations will be enforced and what types of penalties will apply to those who do not comply.
“The Forestry and the Fire Prevention Committee itself are not responsible for enforcement,” Andersen wrote in an email. “But the board understands that zone 0 will be enforced like s.”
Former state fire service suben Ruben Grujarba has similar concerns about enforcement given that inspectors are already receiving excess tax. Grijalva opposes what is called the “all-purpose approach” of proposed regulations, as he does not recognize the difference between houses built before 2008 and houses built afterwards. The new home must comply with changes that helped implement it in Chapter 7A of California Building Codes. These include materials that are resistant to ignition for roofs and decks, dual-pane glass for windows, and dual-pane glass for Confucius, which prevents remaining hanging.
Grijalva is currently working with large developers to make the Master Plan community, with thousands of residential properties, such as Rancho Mission Viejo on the hill above San Juan Capistrano, as fire resistant as possible, as well as the aesthetic and cooling benefits of trees such as Oaks and Cicamer.
Members of the State Forestry and Fire Protection Zone 0 Advisory Committee will also speak at the Information Town Hall Meeting, September 17, from 5:30 to 7:30pm at Ventura County Fire Department in Newbury Park. Jeff Gorrell, Ventura County superintendent, organizer of the event.
The next day, September 18th, anyone can listen to the public meeting of the Forestry and Fire Prevention Committee, but public comments could be limited to those who appear in person, as a huge number of people are expected to speak.
This could be the committee’s first public meeting in Southern California, as it will discuss comments received on September 18 at its regular meeting in Sacramento on September 22, and decide whether to further adjust the proposed rules or forward them to the full committee for consideration.
