By Sam Richards

Staff writer

Friday, June 13 (3:00 p.m.): Though a pair of state fire-prevention laws are thus far short on specifics about clearing vegetation around buildings and elsewhere and turf watering, Jeroen Wright is taking a proactive approach to getting Rossmoor Walnut Creek ready for the new rules when they come.

But being proactive, he stressed, doesn’t mean overreacting.

“We know we want to reduce flammable mulches, but regulations haven’t been set yet,” said Wright, Rossmoor’s director of Mutual operations, about AB 3074. Though this became law in January 2021, as of April it was still lacking specific enforceable requirements. “We don’t want to put the cart before the horse … We don’t want to require drastic measures if they aren’t needed.”

Such measures, he said, could include 100% plant removal in “Zone Zero,” a five-foot buffer zone around structures in fire hazard severity zones.

Still, Wright wants the Rossmoor community to be aware of what requirements could come down in the next several months. He has been showing a presentation to Mutual boards recently, and to the Mutual Presidents’ Forum, explaining AB 3074 as it stands now. Gov. Gavin Newsom in February signed an executive order directing the state Board of Forestry to get moving on specific regulations for “Zone Zero.”

Wright’s presentation has included information about California’s “fire hazard severity zones,” as established by CalFire. In Rossmoor, the upper eastern and southwestern edges are in the “high” severity zones, while most of the northwestern reaches of Rossmoor (and a band surrounding most parts of the valley) are in the “moderate” severity zones. Many of the lower parts of the valley fall within zones of least concern.

Much of the Moraga area southwest of Rossmoor is within a “very high” severity zone, areas deemed at highest risk. The Moraga area recently hosted work on a “shaded fuel break,” clearing an entire zone of excess vegetation and dry fuels; similar work has been done in the hills surrounding Rossmoor over the past few years.

AB 3074 establishes a “Zone Zero,” a five-foot buffer around structures in fire hazard severity zones. These zones require restrictions on combustible materials within five feet of structures. Reducing or eliminating vegetation near buildings, and wooden structures like fences and trellises that can also enable flames to spread, would make those structures less susceptible to burning embers taken by winds from grass or forest fires. Enforcement is expected to occur in 2025 for new construction and 2026 for existing structures.

The state fire marshal will have to approve implementation of any requirements of landowners. It is possible that some, or all, vegetation would have to be eradicated from “zone zero,” and it’s expected that will be determined sometime in late 2025 or early 2026, Wright said.

“As of right now, there are no regulations that vegetation in the affected areas must be removed,” Wright said.

Mutuals are free to take stricter measures, however. Kris Carey, a member of Mutual 55’s board, said his Mutual started doing “Zone Zero”-type work last year, removing vegetation and other fire-hazard materials from next to buildings.

“It’s up to each Mutual, based on budget constraints, how fast they want to move ahead,” said Carey, a member of Rossmoor’s Firewise USA committee working to help make Rossmoor more resistant to wildfires. For Mutual 55, Carey said, doing this work was a “no-brainer.”

“It is common sense,” Carey said. “What do you need to have proven to you?”

Wright said he and Rossmoor Walnut Creek staff will work with individual Mutuals on various wildfire safety measures if asked, but that when these regulations’ specifics are eventually spelled out, all Mutuals will have to comply with them.

Another law still awaiting specifics is AB 1572, signed in 2023, that restricts the use of potable water for irrigating “non-functional” turf on commercial, industrial, institutional and multifamily residential properties. The State Water Resources Control Board is responsible for developing regulations and overseeing compliance, with a deadline for full implementation by 2027.

Wright said a precise definition of “non-functional turf” will be needed before ZAB 1572 can be fully enforced.

Discussion of Firewise USA recommendations in Rossmoor can be found by going to https://tinyurl.com/24w9p5c4