To: Honorable Mayor and Members of City Council
From: Zach Curren, Fire Chief
Prepared By: Shuree Egloff, Principal Management Analyst
TITLE:
Title
Adopt the City of Napa Community Wildfire Protection Plan (“CWPP”)
LABEL
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommendation
Adopt a resolution adopting the City of Napa Community Wildfire Protection Plan and determining that the actions authorized by this Resolution are exempt from CEQA.
Body
DISCUSSION:
The Fire Department, in partnership with Napa County Resource Conservation District (Napa RCD), secured funding through CAL FIRE’s Fire Prevention Program and California Climate Investments to develop the City of Napa Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). Napa RCD and the City worked closely with fire and emergency management agencies, public health officials, land managers, and community organizations to create this stakeholder-driven plan.
The CWPP provides a framework for reducing wildfire risk through coordinated actions such as vegetation management, public education, emergency preparedness, and strategic investment in wildfire resilience. The need for action is urgent: more than 65% of Napa County has burned in the past seven years, resulting in billions of dollars in damage and the loss of thousands of structures. Recent urban wildfire disasters in communities such as Altadena, Santa Rosa, and Lahaina underscore the potential for similar events to affect the City of Napa.
The CWPP is intended to guide efforts to reduce both the likelihood and impacts of wildfire through collaboration among residents, agencies, and community partners. Its goals are to increase awareness of wildfire risk, reduce ignitions and hazards, strengthen community preparedness, protect lives and property, and support implementation of priority mitigation projects through coordinated planning and funding opportunities.
To achieve these goals, the CWPP identifies policies and actions that enhance wildfire resilience, including protecting critical infrastructure; improving emergency access, transportation networks, and communications; expanding public education and outreach; identifying opportunities for large-scale fuel reduction projects; addressing public health impacts; strengthening evacuation preparedness and assistance; and empowering residents to take an active role in reducing wildfire risk.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS:
No direct fiscal impact.
CEQA:
The Fire Chief recommends that the City Council determine that the Recommended Action is exempt from CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15262 (Feasibility and Planning Studies) and Section 15061(b)(3) (common sense exemption) because it can be seen with certainty that the adoption of the CWPP will not have a significant effect on the environment as the CWPP is a planning study which informs the City of hazard vulnerabilities and possible future actions to mitigate risks, and adoption of the CWPP is not a commitment to any future action, nor is it a decision to approve, adopt, or fund any of the potential mitigation actions identified in the CWPP.
DOCUMENTS ATTACHED:
ATCH 1 - Resolution
EX A - Community Wildfire Protection Plan
NOTIFICATION:
None