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In response to concerns that environmental protection efforts could delay the reconstruction of the coastal zone, environmental laws that could have posed obstacles to the reconstruction of structures destroyed by Wildfires in Southern California will be temporarily suspended.
Homes along California’s scenic Pacific Coast Highway burned in a monster fire that destroyed more than 10,000 homes and structures beginning Jan. 7.
“We’re not allowed to rebuild,” said Teddy Leonard, owner of the Reel Inn, a seafood restaurant serving the Malibu coast since the 1980s that burned down in January. “It’s very scary.”
Currently, California law requires people who want to build to undergo a long period environmental assessment process before receiving approval, but state officials say the process will not apply to victims of the recent fire who are looking to rebuild their lost structures.
Homes along the Pacific Coast Highway are seen burned by the Palisades Fire on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025, in Malibu, California. (Mark J. Terrill)
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a review to weigh potential environmental effects before a building permit is approved. Another state law, the California Coastal Act, focuses on development with respect to “the preservation of sensitive coastal and marine habitat and biodiversity.”
CALIFORNIA FIRES OPEN STATE AND FEDERAL RULES HINDING MITIGATION EFFORTS
Both laws were put on hold Sunday for those who tragically lost their homes after Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order suspending the environmental review process.
“When fires are put out, victims who have lost their homes and businesses must be able to rebuild quickly and without disruption,” Newsom said in a statement.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, right, walks through the Pacific Palisades downtown business district as the Palisades Fire continues to burn on Jan. 8, 2025, in Los Angeles. (Eric Thayer)
“The executive order I signed today will help reduce permitting delays, an important first step in allowing our communities to recover faster and stronger. I have also directed our state agencies to identify additional ways to “speed up the reconstruction and recovery process,” he added. .
CEQA has drawn flak over the years from critics, including environmentalists, who say it is restrictive and expensive.
“I don’t think anyone really thinks that CEQA is working exactly as it’s supposed to,” Eric Buescher, an attorney with San Francisco Baykeeper, an environmental nonprofit that works to “hold polluters accountable,” said in 2022 about the law state, according to local outlet Bay Nature.
Aerial images of the fires in California. (X/Charles V Payne)
“Developers say it’s too restrictive. Cities say it’s expensive and impossible to enforce,” Buescher said. “Environmental groups say a project that will be built for sea level rise can’t even be reviewed in time for sea level rise.”
Many of the Malibu homes that were destroyed by the fires were located on the beach along the Pacific Coast Highway, and their rebuilding could be subject to local zoning regulations designed to preserve the natural shoreline.
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President Biden announced on Thursday, the federal government would cover all costs of debris removal and fire management in California for 180 days.