Lake Tahoe fire panel nears deadline

RENO -- A bistate panel is finalizing recommendations to reduce the threat of wildfires at Lake Tahoe.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons formed the Tahoe Basin Fire Commission last year after the Angora fire, which destroyed 254 homes last summer. The commission's report is due by March 21.

Some participants in the effort said it represents a needed shift in direction to protect life and property at the famous mountain lake.

But conservationists worry Tahoe's environment could be put at risk in a rush to respond to issues arising from last summer's blaze.

Some changes already have been started.

At the urging of Tahoe's fire districts, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency in November changed rules to increase the size of trees that can be cut without a permit on private property from 6 inches to 14 inches in diameter.

The agency was criticized after last year's fire, with many residents complaining that rules designed to protect Lake Tahoe's clarity increased fire danger.

Another proposal would require that pine needles useful on the ground to control erosion be cleared from five to 30 feet around homes each spring to reduce fire danger during the summer.

"That's a great step. That was one of our greatest concerns," Mike Brown, chief of the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, told the Reno Gazette-Journal.

One idea discussed in December would alter the bistate compact that created TRPA to make wildfire prevention the agency's priority. That would need approval by both state's legislatures and governors, Congress and the president.

Another obstacle is money.

With Nevada and California now dealing with a sour economy and substantial funding shortages, paying for costly efforts to reduce fire danger at Lake Tahoe could prove a major challenge, said John Singlaub, TRPA executive director.

Michael Donahoe of the Tahoe chapter of the Sierra Club said he is concerned the fire commission is placing too great an emphasis on thinning remote areas of the forest, activity that could require construction of damaging roads on steep terrain.

More emphasis should be placed on requiring fire-resistent building materials for homes and encouraging defensible space around the homes, he said.

"I don't think we need to sacrifice the environment to keep us safe," Donahoe said.