(LOYALTON) — The last regularly scheduled meeting of the Sierra County Board of Supervisors for 2022, held in the confines of a chilly Loyalton Social Hall, was a brisk, solid morning of work for all five of the county's supervisors. It also marked the last meeting of outgoing Supervisor Peter Huebner's long tenure on the Board. As Supervisor Lee Adams, a historian at heart, noted early in the proceedings, the session was Huebner's 576th meeting as a member of the Board. Thus, Huebner's tenure was the second-longest of the 123 Supervisors who have served the county since its formation in 1852.

During the opening part of the meeting, where the Department Managers make reports to the Board, Sheriff Fisher was pleased to announce a formal job offer has been accepted by a Placer County Sheriff's Office veteran, who will be reporting for work in January. Fisher also mentioned the hiring of another deputy, a person with strong ties to Sierra Valley, is "in the wings."

In Tim Beals' report to the Board, we learned about California's Board of Forestry's recent issue of a new set of fire hazard maps for the state. Now up for public review through early February, Beals noted a public hearing on the subject is scheduled for January 27. He also pointed out the new set of building codes issued by the state will go into effect on 1/1/2023; so, anyone wanting a building permit has a good incentive to file soon.

Beals also noted the Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC) rejected Sierra County's application for a grant to aid fuel reduction efforts for Forest City due to the landowner's (U.S. Forest Service) demonstrably low level of commitment to the property. However, since, according to Beals, this level has changed recently, the application is slated to be resubmitted in 2023.

Next, during the USFS update portion of the meeting, the Board learned the Sierraville Ranger District recently completed the elimination of burn piles located on 680 acres within the district. They also were informed about the SNC's approval of funding for the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardships' Connected Communities Project. Meanwhile, the Beckworth Ranger District continues to have many job openings, but existing crews are very busy with roadside hazard tree removals. So far, they have completed 16 miles of the 80 miles of the work slated for the current project.

While the USFS was on the line, the Supervisors also discussed their need to submit comments by January 3rd on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for North Yuba River Landscape Resilience Project. Should the support Option 1 (the "do nothing" approach), Option 2 (fuel reduction treatments on 146 thousand acres), Option 3 ("business as usual" treatments on 107 thousand acres), or Option 4 (reducing fuels on 151 thousand acres)? During the discussion the County's Forester, Danielle Bradfield, favored Option 4, the most aggressive approach because prevention dollars are the most effective way to curtail devastation from wildfire. Supervisor Adams worried the choice of Option 4 might bring about litigation and stall progress on this vital work. However, Supervisor Roen said opponents who favor restrictions on the diameter size of trees or fear treatments in areas frequented by spotted owl populations will likely fight all but the "do nothing" option. To address the issue, the Supervisors decided a committee of the Board will meet to draft a response to Draft EIS and a special meeting will be held prior to January 3rd for the purpose of approving what the committee presents to the full Board.