November 26, 2024
Posted in: News Articles
The landmark passing of Prop 4, more commonly known as the Climate Bond, will provide $10 billion in critical funding for clean water; protection from wildfire, sea level rise, flooding, extreme heat, and drought; and conservation of our farms, natural lands, waterways, and parks. And we are poised to leverage this unprecedented investment to achieve meaningful, on-the-ground results for the benefit of our Sonoma County community.
Prop 4 aims to bolster California’s resilience against climate change through substantial investments in several key areas. Here’s where the funding will go and how we might use it:
Coastal Resilience: $1.2 billion, including $765 million for the State Coastal Conservancy for climate resilience, sea level rise, and coastal protection.
The State Coastal Conservancy is one of our key partners, providing critical supplemental funding for conservation projects throughout the county and particularly along the coast, such as the Jenner Headlands Preserve, Estero Americano Preserve, Wright Hill Ranch, and the Red Hill addition to Willow Creek.
Biodiversity and Nature-Based Solutions: $1.2 billion, including $870 million specifically for wildlife conservation and habitat connectivity.
This type of funding will help us continue to work towards landscape-scale conservation along the southern Mayacamas, where our Saddle Mountain Open Space Preserve is in close proximity to Rancho Mark West and several other conservation easement properties in the vicinity, as well as Hood Mountain Regional Park, Sugarloaf State Park, and Calabazas Creek Regional Park and Open Space Preserve to the east. With many more conservation projects in the works in this area, this funding could help to create an even larger network of connected lands for wildlife habitat and movement, and sensitive species protection.
Wildfire and Forest Resilience: $1.5 billion for wildfire resilience, mainly thinning forests and controlled burns.
The Sonoma County Vegetation Management Program can utilize this state funding to stretch PG&E settlement funds from the 2017 Tubbs Fire even further, using these dollars to provide grants and resources for landscape-scale vegetation management in high-risk fire areas.
Park Creation and Outdoor Access: $700 million for park creation and outdoor access, which includes $500 million for parks in neighborhoods with less access to open space.
This type of funding could be leveraged through our Community Spaces Matching Grant Program to provide even more transformative public spaces within communities and neighborhoods to boost mental and physical health.
Climate-Smart Agriculture: $300 million to improve climate resilience and sustainability of agricultural lands.
Both our traditional agricultural conservation work and our more recent farmland access programs can benefit from this funding. There will be money set aside for conservation easement acquisition over farms and ranches using practices that improve climate resilience such as soil carbon sequestration, erosion control, or water retention; but there is also funding for urban agricultural projects and programs that could be leveraged by our Community Spaces program and there will be funding available to improve land access and tenure for socially disadvantaged and/or beginning farmer and ranchers, which is exactly what we are trying to do with our Buy-Protect-Sell pilot program.
As the impacts from climate change become increasingly more frequent and intense, proactive measures are needed now more than ever. At Ag + Open Space, we know that conserving our natural and agricultural lands is a key part of the climate solution and the funding from Prop 4 provides the State support we need to address these issues close to home. We look forward to working with our partners to leverage the funding from Prop 4 to protect natural resources, preserve local agriculture, support vulnerable communities, and ensure a healthier future for everyone in Sonoma County.