Compare Versions


Bill PDF |Add To My Favorites |Track Bill | print page

AB-57 California Pocket Forest Initiative.(2023-2024)



Current Version: 09/14/23 - Enrolled

Compare Versions information image


AB57:v95#DOCUMENT

Enrolled  September 14, 2023
Passed  IN  Senate  September 11, 2023
Passed  IN  Assembly  September 12, 2023
Amended  IN  Senate  September 06, 2023
Amended  IN  Senate  June 20, 2023
Amended  IN  Assembly  May 18, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 57

Introduced by Assembly Member Kalra
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Mike Fong, Lee, Pellerin, Wicks, and Wilson)
(Coauthors: Senators Cortese and Stern)

December 06, 2022

An act to add and repeal Chapter 2.1 (commencing with Section 4799.12.2) of Part 2.5 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, relating to forests.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 57, Kalra. California Pocket Forest Initiative.
Existing law establishes the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection within the Natural Resources Agency. Existing law vests the department with specified responsibilities, including providing fire protection, fire prevention, pest control, and forest and range protection and enhancement implements and apparatus as necessary. Existing law, the California Urban Forestry Act of 1978, has as a stated purpose the promotion of the use of urban forest resources for purposes of increasing integrated projects with multiple benefits in urban communities.
This bill would establish the California Pocket Forest Initiative in the department and would authorize the department to coordinate implementation of the initiative in conjunction with the act. The bill would authorize the department to offer grants to cities, counties, districts, nonprofit organizations, the California Conservation Corps or certified community conservation corps, public universities, public community colleges, and public schools to establish pocket forests on public lands, as provided. The bill would require the department to prioritize disadvantaged communities and communities that lack publicly accessible green space for these grants. The bill would require the department to partner with one or more academic institutions to test, and submit a report on or before January 1, 2030, to the Legislature that evaluates, the applicability and effectiveness of the Miyawaki method, as defined, to restore degraded lands and reforest urban areas in multiple regions throughout California. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2031.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) California is home to a wide variety of rich, biodiverse natural habitats.
(b) Natural habitats offer many benefits, including groundwater recharge.
(c) According to the Department of Fish and Wildlife, California hosts 464 rare, threatened, and endangered species of plants and animals. It is also home to thousands of other species that fill crucial roles in the state’s ecosystems. Many of these species require access to natural habitats in order to survive.
(d) Access to natural green spaces is beneficial to human health and happiness, especially for children and economically disadvantaged communities.
(e) According to the United States Census, 95 percent of California’s population lives in urban areas, making it the most urban state in the nation.
(f) Pocket forests can benefit society in a number of ways. First, they can confer some of the benefits of natural habitat onto urban areas. Second, they can attract and sustain species that may otherwise struggle to thrive in highly developed, low biodiversity regions. Third, they can provide easy access to natural green spaces for the growing number of urban-dwelling Californians.
(g) California works diligently to conserve its unique, biodiverse natural habitats and improve the health and happiness of its residents. Therefore, it is in the state’s interest to promote the creation of pocket forests.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 2.1 (commencing with Section 4799.12.2) is added to Part 2.5 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, to read:
CHAPTER  2.1. California Pocket Forest Initiative

4799.12.2.
 For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(a) “Initiative” means the California Pocket Forest Initiative.
(b) “Miyawaki method” means a method of planting that first analyzes and improves a plot’s soil conditions, then densely plants the plot with native main tree species, subspecies, shrubs, and ground-covering herbs. The trees planted through this method should, if possible, be grown from seeds, not grafts or clones.
(c) “Pocket forest” means a small plot of urban land that has been planted according to the Miyawaki method.

4799.12.3.
 The California Pocket Forest Initiative is hereby established in the department. The department may coordinate implementation of the initiative in conjunction with the California Urban Forestry Act of 1978 (Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 4799.06)).

4799.12.4.
 The department shall partner with one or more academic institutions to test the applicability and effectiveness of the Miyawaki method to restore degraded lands and reforest urban areas in multiple regions throughout California.

4799.12.5.
 (a) The department may offer grants to cities, counties, districts, nonprofit organizations, the California Conservation Corps or certified community conservation corps, public universities, public community colleges, and public schools to establish pocket forests on public lands in order to test and demonstrate the applicability and effectiveness of the Miyawaki method in California.
(b) The department shall prioritize disadvantaged communities and communities that lack publicly accessible green space for these demonstration grants.
(c) For public school grantees, the grant may include funding to develop and offer grade-appropriate urban forestry and ecology curriculum.

4799.12.6.
 (a) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, on or before January 1, 2030, the department shall submit a report to the Legislature that evaluates the applicability and effectiveness of the Miyawaki method to restore degraded lands and reforest urban areas in multiple regions throughout California. The report shall include an assessment of the costs and benefits of the Miyawaki method, a discussion of appropriate species for different regions of the state, and recommendations for any modifications to the method that may be appropriate for its use in California. The department may contract with academic institutions to prepare the report, which shall be subject to the peer review process.
(b) The report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

4799.12.7.
 This chapter shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2031, and as of that date is repealed.