VEGETATION: Under roof overhangs -- and within 1 foot of the home, 2 feet from windows, vents and doors and 5 feet of decks -- no vegetation is allowed. Elsewhere, spaced-out plants up to 18 inches tall, and ground covers like grasses under 3 inches are allowed.

TREES: The proposal would require homeowners to trim trees to keep branches away from the house and far from the ground so that fires on the ground cannot climb into the canopy, and a fire in the tree cannot jump into the home. It generally does not require the removal of trees.

What to plant (and what to remove) in California's new 'Zone Zero' fire-safety proposal After years of debate between fire officials seeking total vegetation removal within the first 5 feet of homes and ecologists backing selective landscaping, California proposed a compromise.

NEW: Years into heated debates and discussion, California has released its latest "Zone Zero" proposal, outlining what kind of landscaping residents in high fire risk zones can do within the first five feet of their home. Let's unpack what it says: www.latimes.com/environment/...

15 colorful headshots of the 2026 AAAS Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship class in a grid. Welcome to the New MMF Class!

🎉 Welcome to the 2026 class of @aaas.org #MassMediaFellows! These 15 scientists will be sharpening their #SciComm skills with news outlets across the country this summer. We can’t wait to see the impact they’ll have!

Learn more about 2026 class here: www.aaas.org/news/aaas-ma...

Man, machine and mutton: Inside the plan to prevent the next SoCal fire disaster Local fire crews are launching a sweeping effort to prevent future wildfires in the Santa Monica Mountains. It entails using both animals and machines to create fire breaks — a controversial solution ...

Malibu is arguing MRCA failed to do proper brush clearance — a claim many fire ecologists argue is not backed by science. Some studies have found brush clearance techniques like fuel breaks are not all that effective during high-wind fires in SoCal. www.latimes.com/environment/...

Malibu, 'emotionally and physically scarred,' is suing California, L.A., others over Palisades fire Malibu is suing the state, the city of Los Angeles, L.A. County and additional public parties and agencies, seeking damages for financial losses sustained in the Palisades fire.

The city announced a lawsuit in February against the land manager, MRCA, and others over the damage the city sustained from the Palisades fire. This new lawsuit focused on the 2024 Broad and Franklin fires. www.latimes.com/california/s...

BREAKING: Malibu filed a lawsuit against a conservation authority that oversees land where 3 fires in the past 2 years have started and went on to damage Malibu homes — including the Palisades fire: malibucity.org/DocumentCent...

BLM announces seasonal fire restrictions for southern California | Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management California Desert District will go into seasonal fire restrictions on public lands in Imperial, southern Inyo, eastern Kern, Los Angeles, eastern Mono, Orange, Riverside,...

Fire season is upon us … Bureau of Land Management says no more fires on BLM land in SoCal until the end of October: www.blm.gov/announcement...

The L.A. marathon's final 8 miles are a blazing hot concrete hellscape. I learned to love them anyway Your morning catch-up: The L.A. marathon; attacks on Iran; wine industry woes and more big stories.

“Before the turnaround at Mile 22, you are not only actively running away from the finish line, but you are also watching a steady stream of runners on the other side of the street who are miles ahead and … better than you at running and presumably life.”

via @nohaggerty.bsky.social #running

Owners of fire-destroyed Palisades mobile home park seek to displace residents for development deal An offering memorandum described the destroyed mobile home park as a "blank canvas for redevelopment"; however, city officials reiterated they intend to let fire survivors return and rebuild.

The more things change...via @nohaggerty.bsky.social

The owner of the 170-unit mobile home park destroyed in the Palisades fire is trying to sell it, characterizing the lot as a "blank canvas for redevelopment" vs. re-occupation by currently-displaced residents.

www.latimes.com/environment/...

The Palisades fire discourse is stuck in January 2025 Officials argue they had little agency to stop the fire. Residents point to a string of missteps that enabled it. There's little consensus on how to prevent the next one.

I’ve spent over a year talking with the people who survived the Palisades fire and the people who responded to it. Here’s why I think the discourse around how to prevent the next disaster is still stuck in January 2025. www.latimes.com/environment/...

Survivors in Palisades and Altadena mark anniversary of deadly fires with anger and mourning A year after two of the most destructive wildfires in California history erupted, survivors commemorated the day in Altadena and Pacific Palisades with anger and remembrance.

One year after the fires. I’ve been so honored to cover these beautiful, resilient communities over the past year — starting with the terrifying Palisades evacuation on Jan. 7, 2025. I’m looking forward to spend another year by your side. www.latimes.com/california/s...

L.A. City ignored fire safety as it permitted development in high risk areas, lawsuit alleges A lawsuit filed Dec. 23 provides 75 examples of building plans seemingly in violation of fire safety regulations designed to improve evacuations and firefighter access.

Fire safety advocates are teaming with NIMBY homeowners to sue Los Angeles over new development: www.latimes.com/environment/... via @nohaggerty.bsky.social

L.A. City ignored fire safety as it permitted development in high risk areas, lawsuit alleges A lawsuit filed Dec. 23 provides 75 examples of building plans seemingly in violation of fire safety regulations designed to improve evacuations and firefighter access.

L.A. City ignored state fire safety regulations as it permitted development in high risk areas, a new lawsuit alleges:
www.latimes.com/environment/...

