Opinion: The Cost of Neglect (Camp Fire)

Territorial Dispatch (Yuba County) ^ | Nov 19, 2018 | Lou Binninger

[kingu]

Looney Governor Jerry Brown blamed the rash of apocalyptic-level forest fires on Global Warming deniers. His nonsensical and rash comments will not be missed.

Many will remember him for endangering Californians by ignoring the infrastructure needs of the state. Oroville Dam’s maintenance had been slipshod since its completion in 1968. Flakey inspections by state agencies risked the lives of hundreds of thousands of North State dwellers during the heavy rains and spillway collapse in February 2017.

The failure will cost taxpayers more than $1 billion to repair. No one has estimated the hundreds of millions it cost 180,000 people to evacuate and lose business and employment income.

Also in February 2017 the 315 foot Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge collapsed on Hwy 1 near Big Sur cutting off traffic and commerce along the North Coast. The new span took $21.7 million to install but thankfully the work was completed in just 8 months. Many of the state’s cumbersome rules were waived to perform the removal and rebuild. Typically, the state would take years to complete such a project.

[kingu]

"Ironically, on July 1, 2013 a $152.33 additional “fire tax” was levied per building on over 800,000 rural property owners for fuel reduction activities to lessen the risk of wildfire to communities and evacuation routes. Other activities included defensible space inspections, fire prevention engineering, emergency evacuation planning, fire prevention education, fire hazard severity mapping, implementation of the State and local Fire Plans and fire-related law enforcement activities such as arson investigation. That was the pitch."

Just like the newest gas tax will be for the roads, until someone's not looking, then it'll be building more homes for illegals and drug users.

[HiTech RedNeck]

An increased logging initiative ought to make global warmists happy. The carbon stays in the lumber, rather than going up in smoke.

[Seaplaner]

He arrogantly directed the flagrant diverting of billions in maintenance dollars from caring for taxpayers’ safety and transportation needs to freebies for illegals. In fact taxpayers are “freeloaders” in Brown’s world.

I happen to read a ton of news and opinion articles online every month.

This happens to be one of the more succinct and well-reasoned articles I've seen in a while (among some good ones). If inclined, please share this with your pals.

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[BillyBonebrake]

The ‘State of Jefferson’ counties of Northern California are so ripe for secession that open revolt can’t be too far off.

[kingu]

The Territorial Dispatch is widely read in the area, it’s a weekly newspaper here in Jefferson Country.

[vigilence]

How ironic that his father, Gov. Edmund G. Brown, is credited with building much of the more modern infrastructure in California (if ineptly in the case of dams) while his son, Moonbeam, has presided over much of the decline of his father’s accomplishments, preferring to blame forces beyond his control.

[thinkliberty64]

Jerry Brown vetoed 2016 Fire Mitigation Bill which would have put some utility lines undergroud. He blames it on climate change, but i think his own stupidity cost Californians dearly.

https://rwnofficial.com/jerry-brown-might-be-in-big-trouble-over-wildfires-heres-why/

[AFreeBird]

L8r

[AlanGreenSpam]

Hey Global Warmists, we need MORE CO2 in the atmosphere so the fires don’t burn so hot and fast.

We have too much Oxygen in our atmosphere!! /sarc

[foreverfree]

bump

[kingu]

Had proper maintenance been done at Oroville Dam OR Governor Moonbeam hadn't signed the drought declaration 5 days before after record rainfall in the state OR the dam operator actually read the Army Corps of Engineers manual for the dam operations, there wouldn't have been any issue at Oroville Dam nor the near calamity at Shasta Dam.

There would have been more flooding in the state due to rivers running higher for longer, but you're talking impact of a couple thousand people vs 200k+ who were in the evacuation zone for the emergency spillway stupidity.

Of course, none of the responsible parties (LADWP, Bay Cities Water, Gov Moonbeam, dam operator) have been held accountable for their inexcusable failures to do what they are legally obligated to do. Result: 1.2 billion dollars in mostly cosmetic repairs, zero plan to force water users to use the money they collect from their customers to maintain the dams as agreed upon when they were built, etc.

Just as with a lack of wildfire management (removing fuel) or an utter lack of evacuation route protection (which is required by California law.) And it just gets better as Newsom’s staff have indicated that they'll favor cultists over the people who live there.

Meanwhile, the total of destroyed homes has now topped 12,637 (single family homes) and the death toll is at least 81 (most of whom will have to be identified via DNA testing.)

[blueplum]

I’m paying that tax. Don’t get anything in return, except a bill each year, and a threatening notice if I don’t pay on time. And we do our own defensible space. My neighbor says don’t pay it, it’s unconstitutional, but he may be wrong because I sure don’t see the legislature overturning the tax and the state will just tack it, with interest, onto the property tax bill. People in California have gotten exceptionally stupid with the gas tax, too. You need a car in California so my guess is it was city people who don’t commute that got that passed.