The California Conservation Corps (CCC) awarded California Climate Investment funds to several Training and Workforce Development Program projects aimed at increasing wildfire resilience in some of the highest risk communities across the state. These projects, completed just in the past two years, highlight CCC’s commitment to using California Climate Investments funding to protect residents living in the wildland urban interface, educate Corpsmembers on the importance of reducing fire fuels in their communities, and prepare young adults for their future careers.
Fuel reduction projects are an invaluable tool to combat devastating wildfires. As a youth workforce development program, the CCC provides young adults hands-on experience reducing the threat of wildfire by removing dead, dying, and overgrown vegetation. Corpsmembers gain significant work experience, and the expertise needed to pursue careers in wildland firefighting, forestry, and fuels management.
Chico Corpsmembers based at the CCC Chico Center worked 2,709 hours improving the fire resiliency of Paradise Recreation and Park District, an area devastated by the 2018 Camp Fire. Crews treated 20.5 acres at Billie Park, Lakeridge Park, Noble Park, and Oak Creek Park in the Town of Paradise . The cost of this fuels reduction project totaled $108,744, and the work spanned from October 2023 to April 2024. The benefits of the project will be substantial and long-lasting, increasing the area’s resilience to future wildfire and helping reduce fire activity around the community.
“Our District is grateful to have been the beneficiary of these GGRF funds to support the project and we look forward to working with the CCC Chico Center crews on future projects that support the health, safety, and well-being of the residents we serve,” said District Manager Daniel Efseaff.
The work holds deep meaning for Chico Corpsmembers who grew up in and around the area. Many of the young adults completing this project were in elementary school at the time of the Camp Fire and understand personally the impact that severe wildfires can have on communities like Paradise.
Paradise’s Lakeridge Park prior to CCC’s fuel reduction project.
CCC Corpsmembers cleared a hillside within Paradise’s Lakeridge Park to protect nearby neighborhoods from wildfire.
Corpsmembers also conducted fuel reduction projects along the shore of Lake Tahoe, removing flammable vegetation to reduce area’s vulnerability to severe wildfire. The CCC Tahoe Center and California State Parks Sierra District have partnered for years to reduce the threat of wildfire on the western shores of Lake Tahoe. In July 2023, Corpsmembers completed Phases 4 and 5 of their fuels reduction project in Ed Z’berg Sugar Pine Point State Park.
The project spanned 20 acres and focused on an area of the park just west of Highway 89 on South Fire Road. Tahoe-based Corpsmembers completed 4,388 hours cutting and removing dead and downed trees from the area. In total, the project cost $170,384 in California Climate Investments funding.
“The purpose of the project is to implement forest thinning and wildfire fuel hazard reduction within the Park,” said Sierra District Natural Resources Manager Rich Adams. “Completed work included felled marked trees, removal of woody surface fuels, stacked debris piles, and crews learned about forest stewarding and local ecology.”
Work in and around Sugar Pine Point remains a top priority for California State Parks and future work to mitigate the impacts of wildfire remain likely with CCC crews keeping the area safer from wildfire.
A CCC Corpsmember sits in front of completed thinning work in Sugar Pine Point State Park.
CCC Tahoe Corpsmembers created burn piles for clearance at a later date during Phase 5 of the Sugar Pine Point State Park fuel reduction project.
In Los Angeles County, the CCC’s Los Angeles and Pomona Centers combined to complete 11,000 hours of work removing dead brush and non-native vegetation to create a fuel break in Arcadia. Corpsmembers limbed trees and chipped vegetation behind homes along Canyon Road. A total of 53 acres were treated and 26 trees were removed. At a cost of $423,000, with matching funds from the City of Arcadia (34.173649, -118.027496), the work was completed between January and March 2023.
During this project, Corpsmembers learned the importance of creating defensible space by keeping vegetation away from homes and properties. Corpsmembers also gained valuable experience and skills that later helped them secure jobs.
Two CCC Los Angeles Corpsmembers work together to cut up brush and excess vegetation and remove it from the canyon behind homes in Arcadia.
CCC Pomona Corpsmembers work alongside Canyon Road in Arcadia to reduce potential fire fuel and improve visibility in and out of the neighborhood.
“The CCC provided me with the exposure and practical experience to perform the duties that my job requires,” said Los Angeles Corpsmember Sunny Caim. After nearly two years in the CCC, Caim was hired by California State Parks as a senior maintenance aide. “The CCC definitely built up my skillset and widened my network. It also definitely helped me gain more self confidence and assurance of my capabilities.”
While the CCC offers valuable experience for individual career growth and higher education, Corpsmembers also feel rewarded by their collective contribution to the safety and wellbeing of neighborhoods and communities.
“The possibility of a fire breaking out is extremely scary,” Caim said. “Us being here to help push back the brush and stop fires from spreading any further are the little things adding up to a bigger picture. It allows these folks who live here safe passage to their homes.”