Aerial hydromulching for many of the foothill areas burned during the Gap Fire has been completed ahead of schedule and on budget, Santa Barbara County Public Works Department officials announced. The aerial flights by six planes and a helicopter were completed Friday.

The aerial hydromulching was part of the ongoing Gap Fire Watershed Emergency Response Plan in preparation for the possible flood and mud that could come out of the burn areas.

“We want to thank our residents for their patience while the aerial hydromulching was completed,” Public Works Director Scott McGolpin said. “The pilots did an outstanding job to finish their work quickly and efficiently.”

The county’s portion of the aerial hydromulching work for about 1,000 acres began Oct. 7 and followed completion of the U.S. Forest Service work that covered about 1,500 acres. In July, the Gap Fire burned about 9,400 acres, much of it in very steep, inaccessible terrain in the Santa Ynez Mountains above Goleta.

During the county’s aerial operations, about 2,137 individual flights were completed, including 1,612 by the six, fixed-wing aircraft and 525 by the helicopter. County officials used the same contractor, Aerotech Inc., that helped treat the national forest lands. The fixed-wing craft, Air Tractor Turbine AT-802s, operated out of the Santa Barbara Airport. The large Erickson Sky Crane helicopter flew from a temporary base on Rancho San Fernando Rey off Paradise Road.

In addition to the aerial hydromulching, the county has completed several other key watershed treatment projects, including:

» About 16 miles of streams and creeks have been cleared and snagged, including work at Tecolote, Winchester, Elwood, Glen Annie / Tecolotito, Carneros, San Pedro, Las Vegas, Fremont and San Jose creeks.

» Crews have built five debris racks in areas identified as prone to high run-off sites to intercept debris that can block culverts and bridges downstream along Elwood, Glen Annie, Carneros, San Pedro and Las Vegas creeks.

» Four major sediment basins along the Goleta Slough system near the airport have been dredged and cleared to allow for maximum capacity, including sediment basins for Tecolotito, Carneros, San Pedro and San Jose creeks.

» Installation of three temporary rain gauges in the burned watersheds.

» Installation of a new stream flow gauge on San Pedro Creek.

» Establishing a free Sand Bag Station at County Fire Station No. 14 on Los Carneros Road.

» Signing of a countywide Mutual Aid Public Works Agreement with all city and county public works departments in the event of emergencies or disasters.

Meanwhile, work continues on a culvert improvement project on Fremont Creek, as well as on emergency K-rail barriers on Carneros Creek and San Pedro Creek. County officials estimate this work will be completed by the end of October.

Much of this work is funded by the Emergency Watershed Protection Program through the Natural Resources Conservation Service, a sister Agency to the U.S. Forest Service under the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The county’s portion of the hydromulching cost about $3.2 million. Of that, about 75 percent of the total, or about $2.4 million, is being paid by the NRCS. The balance is being paid with a combination of funds, including contributions of $70,000 each from the cities of Goleta and Santa Barbara. The state of California is expected to contribute additional funding, with the county making up the difference.

In other flood control work, the county is strengthening the support structure for the Goleta Beach bridge in anticipation of heavy truck traffic this winter. As in past flood years, sediments deposited at the airport are hauled to Goleta Beach for rapid disposal of sediments. The sediment dispersal plan has two main goals to help nourish Goleta Beach while slowing erosion at the beach.

County officials continue to remind residents who live below or near the Gap Fire Burn Area to consider buying flood insurance. It takes 30 days for a flood insurance policy to take effect from original date of purchase.

Residents and business owners also should have emergency preparedness plans and disaster recovery plans in place. All families should have enough emergency food, water, shelter options, clothing and medicine for each member of their household, including their pets and livestock, to last at least three days up to one week. In addition, emergency kits — for homes and automobiles — should include a battery operated radio, extra batteries, flashlight and first aid kit.

In the event of a large emergency or disaster, the county will work with all bona fide news organizations to distribute emergency public information. The county’s “Stations of Choice” for emergency news include the following AM stations — KTMS-990; KZSB-1290; KUHL-1410; KINF-1440, plus the San Marcos Pass Radio Station 1040 — and the following FM stations — KCSB-91.9; KSYV-96.7; KTYD-99.9; KSBL-101.7 and KRAZ-105.9. In addition, the Spanish language FM stations KSPE-94.5 and KIST-107.7 are also designated “Stations of Choice” in the cooperative agreement with the county.

Click here for more information regarding the emergency preparedness for the Gap Fire Burn Area. Click here for emergency preparedness tips. Click here for information on Los Padres National Forest.

William Boyer is communications director for Santa Barbara County.