Amid record season, California seeks new wildfire preventions

California legislative leaders will unite behind a new legislative push to strengthen wildfire prevention plans amid an active fire season that has already engulfed tens of thousands of acres across the state.

The blazing summer, which follows a relatively dry winter, has led to an above-average fire season, both in California and across the United States.

{mosads}The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or CAL FIRE, has already fought wildfires on 53,000 acres of state land, much higher than the 23,000 acre average for the same time period in recent years. The agency is in the middle of fighting a 44,000 acre fire in Yolo County, in the rural northern part of the state.

The National Interagency Fire Center, based in Boise, says more than 2.5 million acres have burned across the United States since January, higher than the 10-year average of about 2.3 million over the same period.

Gov. Jerry Brown (D) and Republican and Democratic legislative leaders said Monday they are forwarding new measures to a joint Assembly-Senate conference committee to cut the risk of future fires. The proposals include new funding for fire prevention, like removing vegetation that could serve as fuel.

The legislation would also speed determination of responsibility for wildfires and require utility companies that operate power lines to submit detailed preparedness plans. Those who are responsible for starting fires would be held accountable for their costs.

“Wildfires and extreme weather are more destructive than ever and that’s why we must take decisive action to protect the lives and property of the people of California,” the leaders said in a statement signed by Brown, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D), Senate President Toni Atkins (D), Senate Republican Leader Patricia Bates and Assembly Republican Leader Brian Dahle.

Brown has long warned of the effects of climate change and the extreme weather it brings. Drier summers and higher winds have created fire seasons in California that now extend virtually year-round. Last year, massive fires in four Northern California counties on Columbus Day claimed 15 lives and burned more than 115,000 acres, at an estimated cost in the billions of dollars.

Today, the U.S. Drought Monitor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln shows 85 percent of California is experiencing some level of drought. A year ago, just under a quarter of California was experiencing drought.

Wetter-than-usual conditions can also lead to a bad fire season. An unusually wet winter last year led to a robust crop of grasses and other fast-burning low-elevation fuels, speeding blazes near more urban areas instead of in remote forests.