News
INCLINE VILLAGE, Nev. — A polite suggestion from local fire districts.
That's all defensible space was for years in the Tahoe basin — clear your property of pine needles, dead or unhealthy trees and highly flammable brush, because we're asking you to. Well, not anymore.
In the same week the California side of the North Shore started to enforce defensible space — following up inspections with citations and fees of up to $500 for homeowners who fail to comply — Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons Monday signed legislation requiring property owners in the Lake Tahoe Basin to maintain defensible space to reduce the spread of wildfires.
Gibbons said the measure — Senate Bill 94— was a product of the bi-state fire commission formed after the 2007 Angora fire, which destroyed more than 250 homes in South Lake Tahoe.
“It will enable homeowners to better prepare for catastrophic wildfires that occur in our forests — especially in the urban interface,” Gibbons said.
The bill mandates defensible space and gives fire districts the ability to enforce that mandate — as the North Tahoe Fire Protection District is doing with a fine system which punishes owners, mainly in the Cedar Flat and Agate Bay areas.
In Nevada, North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District Chief Michael Brown said giving that power to the state was important because it puts teeth in the law small local jurisdictions haven't had the ability to enforce.
“The biggest thing is we've got to make some property owners take care of their property,” Brown said.
He said the law applies to both public and private property, including state lands and commercial buildings.
Brown said he doesn't yet know if homeowners would be fined for a failure to comply, adding he hopes it doesn't come to that.
“Most property owners have been very compliant to requests for fuels reduction,” Brown said.
Dale Smith, chair of the NLTFPD's board of directors, said he sees the law as useful in Incline Village and Crystal Bay.
“I think we'll certainly benefit from it,” Smith said. “In the past if we had identified a high-risk site — we had no mechanism to force anyone to clean it up.”
Residents interested in setting up a defensible space evaluation can call NLTFPD at (775) 831-0351.
Bonanza News Service reporter Geoff Dornan also contributed to this report.
That's all defensible space was for years in the Tahoe basin — clear your property of pine needles, dead or unhealthy trees and highly flammable brush, because we're asking you to. Well, not anymore.
In the same week the California side of the North Shore started to enforce defensible space — following up inspections with citations and fees of up to $500 for homeowners who fail to comply — Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons Monday signed legislation requiring property owners in the Lake Tahoe Basin to maintain defensible space to reduce the spread of wildfires.
Gibbons said the measure — Senate Bill 94— was a product of the bi-state fire commission formed after the 2007 Angora fire, which destroyed more than 250 homes in South Lake Tahoe.
“It will enable homeowners to better prepare for catastrophic wildfires that occur in our forests — especially in the urban interface,” Gibbons said.
The bill mandates defensible space and gives fire districts the ability to enforce that mandate — as the North Tahoe Fire Protection District is doing with a fine system which punishes owners, mainly in the Cedar Flat and Agate Bay areas.
In Nevada, North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District Chief Michael Brown said giving that power to the state was important because it puts teeth in the law small local jurisdictions haven't had the ability to enforce.
“The biggest thing is we've got to make some property owners take care of their property,” Brown said.
He said the law applies to both public and private property, including state lands and commercial buildings.
Brown said he doesn't yet know if homeowners would be fined for a failure to comply, adding he hopes it doesn't come to that.
“Most property owners have been very compliant to requests for fuels reduction,” Brown said.
Dale Smith, chair of the NLTFPD's board of directors, said he sees the law as useful in Incline Village and Crystal Bay.
“I think we'll certainly benefit from it,” Smith said. “In the past if we had identified a high-risk site — we had no mechanism to force anyone to clean it up.”
Residents interested in setting up a defensible space evaluation can call NLTFPD at (775) 831-0351.
Bonanza News Service reporter Geoff Dornan also contributed to this report.