Early adopters of 'zone zero' fared better in L.A. County fires, insurance-backed investigation finds A new study found that in the Eaton and Palisades fires, homes that had already adopted proposed regulations on creating vegetation-free buffers were less likely to burn.

A new report shows California’s controversial Zone Zero requirements helped save homes in the Palisades and Eaton fires — but some experts warned the insurance-backed investigation doesn’t tell the full story: www.latimes.com/environment/...

Can California learn to let Native American fire practitioners burn freely? Indigenous fire practices are slowly regaining wider acceptance in California, but the dream of burning freely based on the needs of the land is still a long way off.

Here’s a brief and welcome respite from the mantra of don’t-burn-in -SoCal-it’s-not-like-the-Sierra:

“Emily Burgueno calls them ‘sovereign burns… grounded in our creation stories, our sacred beliefs and philosophy.’”
@nohaggerty.bsky.social

www.latimes.com/environment/...

Document raises new questions about restrictions on Jan. 1 Lachman fire mop-up The Wildfire Management Plan for Topanga State Park sets out guidelines and restrictions. It's unclear if the document hampered mop-up of the Lachman fire.

We talked to fire ecologists and fire service veterans about that Topanga State Park Wildfire Plan … Bottom line: 1) No, it doesn’t make sense to leave it “to burn.” 2) The restrictions for areas with sensitive plants & cultural sites are pretty standard: www.latimes.com/california/s...

Thanks for sharing — so many of our evacuation conversations center around cars. Analyses of evacuation times often *only* include cars. Yet, a large fraction of deaths in wildfires are folks who could not drive due to age, injury or disability.

I know an elderly couple with a cabin in Boulder County. They no longer drive at night & know they can't in a smoky firestorm. When Chinook/Santa Ana winds are forecast, they batten down their cabin and stay in central Boulder until the high risk passes.

Cal Fire approach to SoCal's wildfire crisis could make things worse, court says A statewide Cal Fire program risks making fires worse by removing native chaparral and allowing the spread of more flammable grasses, a court ruled.

A court has ordered Cal Fire to amend one of its vegetation removal programs after ecology organizations argued the agency failed to address the risk of flammable grasses growing where vegetation was removed, inadvertently making the wildfire risk worse: www.latimes.com/environment/...

@nohaggerty.bsky.social's LA Times article about wildfire evacuation challenges reminded me how indispensable my e-bike was in the Palisades fire.

We wrote a paper about wildfire shelter-in-place ideas in 2009 - headed by Scott Stephens with AUS colleagues - and they have always been largely and pretty vocally opposed by the fire service…until now? iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...

We’ve had what felt like bad fires here twice in the past few years. The highway was shut down, all of the semi traffic took to back roads and 4-way stops.

For hours, with roads blocked, I had no exit.

I had a snorkel by my back door and planned to hunker down in our wildlife pond if I had to.

Can you survive a wildfire sheltering at home? For one community, L.A. County Fire says it may be the only option L.A. County Fire plans to order Topanga residents to shelter-in-place if evacuating from fire isn't possible. It's raised concern from experts and residents, but the department says it has no other op...

LA County Fire Dept is now telling residents in Topanga that if evacuation is not possible, they need to shelter in their homes. It’s a policy that, historically, has proven incredibly dangerous, but the department says it has no better options. My latest: www.latimes.com/environment/...

Many of Altadena's standing homes are still contaminated with lead and asbestos even after cleanup A study led by a community group found that even after cleanups were supposedly complete, many standing homes in Altadena remain contaminated with lead and asbestos.

Many of Altadena's standing homes are still contaminated with lead and asbestos even after cleanup

How Zone Zero, designed to protect California homes from wildfire, became plagued with controversy and delays California needs new rules to help future wildfires from destroying homes and businesses. But Zone Zero regulations, a key tenet of the state's plans, have roiled homeowners.

Great piece about why Zone Zero rulemaking is complicated for a state as big and diverse as CA. Thanks @nohaggerty.bsky.social for the clarity, and to the many (mostly) SoCal voices of reason including Max Moritz @ucanr.edu for improving the outcomes.

www.latimes.com/environment/...

The state's wildfire policy long overlooked SoCal. Now it's course correcting State leaders have long understood Northern California's wildfire crisis and are investing resources to solve it. But in Southern California, the problem is more confounding.

First edition of Boiling Point since I left the LA Times, and it's a good one. @nohaggerty.bsky.social wrote about the importance of different strategies to limit wildfire damage in NorCal and SoCal: www.latimes.com/environment/...

The state's wildfire policy long overlooked SoCal. Now it's course correcting State leaders have long understood Northern California's wildfire crisis and are investing resources to solve it. But in Southern California, the problem is more confounding.

Excited to share I’m joining a stellar team of @latimes.com environment reporters to write our Boiling Point newsletter. Every week, we’ll rotate, giving you the latest news on water, air, land, fire and critters. Today: Why SoCal’s fire problem is so vexing
www.latimes.com/environment/...

Man, machine and mutton: Inside the plan to prevent the next SoCal fire disaster Local fire crews are launching a sweeping effort to prevent future wildfires in the Santa Monica Mountains. It entails using both animals and machines to create fire breaks — a controversial solution in Southern California.

Man, machine and mutton: Inside the plan to prevent the next SoCal fire disaster

The in-depth tale of 2 mobile home parks, post Palisades fire, by @nohaggerty.bsky.social

www.latimes.com/environment/...