Nevada County – Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has awarded Nevada County Office of Emergency Services a Hazard Mitigation grant for the Lower Deer Creek – Penn Valley Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project. This project will protect critical infrastructure, create safe ingress for first responders and egress for evacuating residents, and support watershed protection.
“During a wildfire, every second counts. By reducing hazardous fuels, we are not only increasing the time residents have to evacuate safely but also improving conditions for firefighters to defend lives and property,” said District 4 Supervisor, Sue Hoek.
The Project will reduce 107 acres of hazardous fuels around sanitation and water facilities, mitigate 726 acres of roadside vegetation, and reduce 178 acres of fuel loading in and around the Deer Creek Canyon.
“This project is a testament to community engagement,” said Emergency Services Director, Alex Keeble-Toll. “The project concept was envisioned by residents and OES was able to secure funding, but it is community participation that will make this project a success.”
Hazardous fuels reduction is a treatment where the vegetation is thinned by reducing understory and surface vegetation, thinning out dense tree stands, and raising tree canopies through the removal of lower branches. This process reduces wildfire spread, improves forest health, and creates a landscape that is easier for property owners to manage.
“This project represents the kind of community-driven land stewardship that builds long-term resilience,” said Briana Bacon, Executive Director of the Nevada County Resource Conservation District. “By protecting both people and natural resources, we’re supporting a healthier landscape and a safer future for the Penn Valley area.”
Lower Deer Creek-Penn Valley Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project Town Hall
The Lower Deer Creek-Penn Valley Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project Town Hall is an opportunity for residents to get an overview of the project, learn about the project timeline and have their questions answered. The Town Hall will take place on July 23 from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at the Williams Ranch Elementary School in the gymnasium, 14804 Pleasant Valley Rd, Penn Valley CA, 95946.
Lower Deer Creek-Penn Valley Residents
The Nevada County Office of Emergency Services is looking to coordinate fuel reduction on your property as part of the Lower Deer Creek – Penn Valley Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project. Contractors will be working in your area within the coming months, conducting the botanical, wildlife, and cultural surveys needed to satisfy environmental compliance and developing the treatment prescriptions for the hazardous fuels, reduction activities.
For these planning steps to take place and to implement fuels reduction on private property, OES is required to obtain Right-of-Entry (ROE) permits from participating landowners. This ROE is for the surveys necessary for Environmental Compliance and for Treatment Design to be developed. Once surveys and treatment design are complete, landowners will receive follow-up communication with a second ROE outlining specific vegetation treatments that have been prescribed for their parcel.
If you received an ROE form in the mail and have not yet returned it, please do so as soon as possible to ensure timely surveys and treatment design. To see if you’re located in the treatment area visit the Lower Deer Creek webpage to use the address look-up tool.
For more project information visit ReadyNevadaCounty.org/LowerDeerCreek
About the Nevada County Office of Emergency Services (OES)
OES works under the Emergency Preparedness Board Objective, leading the community in all hazards planning, preparedness, response, and recovery with a focus on wildfire. OES focuses on improving county-wide evacuation routes and safety, continuing to strengthen early alert and critical communication systems, and working with residents and community partners in emergency preparedness, defensible space, home hardening, green waste disposal, and fire- safe land stewardship. We are all in this together. Learn more about OES at: ReadyNevadaCounty.org.