Cal Fire officials say a slower fire season has given them more time to ensure property owners are maintaining a defensible space around structures.
The state agency issued more than a dozen violation referrals in Shasta County.
To have , property owners need to ensure there aren鈥檛 debris piles or pine needles up to 30 feet around structures. Then up to 100 feet, they need to keep grasses mowed and hedges and trees trimmed.
If property owners don鈥檛 follow these guidelines, they could face fines of at least $100.
Captain JT Wallingford of the Cal Fire Shasta-Trinity Unit says citations are a last resort, since he recognizes that many residents don鈥檛 have the resources they need to maintain a defensible space.
鈥淭here may be a financial barrier to having the ability to complete that,鈥� Wallingford says. 鈥淏ut the way we look at that is, it's a very important safety item that would need to occur.鈥�
This year, Cal Fire issued 16 violation referrals in Shasta County to the District Attorney鈥檚 office. All violations involve residential properties.
Wallingford says these guidelines don鈥檛 just protect homes from wildfires.
鈥淲e鈥檙e also looking at protecting the wildland from structures,鈥� Wallingford says. 鈥淪o structures ignite often. There鈥檚 a lot of activity that people participate in around their structure that cause fires. By having proper defensible space a structure fire will stay in the structure and it won鈥檛 affect the houses around it and the community around it.鈥�
