SACRAMENTO – Following Governor Newsom’s emergency proclamation on wildfire-prone forests last March, state agencies have coordinated to cut red tape and fast-track critical wildfire safety projects across the state, all while maintaining vital environmental safeguards. Over 300 projects across nearly 57,000 acres have been approved in the state in just 300 days. Through this streamlined process, projects are now being approved in as little as 30 days, saving a year or more of review and red tape for more complicated projects.

Following a Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force’s Sierra Nevada Regional meeting on March 19, the Task Force shared an update on California’s progress to streamline permitting for wildfire projects, which has enabled a diversity of agencies, tribes, and organizations to move faster than ever before to deliver real results.

Over 300 projects across nearly 57,000 acres, as illustrated on the Task Force’s Project Streamlining webpage, have been approved all over the state. State and federal agencies, tribes, resource conservation districts, fire safe councils, private landowners and more have benefited from this streamlined permitting process. Fast-tracked projects are protecting vulnerable communities, improving defensible space, creating evacuation routes, and restoring ecosystems.