RES 2026023 - Laserfiche WebLink

Sequoia Ecological Consulting,Inc. CaIVTP Project-Specific Analysis and Addendum7 Augustin Bernal Community Park Fuel Reduction C November 2025 Treatment types and activities described in the CaIVTP aim to mimic conditions that exist in a natural environment where natural fires would have occurred. Strategic fuel removal would concentrate on areas of high fuel concentrations and disrupt the horizontal and vertical continuity of fuel beds. Biological diversity in the area would be maintained by promoting conditions that favor native plant and animal species. Forest health would be improved through enhancing native, fire-resilient plant communities, primarily through ladder fuel and weed removal, opening space for native plants to return. Healthy mature trees and scrub dominating the canopy would be thinned out and retained, reducing new brush and understory growth while preserving the carbon sequestration function. Biomass would be strategically diminished in open grassy areas. In addition to the project treatment types and activities being consistent with the CaIVTP,the Project Proponent follows CAL FIRE's best management practices (BMPs),which include identifying and avoiding sensitive resources to ensure environmental protection when designing and constructing fuels reduction projects.The Diablo FireSafe Council compiled the "Community Wildfire Protection Plan Alameda County" (DFSC 2025). This document examines and describes fuels management strategies to avoid impacts to sensitive resources. Implementation of these BMP5, in combination with the CaIVTP's Specific Project Requirements (SPRs) and mitigation measures (MMs),would protect lives, property, and natural resources while implementing fuels reduction activities. PD 3.1:Treatment Types The proposed project would utilize two treatment types in combination to create fuel break and reduction for firefighting resources to contain or stop a fire:WUI fuel reduction and fuel break. Strategic placement of the WUI fuel break would be based upon the prevailing vegetation types, topographic characteristics, environmental considerations, and surrounding land uses. Fuels in the project area are primarily heavy loads of oak (Quercus spp.),coyote brush(Baccharis pilularis),sticky monkey flower(Diplacus aurantiacus),sage(Artemisia spp.), poison oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum), and grass: the general topography is steep with difficult access. Residential homes adjacent to the Project are primarily moderate to large in size (2,000 to 4,000 square feet)on moderate to large lots with densely intermixed vegetation. Low-income and multi-family housing are also prevalent along portions of the shaded fuel break. The placement of the Project considered downwind areas with an active fire history that currently have inadequate evacuation routes. In many areas, ingress and egress to portions of the impacted communities are limited to a single roadway. Existing access roads are typically steep, and driveways are long in many areas. Dead ends and few turnarounds further amplify the fire risk through delays in firefighting response and extended evacuation times. In some areas,water supply for fire suppression is also limited.These conditions impact both the evacuation of at- risk portions of the community and fire suppression response. Based on a risk analysis, this project would treat hazardous fuels in the communities at greatest risk to ensure the highest return-on-investment.The Project would use a "light touch" approach with an emphasis on ladder fuel reduction adjacent to existing fire trails and roads. This approach would minimize soil disturbance, maximize production rates, and limit the impact to special-status species of both flora and fauna.