Santa Barbara County Fire Department (SBCFD) has received a grant for the Santa Barbara Vegetation Management Program (VMP) and Ignition Prevention Project, where SBCFD will serve as the lead agency.
Funding for the initiative is provided by CAL FIRE’s Wildfire Prevention Grants Program. The multi-year effort is funded as part of the state’s Wildfire and ForestResilience Strategy, in part with Cap-and-Trade auction proceeds administered by the California Climate Investments (CCI) Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.
The project aims to enhance the safety and resilience of the Santa Ynez Valley and various communities in the county’s front country, areas with a history of large wildland fires, including the 2007 Zaca, 2017 Thomas, 2021 Alisal, and 2024 Lake fires.
“I am proud of this state investment utilizing a proactive process that can help prevent large-scale wildfires and alleviate excess fuels that can lead to loss of life and property,” said state Senate President Elect Monique Limón.
“These projects are just one of the many ways the state is proactively working with our communities and first responders to cut back excess fire fuels and create defensible space around critical infrastructure in fire-prone areas.”
“As a role model department in California, we are advancing proactive wildfire prevention measures to safeguard lives, property, and communities,” said Fire Chief Mark Hartwig.
Continuing efforts to create a network of reduced fuel zones through the use of prescribed
fire, agricultural fuel breaks, and various vegetation treatments throughout the Los Alamos and Santa Ynez Valleys, the program proposes some 3,113 acres of prescribed fire and roadside fuel reduction treatments in the State Responsibility Area.
The initial focus in fall 2025 is the implementation of a 1,819-acre prescribed fire project within the Sedgwick Preserve. Remaining funds will be used to treat or maintain projects within the grant’s scope.
“This project represents a proactive investment in the safety of our residents, the protection of our natural landscapes, and the resilience of our rural communities,” said Third District Supervisor Joan Hartmann.
“By reducing hazardous fuels and treating thousand of acres, we are taking meaningful steps to reduce wildfire risk and safeguard both people and place,” she said.
“I’m proud the State of California recognizes the great fire prevention work being done
here and continues to invest state resources in Santa Barbara County,” said Assemblymember Gregg Hart.
“This project, funded through California Climate Investments, turns dollars from polluting activities into local projects that strengthen our climate resilience,” Hart said. “Thank you to our county firefighters for leading the way in reducing risks in our most fire-prone communities.”
The initiative complements the Fire Department’s Unit Fire Plan, the Lompoc Valley
Phase II Project, and the recently completed Spaulding-Midland Prescribed Fire Project,
also funded by CAL FIRE’s Wildfire Prevention Grants Program.
“These treatments are essential to public and firefighter safety, public egress, and emergency access. Moreover, the project will contribute to reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions by limiting the potential for large-scale wildfires.
The total grant funds awarded for the Santa Barbara Vegetation Management Program (VMP) and Ignition Prevention Project are $990,000.