Although 2023 was a relatively quiet fire season in El Dorado County and around California, we know all too well that critical wildfire conditions and the potential for devastating wildfires will return. Along with our partners, the fire safe councils in El Dorado County used the slower fire season to double down on our wildfire preparedness efforts. As 2023 comes to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on a few of our accomplishments during the year.

The fire safe council chipping and defensible space assistance programs grew significantly during the year, due in large part to the strong support of our funding partners. In addition, we initiated the hazardous tree removal program to assist residents with removing dead and dying trees that present a hazard to their homes. In total, the three programs performed over 1000 jobs and provided over $800,000 in vegetation clearance and tree removal work this year.

We welcomed two new associate fire safe councils, Fort Jim and Rescue Community, into the fire safe council network. There are now 31 associate fire safe councils serving the western slope of El Dorado County.

Councils were very engaged in information and education efforts and activities, including participation in the El Dorado County Fair as well as numerous other events and presentations. The EDCFSC produced a comprehensive wildfire preparedness workbook that has been distributed to thousands of residents throughout the county and is being used as a go to reference by our partner agencies and organizations. The EDCFSC website was completely overhauled with a new look and improved functionality in the assistance program applications.

Directors and council members stayed connected with partners and fostered relationships. Members participated in numerous working groups and regular meetings, including the El Dorado County Public Outreach Working Group, Wildfire Preparedness and Resilience Coordination Group, Disaster Council and Fire Prevention Officers Association.

Through a collaboration with CAL FIRE, El Dorado County and the Fire Prevention Officers Association, EDCFSC trained 70 volunteer defensible space evaluators during several two-day training sessions. Hundreds of volunteer evaluations have been completed so far and the training is serving as an example for other voluntary evaluation programs around California.

We expanded our grant writing and management capacity with the addition of Tamara Johnston as our grants program manager. With the foundation built by Pat Dwyer, Tamara is providing training, grant committee coordination and overall grant administration.

Events during the year culminated with the organization and hosting of a Veterans Day breakfast. The EDCFSC, along with associate council members and partners, served over 200 veterans and their families in recognition of our partnership in defensible space and their service to our country.

A sincere thank you to all the dedicated fire safe council volunteers, EDCFSC staff and partners who continue to dedicate your time and energy to helping make El Dorado County more fire resilient. I look forward to seeing all of you again in the new year.

Ken Pimlott, Chair

El Dorado County Fire Safe Council