Supervisors approve nearly $894,000 contract with RCD for hazard-tree removal after debate over priorities

The Lake County Board of Supervisors on July 7 approved a contract in the amount of $893,950.81 with the Lake County Resource Conservation District (RCD) to remove hazard trees along county rights-of-way, directing staff to coordinate closely with local fire chiefs and RCD contractors.

Terry Logsdon and Julia Sullivan of the RCD told the board the work aligns with prior drought- and beetle-mortality surveys and with federal/state grant funds including a Community Wildfire Defense Grant. Sullivan said the RCD has pre-identified priority roads to maximize efficiency and meet funder requirements.

Supervisors debated how narrowly to define the project's service area. Several supervisors urged that roads in the Cobb polygon identified in prior Tetra Tech surveys (Bottle Rock, Loch Lomond and nearby high-mortality zones) be prioritized because they contain concentrated bark-beetle-killed conifers that fall during storms. Other board members and public commenters urged a more countywide approach, asking that evacuation routes and major highways also receive treatment.

"We have standing dead trees that can take out Highway 29," one resident said, urging work near highway corridors. Supervisor comments focused on balancing the CDAA-funded polygon (for which grant paperwork and right-of-entry contacts already exist) with other funding streams that can support work elsewhere in the county.

Board members also pressed staff about logistics: rights-of-entry on private property will limit where crews can work, and biomass disposal options will be decided case-by-case; staff noted examples such as Quackenbush for processing. The RCD said some roads (Bottle Rock + Loch Lomond) could consume most of the county contract funds because of their length and density of dead trees.

After discussion the board approved the contract as amended and authorized the chair to sign. Supervisors asked for progress reports and a final summary after the March 1, 2027 fiscal deadline tied to emergency funding. The board emphasized that work should prioritize public safety and evacuation routes while staff pursue additional grant funding for remaining hot spots.

The contract was approved 4-0 and includes reporting checkpoints to the board.