3 Sonoma County Groups Receive Grants From PG&E, Fire Foundation

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — Pacific Gas and Electric Company and the California Fire Foundation announced three groups in Sonoma County will receive a total of more than $30,000 as part of the new 2019 Wildfire Safety and Preparedness grant program.

The Larkfield Resilience Fund, Fire Safe Sonoma and the Northern Sonoma County Fire Protection District received the grants targeted specifically for communities identified as extreme or elevated fire risk by the California Public Utilities Commission High Fire-Threat District map.

"Our community was devastated by fire in 2017 and this grant allows us to put emergency preparedness plans into place, and action, that provide our families with a sense of safety and peace of mind for the future," said Christine Ratliff of the Larkfield Resilience Fund.

The groups plan to use the funds for fire prevention and preparedness programs, as well as outreach to the public.

"We have used and are still using our grant to deliver prevention and preparedness messages at the community level," said Fire Chief Marshall Turbeville of the Northern Sonoma County Fire Protection District. "This funding has allowed us to better prepare our residents for all types of emergencies."

The grant program provides funding for fire agencies, firefighters and Community/Neighborhood Emergency Response Teams — more commonly known as CERT or NERT — in Northern California.

The three Sonoma County groups were among 26 applicants who received a total of over $347,000 in grants funded by PG&E — all for projects and programs to help reduce the risk of wildfires in local communities, according to Deanna Contreras, spokeswoman for PG&E in the North Bay.

All grant applications were reviewed by the California Fire Foundation, which also selected the grantees and is in charge of doling out the funds.

The grants support the development of fire prevention and safety education programs in high fire-threat communities, with an emphasis on reaching and engaging California's vulnerable and underserved populations by providing culturally and linguistically appropriate educational resources.

"Wildfire safety begins with fire-safe communities, particularly in areas where the risk is most urgent," said Brian Rice, chair of the California Fire Foundation. "The California Fire Foundation is proud to help communities better prepare for fire, and we appreciate PG&E’s support in making these grants possible."

PG&E expressed gratitude for its partnerships with CFF, local fire departments and community-based organizations.

"Wildfire is a statewide issue and will take all of us working together to help protect our communities from the threat and make them more resilient to climate change," said Michael Lewis, senior vice president of electric operations for PG&E.