Deadline for free fire debris removal in L.A. County is approaching
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Los Angeles County is doubling down on its outreach efforts to let property owners know they have until the end of the month to opt into the free fire debris removal program with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. After the March 31 deadline, residents will have to foot the bill to clear fire debris from their properties.
“I encourage everyone who is sitting on the fence or thinking about it to call us, to call the county, to get the facts and to make an election so that we can get this process started on your property,” Col. Eric Swenson of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Wednesday.
Nearly two months after the January fires, roughly 8,200 properties have opted into the program, according to the latest data from the county. More than 700 property owners opted out.
To begin the process, residents are required to give the county right of entry onto their properties. The county’s operation for reviewing the applications includes a “rigorous verification process that protects property owners from fraud,” said Angela George-Moody, L.A. County’s chief deputy director of public works.
The county is adding staff as the deadline approaches.
About 2,300 properties have been submitted to contractors who are slated to clear out the debris, but the county has identified over 13,500 eligible parcels across the two fire zones.
More than 9,400 structures were destroyed in Altadena and more than 6,800 in Pacific Palisades. Official estimates show that the fires generated as much as 4.5 million tons of debris. The massive undertaking to remove the debris has unfolded in phases, with the Environmental Protection Agency wrapping up the first stage in 28 days.
Residents who lost their homes in the Palisades and Eaton fires can now sign up for toxic debris removal on the county’s website.
The agency cleared lithium batteries, propane tanks and other hazardous materials from properties across the county. The second phase is currently underway.
Officials are also reviewing trees for possible removal from damaged properties. Trees could be slated for removal if they’re dead or dying, too close to the footprint of a burned structure or leaning over a work area, among factors outlined by the county.
Trees with yellow markings and ribbons have been waived from the removal process, while trees with unique barcodes and blue markings are categorized as posing an immediate or imminent hazard. Not all of these trees will be removed, according to county officials, and residents will have the opportunity to appeal the decision. But residents should be aware that the process might impact their ability to secure a building permit.
“There is lots of opportunities for survivors to work with our crews to express their concerns and their desire to keep specific trees that we have deemed to be a high risk and hazardous,” Swenson said.
He also asked residents to not paint trees themselves in an attempt to try and save them from removal.
“I urge survivors, do not paint the trees. Toxic paint is harmful to trees,” he said.
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