SECTIONS 4781-4788 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 4781-4788

4781. The people of the state have a direct interest in the
protection and improvement of public and private lands which are
principally used or useful for range or forage purposes for domestic
livestock and wildlife. This article is enacted in furtherance of
that interest to provide not only for controlled land clearance and
revegetation of such lands but also having as its objective fire
prevention and protection, watershed protection and conservation, and
the prevention of soil erosion.

4782. This article shall be administered by the department.

4783. The department may enter into contracts or cooperative
agreements with any person, firm, public or private corporation,
district, or municipal corporation, or other political subdivision of
the state, or any group or combination of them, that owns or
controls brush-covered land within any state responsibility area for
the purpose of engaging in controlled land clearance and
revegetation, including the burning of brush from such lands, or
portions of such lands, under the supervision of the department or by
the department.

4784. In furtherance of such contracts and agreements, and also
independently of them, the department shall engage in experimental
land clearance and revegetation of such lands in the interests of
protection and improvement of range and forage lands and shall also
engage in such research in connection with it as will enable it to
determine the value of such methods in relation to the several
purposes and interests of the people of the state as set forth in
this article.

4785. The department shall from time to time prepare reports
setting forth data as to the experiments so conducted and its
findings and conclusions with reference thereto and submit these
reports to the board for its guidance and assistance in determining
the policy to be followed by the board with reference to range and
forage lands. The board shall make these reports available to the
Legislature.

4786. In making such experiments and in conducting or supervising
land clearance pursuant to the agreements or contracts contemplated
by this article, the department shall have available such fire crews
and firefighting equipment as it deems reasonably necessary to
prevent the spread of any fire from the area proposed to be cleared,
if such equipment and fire crews are not needed for the control of
wildfire.

4787. The department, with the approval of the board, may make such
regulations as are necessary to effectuate the purposes of this
article.

4788. The department may accept contributions of money from any
private source to carry out the powers and duties imposed upon it by
this article.