August 2025
From Seth Schalet, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council CEO
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5 years later: Taking stock of the ongoing CZU Lightning Complex recovery.
As I was putting the finishing touches on the newsletter, the Santa Cruz Sentinel and author PK Hattis published this article: 5 years later: Taking stock of the ongoing CZU Lightning Complex recovery. On August 16, 2022, the CZU Lightning Complex Fire tore through the Santa Cruz Mountains, the community is still picking up the pieces. While it didn’t get into Santa Clara County, it did impact our friends, family, partners and employees in San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties. Sparked by a series of dry lightning strikes that lit up the landscape. It would go on to burn more than 86,500 acres and destroy nearly 1,500 structures, many of them homes. On September 22, Cal Fire reported that the complex had been fully contained.
Also on the same day, the SCU Lightning Complex fire started. The complex fire burned a total of 393,624 acres. 115 Santa Clara County families were affected by the fire, totaling 345 people that were displaced and required sheltering. The Santa Clara County Office of Emergency Management did a terrific presentation back on November 18th, 2020, and I want to link it here, because we never can forget.
Today, recovery continues. Nothing is quit as it was. Let’s take a moment of silence to reflect on the last 5 years.
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With the CZU Lightening Complex and SCU Lightning Complex anniversaries happening by the time you get this newsletter, I want to share a great resource and the latest science on wildfire evacuation.
Why do we have a WUI fire evacuation problem? Time & distance to safety. Not enough time to evacuate, limited # of Temporary Refuge Areas (TRA) that can decrease burnover deaths. The dynamic duo of Eric Link and Alexander Maranghides with the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) share their research on ESCAPE - WUI Fire Evacuation and Sheltering Considerations – Assessment, Planning, and Execution. This will save lives if implemented. Great slide deck from CA OSFM.
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As Earth Warms, California Fire Season is Starting Earlier, Study Finds. Fire season is now starting more than 6 weeks earlier than it did in the 1990s. The study rules out two factors that might theoretically be behind the shift: buildups of vegetation and changes in the number of fires ignited, either accidentally or on purpose, by humans.
The more important drivers, the researchers found, are the effects of greenhouse warming, including earlier and faster snowmelt and a warmer atmosphere that pulls more moisture out of soil and vegetation. AKA, fuel aridity, increased temperatures and vapor pressure deficit—a measure of how dry the air is—are the primary ways climate warming is shifting the timing of the onset of fire season.
The amount of potential fuel and increase in ignition sources, while contributing to fires overall, didn't drive the trend in earlier fires. Read the study: Anthropogenic warming drives earlier wildfire season onset in California
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The Santa Clara County FireSafe Council wants to say thank you to our loyal newsletter readers. The team continues work on several projects including fuel breaks, evacuation routes, early wildfire technology implementations and community outreach programs including tabling at events throughout the county.
Stay tuned as we have much in our pipeline to share—more will be revealed soon. Until then, let’s hear from our team.
Yours truly,
Seth Schalet
CEO, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council
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I'm Tony Kapule (kah-poo-lee) and I'm excited to be the newest addition to the FireSafe Council as a HFR Project Coordinator with my main focus being the Los Altos Hills Chipping Program. I completed my B.A. in Biological Sciences giving me a strong educational background in a wide array of topics. I'm eager to bring my skills & previous experience in HIZ assessments, prescribed fire, and fire ecology to improving our community's local wildfire resilience initiatives. I am also hopeful in maintaining our beautiful California landscapes while creating fire adapted communities able to withstand wildfire.
In my free time I enjoy hiking, learning about flora, and fishing throughout the Pacific Northwest.
| | | Wildfire County Coordinator Program | | | |
Good news for Santa Clara County! The California Fire Safe Council and Legislative Committee (Jacy Hyde, Kate Dargan Marquis, Laura Blaul, Chris Ochoa, Pat Frost and Seth Schalet) worked diligently to secure new funding to extend the County Coordinator Program. Read the Press Release linked below and see it as part of the Governor's July California Wildfire & Forest Resilience Task Force Update.
California Allocates $9.5 Million for Wildfire County Coordinator Program
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Wildfire County Coordinators Program
Established in 2021, the Wildfire County Coordinators Program seeks to educate, encourage, and develop countywide community collaboration and coordination among wildfire mitigation groups. The program has provided funding to 52 of California’s 58 counties to hire a County Coordinator and establish critical local capacity to plan and implement wildfire resilience strategies on the ground.
The County Coordinators have served as a vital local resource to secure funding, implement mitigation projects, engage vulnerable populations, and build resilience in high-risk communities. In a short period of time, County Coordinators have become a crucial link between state strategy and local execution—ensuring California communities are better prepared, better connected, and more resilient to wildfire.
With the support of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors, SCCFSC has held the role of County Coordinator since 2023.
