LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a two-phase debris management and removal plan as part of the county's approach to the Rocky fire recovery effort.
Lake County Office of Emergency Services Manager Marisa Chilafoe and Environmental Health Director Ray Ruminski presented the plan to the board.
At a special meeting last week county staff had indicated that up to $5 million in funding from the state could be available to completely pay for the comprehensive cleanup, with no cost to landowners.
Chilafoe said they have been working to prepare a process for debris management to meet health and safety and environmental standards. “It's a pretty complex process.”
Ruminski said the cleanup would apply to structures that had been destroyed by the fire.
He said the first step in the process would include a general sweep of fire-damaged areas, including an evaluation and survey, which would involve the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, a branch of the California Environmental Protection Agency.
The Department of Toxic Substance Control's role in the first step will be to bring in a contractor. Ruminski said they will visit each property, look for household chemicals, propane tanks or other hazardous items, and conduct a survey for asbestos.
He said that evaluation process of burned structures is expected to take a little more than a week.
The second step is a very detailed and comprehensive program, Ruminski said, in which California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, or CalRecycle – another branch of the California Environmental Protection Agency – will be the state partner.
That agency will take information from the first evaluation sweep, and do lab testing to analyze for asbestos and other items, he said.
“The principal hazard here is airborne,” said Ruminski.
CalRecycle will look at what materials can be recycled and worked into the local waste stream, and what needs to be separated out for specialized disposal.
With both steps, Ruminski said the goal will be to obtain written permission from property owners, who also can be present during the cleanup as long as they aren't in the way and don't cause safety hazards.
Board Chair Anthony Farrington asked if local contractors with the proper expertise can be used in the cleanup process.
“We can evaluate that,” Ruminski said, explaining they were working up a role for local businesses. He said the state has prequalified contractors it works with on such projects.
Public Services Director Caroline Chavez is working with local waste haulers on participating in the cleanup and there also will be a role for local water trucks, as dust control will be needed, Ruminski said. “We're going to consider everything.”
Supervisor Jim Comstock asked if homeowners' insurance can cover part of the costs. Chilafoe said yes, although sometimes such cleanup usually is more than insurance will cover.
Social Services Director Carol Huchingson, who is the county's representative on the Napa-Lake Workforce Investment Board, said she was notified that the Workforce Investment Board can access national emergency funds to create a special crew to help with cleanup.
However, board members raised issues with safety and the level of training needed, and Ruminski said the cleanup areas would be considered hazardous waste sites.
The vote to approve the debris removal plan was 4-0, with Supervisor Jeff Smith absent from the meeting.
Another item that had been on the board's agenda, a resolution designating the county departments that will act as the agents for the California Disaster Assistance Act funding needed for the Rocky fire cleanup, was rescheduled to 9:45 a.m. Aug. 25.
County Administrative Officer Matt Perry asked for the delay because his office still hadn't received the final word from the California Office of Emergency Services that the county has been awarded the funding.
“We're still hearing some positive news but no confirmation,” he said.
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