Newsom Cites Recent Wildfires When Signing Climate Bill

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Governor Gavin Newsom visited the KNP Complex Fire in Sequoia National Park to sign a $15-billion package of climate-related legislation.

Newsom says $5.2 billion will go to drought resiliency projects, $4-billion to expand electric vehicle infrastructure, $3.7 billion to combat heat domes in urban areas and $1.9-bilion for sustainable agriculture and forest initiatives.

Newsom stated, “It is not just to climate-proof, but to future-proof, California. It will make us more resilient and capable of addressing these extremes. Extreme heat and extreme drought.”

Newsom argues it is “no longer debatable” if California is being negatively impacted by a changing climate. Related to mega-fires, he stated, “I know we all have a responsibility to be better, and bolder, in our strategies to address what we haven’t addressed in decades in terms of vegetation and forest management. But, it’s not just that. The hots and dries. Something profound and extreme is happening.”

The KNP Complex Fire has burned over 33,000 acres and was threatening the General Sherman Tree, the largest known tree in the world.