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Firewise USA® Recognition
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Neighbors Taking Action Achieves Firewise USA® Recognition
We’re proud to share that Neighbors Taking Action has officially joined the growing network of Firewise USA® communities! 🌟
With this milestone, Santa Clara County now has 26 recognized Firewise USA® sites—each contributing to a stronger, more wildfire-resilient region. 🔥🌳
Interested in helping your neighborhood earn Firewise USA® status? Contact firewise@sccfiresafe.org to learn more about the process and resources available. Together, we can keep building safer, stronger communities.
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SCCFSC Cost Share Programs —
Neighbor-to-Neighbor &
Special Needs Assistance Program (SNAP)
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The Santa Clara County FireSafe Council offers two different cost sharing programs to qualified residents, the Neighbor-to-Neighbor Cost Share Program and the Special Needs Assistance Program (SNAP).
Our Neighbor-to-Neighbor Cost Share Program is awarding mini-grants to neighborhoods for local fire prevention projects. Neighborhoods can receive up to 50% in cost-share assistance (max $5,000). Funding is limited and awarded on a first come, first served basis.
Our Special Needs Assistance Program (SNAP) is also offering up to $5,000 per applicant to help eligible residents improve defensible space around their homes. For 2025, eligibility is based on location within Communities at Risk or high fire severity zones in Santa Clara County.
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Fall Chipping Program
Registration date will be announced soon.
Please visit our website for updates.
Learn More
| | | Los Gatos Creek Watershed Collaborative Forest Health Grant Update | | |
Forward Progress
We’re continuing vegetation management in Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (MROSD) and have completed 39 of 483 acres to date.
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South Branch FHG2 Project Update
We’re in the contractor selection phase for the South Branch portion of the Forest Health Grant project. Work is anticipated to begin in September 2025. Learn More
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Elena - Taffee Rd.
Evacuation Route
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The Elena - Taaffe Evacuation Route Maintenance Project has concluded as of August 11, 2025.
This was the third project of the series for the calendar year. Learn More
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Mora-Summerhill
Evacuation Route
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The Mora - Summerhill Evacuation Route Project is currently in the project planning phase. The project is set to start on Monday, September 29th through October 10 and will be the fourth of the series for the calendar year. Learn More
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Chinese Pistache
(Pistachio chinensis) The Chinese pistache is a reliable choice when it comes to fire mitigation and creating defensible space. Its high tolerance for heat and drought means it thrives without frequent watering, which helps reduce excess vegetation and fuel around structures. As a deciduous tree, it drops its leaves in fall, making it less flammable during the peak of fire season compared to oily or resinous evergreens. Learn More
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Always a pleasure to support Senator Dave Cortese's community outreach efforts, joining him at his recent Wildfire Safety & Mitigation Town Hall. Click here for the slides & video recording.
Thank you to fellow presenters Skylar Thorton, Battalion Chief Pre-Fire Management & Wildfire Resilience, Santa Clara County Fire Department and fellow Santa Clara County FireSafe Council team member and Program Director, Amanda Brenner Cannon. A special thank you to Zachary Contini, Senator Cortese's District Representative, for coordinating this event.
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Another day at the office. Mt. Madonna/Summit Rd. Loma Escape Route tour with CAL FIRE SCU Unit Forrester friends. Santa Clara County FireSafe Council completed the project in 4 phases.
The Loma Fire was a wildfire that broke out on September 26, 2016, in the Santa Cruz Mountains in Santa Clara County, California. By the time the fire was contained on October 12, the fire had burned 4,474 acres of land and had destroyed 12 residences and 16 outbuildings.
Thanks to CAL FIRE for the funding to support this work. For the FireSafe Council, Nestor Valle, Jim Young led the project with Amanda Brenner Cannon as Program Director. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) partners on this project include James Edwards, Ed Orre and Pearl Hoogs.
| | | Santa Clara County FireSafe Council is a founding member of the Wildfire Solutions Coalition. Recently, we engaged in an advocacy campaign urging the California Legislature to Reauthorize Cap-and-Trade & Invest in Wildfire Resilience. Read our letter here. | | | Santa Clara County FireSafe Council Adds 33,000 Additional Acres To West Santa Clara Landscape Resilience Project, Now Incorporating 143,000 Total Acres | | | Neighbors can apply here for a free permit allowing you to reduce vegetation on Midpen land, within 100 feet of occupied structures, to create defensible space around your home. Learn More | | | |
Did you know that you might be able to double—or even triple—the impact of your gift?
Many employers sponsor matching gift programs, which means they will match any charitable contribution made by their employees.
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SCCFSC is a local 501(c) non-profit organization that relies on funding from local partners and residents of the wildland-urban interface areas. While federal and state grants provide a significant amount of support for ongoing projects, donations from the local community is crucial to our success.The SCCFSC appreciates every donation, large or small. When you donate to Santa Clara County FireSafe Council, you are helping us and yourself by mobilizing the people of Santa Clara County to protect their homes, communities and environment from wildfires.
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