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California Streamlines Process for Forest, Vegetation Management Permits

On the heels of a devastating wildfire in Southern California, the state is simplifying the process to obtain forest and vegetation management permits.

A pine tree silhouetted against a large wildfire.
The state has launched a new online process to speed up the permitting process around forest and vegetation management projects.

According to a press release issued by Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office Thursday, the new process will shorten the project approval cycle from more than a year for complex projects to as little as 30 days.

The overarching goal here is to better prepare for and defend against the sorts of catastrophic wildfire activity the state is accustomed to. Most recently, a wildfire wiped out large swaths of Los Angeles, killing at least 29 and displacing thousands.

“This new streamlined process, which builds on historic investments and nation-leading actions to confront catastrophic wildfires, cuts red tape to fast-track more wildfire projects than ever before," Newsom said in the press release.

As part of this effort, a new Statewide Fuels Reduction Environmental Protection Plan has been developed to safeguard water and air quality, tribal cultural resources and the habitats of “special-status species.”

The state has also created a Wildfire and Landscape Resilience Interagency Treatment Dashboard to track the progress of this work.

More information about the project is available here.