Preparedness
Wildfire
Defensible Space Inspections
It's now the law to create defensible space to help prevent wildfires from spreading. Imagine if a 100' tree on fire falls onto your property. Are there pine needles on the ground that might catch fire? Are there dead branches or low-hanging branches that could take small fires and extend them up to the trees, creating larger fires that travel trhough the trees? Raking, tree-trimming and removing fire fuels are more important than ever. Covering firewood with fire- retardant tarps is also important. See the most recent Wildfire Is Coming . . . Are You Ready?” document for tips on creating defensible space around your property.
Defensible space is important from a community safety perspective as well as from a penalty avoidance perspective. If fire inspectors visit your property, will they give it a passing grade? To see how inspectors evaluate a property's defensible space, see the Property Inspection Guide.
There are many resources available to assist homeowners with protecting their properties: email the Mineral California Community Organization with questions, participate in one of the Tehama Conservation Fund programs listed below, and take advantage of the Cal-Fire grant this year.
Tehama Conservation Fund Can Help!
65+? Get FREE Help Clearing 100’ of Defensible Space
Creating defensible space can be too much of a burden if you are elderly or unable to perform yard work. Fortunately, the Tehama Conservation Fund (TCF) provides free assistance to those who are 65 and over or physically limited. TCF will send trained forestry technicians to prune branches, shrubs, and trees; safely remove dead branches; mow seasonal grasses; and chip the material. This program does not include felling of large trees. Pine needles, pine cones, grasses, root balls, vines, and stumps will not be chipped. Apply for assistance online or call Brin Greer, Outreach Coordinator, at (530) 727-1295.
Sign up for Community Chipping Day: It's Free!
If you would like to participate in a FREE Community Chipping Day here in Mineral, please download a Do It Yourself Guide and complete a short application here. Brin Greer of Tehama Conservation Fund (TCF) is the Outreach Coordinator on this and will contact applicants to coordinate a short educational orientation prior to the work, as well as schedule the date for the event. She can be reached at 530-727-1295.
Participants are not required to be at their properties for the chipping, and chips need not be broadcast back onto one's property. TCF technicians bring a 6" chipper and trailer to town, demolish the chipping piles that participants have set out on the street in front of their properties, and either broadcast the chips back onto the property or haul them to the property of any resident who has requested unwanted mulch for landscaping purposes.
The program's goal is to educate and assist as many individual homeowners as possible. A certain number of applicants are required before TCF will schedule a date, so please apply to the Tehama Conservation Fund to participate now! Contact Emmy Westlake, Director 2 Sutter Street, Ste. D Red Bluff, CA 96080 tcf@tehamacountyrcd.org 530-727-1280.
Wildlife
Living in the mountains is a magical experience. We are surrounded by natural beauty and wildlife. It is important to remember that we are "squatters" so far as other creatures are concerned. It is up to us to be good neighbors and foster a safe and healthy relationship with the wild animals who live here.
Be Bear Aware!
Be aware that bears are nearby . . . probably closer than you think! Be sure not to leave trash or food outside where bears can access it. Be on the alert while walking in the woods. Never go near or come between a bear and cubs! This is the one thing that will virtually assure you are attacked. Most bears are shy and run away from you before you even know they are there.
Please note that bears have been spotted walking through the streets of Mineral during the summer months, especially the night before trash pick-up. Once the bears have come out of hibernation in spring, residents should wait until daylight to set out trash for pick-up. Bears possess a sense of smell that is 100 times stronger than that of humans. They routinely destroy GreenWaste receptacles, scattering debris far and wide, in their search for food. They have also entered cabins, cars, garages, and outbuildings, no doubt attracted by food aromas.
It's Serious!
Avoid fines and misdemeanors!
See the most recent Wildfire Is Coming . . . Are You Ready?” document for tips on creating defensible space around your property.
What do inspectors consider? See the Property Inspection Guide, below.
defensible space inspection guidePDF.pdfDeer Crossing the Road
When driving through the mountains, always be on the lookout for deer, but be especially careful when driving at dawn and dusk, as these are times that deer are both most active and most difficult to see.
Slow down as much as you safely can the moment you see a deer on the road or even along the side of the road. Avoid swerving, as it can easily lead to losing control of your vehicle.
Deer are unpredictable, and hitting one is not only heartbreaking, but can result in severe damage to your vehicle or to you! Bucks have even been known to charge vehicles during rut. Never approach a sick or injured deer, as it may kick or bite you. Contact animal control instead.
Often, if you see a doe just standing in the road looking back, she is waiting for one or more fawns to follow. If she gets spooked by your car and continues to the other side, don't assume the incident is over. You could end up hitting a fawn, just as it enters the roadway trying to catch up with its mother.
It is said that deer are more active on moonlit nights. And remember, at night they may well be running from a predator, which means they can appear quite suddenly in the roadway. Allow yourself more reaction time by slowing down a little, especially from dusk to dawn.
Yellow Jackets
Beware of yellow jackets, which are numerous in Mineral during warm months. Different than most bees, who mind their business unless trapped or attacked somehow, yellow jackets are often called "meat bees" because they bite people and animals. Not only is the bite painful, it marks the victim with a scent that alerts other yellow jackets to pursue and attack en masse.
Yellow jackets build nests in the ground and often hover above pine needles or other foliage and around water sources. Carefully avoid disturbing a nest, which can easily happen when you are doing yard work.
A shallow pan of soapy water with bait (meat or sweet) suspended no more than an inch above it will often lure them to their death; in trying to get to the bait, they get the soapy water on their wings, causing them to fall into the basin and drown. Hardware stores also sell hanging traps that are filled with a sweet liquid. Inundating a nest with the garden hose at night or in the early morning before they become active is another way to kill or discourage these bees from nesting in your yard.
Crime
Theft/Vandalism
Unfortunately, Mineral residents are occasionally the victims of personal property vandalism and/or theft. Please secure your valuables, especially at night and when neighbors are away. Please report the crime to the Tehama County Sheriff and help prevent further crimes by emailing mineralcalifornia@gmail.com. We will use this website to alert others in our area. Of course, you may remain anonymous in this process.