California § 4483 - To the extent feasible, the board

§ 4483. To the extent feasible, the board

(a) To the extent feasible, the board’s Vegetation Treatment Program Programmatic Environmental Impact Report shall serve, in addition to any identified entities in the report, as the programmatic environmental document for prescribed fires initiated by a third party for a public purpose pursuant to Section 4491. This subdivision does not apply to a prescribed fire activity that is exempt from the requirements of Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000). (b) (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that additional consideration be provided for chaparral and coastal sage scrub plant communities that are being increasingly threatened by fire frequency in excess of their natural fire return patterns due to climate change and human-caused fires. (2) Prescribed burning, mastication, herbicide application, mechanical thinning, or other vegetative treatments of chaparral or sage scrub shall occur only if the department finds that the activity will not cause “type conversion” away from the chaparral and coastal sage scrub currently on site. (3) This subdivision shall be in addition to the requirements in the Vegetation Treatment Program Programmatic Environmental Impact Report. (c) The department may order remediation for any type conversion caused in violation of paragraph (2) of subdivision (b).