Serene Lakes Ingress Egress Shaded Fuel Break
Summary
SCH Number
2025050934
Public Agency
Nevada County Resource Conservation District
Document Title
Serene Lakes Ingress Egress Shaded Fuel Break
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
5/21/2025
Document Description
The Serene Lakes Ingress-Egress Shaded Fuel Break is a wildfire mitigation project that focuses on enhancing evacuation safety for the Serene Lakes Community and providing safe ingress for fire suppression resources during a wildfire. This project will establish a shaded fuel break along Soda Springs Road, the sole access route to the community. The project area will involve a minimum of 32 acres of vegetation clearance (treatment on both sides of the road) with a possibility of more clearance depending upon budget, topography, and necessity. This project will establish a shaded fuel break along Soda Springs Road, the sole access route to the community. The project will treat approximately 32 acres of vegetation, creating a 100-foot clearance on either side of the road. This expanded treatment zone significantly increases defensibility and evacuation safety for residents while improving access for emergency personnel.
Contact Information
Name
Nathan Alcorn
Agency Name
Nevada County Resource Conservation District
Job Title
Program Director
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency / Project Applicant / Parties Undertaking Project / Responsible Agency
Phone
Email
Location
Coordinates
Cities
Truckee
Counties
Nevada
Regions
Citywide, Countywide
Cross Streets
Soda Springs Rd
Zip
95728
Total Acres
32
Jobs
10
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
15304 class 4
Reasons for Exemption
The proposed project qualifies for a Categorical Exemption under CEQA Guidelines Section 15304. Pursuant to Section 15304, Class 4 consists of minor private alterations of vegetation which do not involve removal of healthy, mature, scenic trees. The project involves removal of an abundance of small-diameter understory trees and brush species adjacent to habitable structures to reduce the vertical and horizontal continuity of forest fuels, reduce wildfire intensity and severity near developed communities, and to comply with PRC 4291 and local ordinances. Field review by the Nevada County Resource Conservation District Forester confirmed that fuel clearance in the project area is required to reduce hazardous fuel conditions adjacent to habitable structures for the safety of the public and emergency responders. No exceptions apply which would preclude the use of a Notice of Exemption for this project. The project consists of minor treatments to vegetation in the form of hand thinning and chipping. The trees being removed are in a suppressed state and are not considered healthy. The activities do not result in the taking of endangered, rare, or threatened plant or animal species, nor do they cause sedimentation to surface waters. This project will not convert forestland to non-forest uses, and all treated vegetation will have the ability to grow back. The Nevada County Resource Conservation District has concluded that no significant environmental impact would occur to aesthetics, agriculture and forestland/timberland, air quality, biological resources, cultural resources, geology and soils, greenhouse gas emissions, hazards and hazardous materials, hydrology and water quality, land use planning, mineral resources, noise, population and housing, public services, recreation, transportation/traffic, utilities and service systems, or to wildfire. Documentation of the environmental review completed by the department is kept on file at the Nevada County Resource Conservation District, located at 113 Presley Way, suite 1, Grass Valley CA. The NCRCD Board of Directors has authorized staff to file appropriate documentation and, furthermore, made a determination that the current fuel overgrowth poses a significant threat to Nevada County communities and that it is an urgent priority to implement wildfire mitigation projects to protect life, property, and the environment from wildfire.
County Clerk
Nevada
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
Disclaimer: The Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI) accepts no responsibility for the content or accessibility of these documents. To obtain an attachment in a different format, please contact the lead agency at the contact information listed above. For more information, please visit LCI’s Accessibility Site.