Editing Paradise, California (section)

==== Paradise Greenbelt Buffer Plan ====
After the 2018 Camp Fire caused near complete destruction of Paradise, the town and residents agreed on a Long-Term Community Recovery Plan with five main goals to make the town Safer, Welcoming, Stronger, Better, and Greener.<ref>{{Cite report |date=June 2019 |title=Town of Paradise Long-Term Community Recovery Plan |url=https://issuu.com/makeitparadise/docs/2350rptbook_final190624/1 |access-date=December 4, 2020 |publisher=Town of Paradise |via=[[Issuu]]}}</ref> Paradise Recreation and Parks District (PRPD) and [[the Nature Conservancy]] teamed up to develop the idea of a [[Green belt|Greenbelt]] [[Defensible space (fire control)|defensible buffer zone]] which would make the town a better [[Fire-adapted communities|fire-adapted community]] by preventing future wildfires from reaching the town center.<ref name="bold-plan">{{Cite news |first=Laura |last=Bliss |date=August 25, 2020 |title=The Price of Saving Paradise |language=en |work=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-25/a-california-town-s-bold-plan-to-defeat-wildfire |access-date=December 4, 2020}}</ref> The greenbelt would be made up of managed parks and vegetation to allow firefighters to do controlled burns and create a barrier of land without fuel around the town (a [[firebreak]]) so future wildfires have no path inwards. This borderland would serve as a source of recreation and [[Urban green space|greenspace]] for the community. During the wildfire season, the buffer would protect the town.<ref name="bold-plan" />

The Greenbelt hopes to accomplish a number of projects outlined in the plan, including improvements to parks and walking paths, a stronger fuel management plan, and better transportation access for residents and firefighters. The Nature Conservancy hired an independent nonprofit, the Conservation Biology Institute, to conduct a scientific report on the efficacy of such a barrier. According to their models, such greening of the eastern border of Paradise could reduce combustion risks in the town by as much as 64%.<ref name="bold-plan" /><ref>{{Cite report|date=June 2020|title=Paradise Nature-Based Fire Resilience Project Final Report|url=https://www.paradiseprpd.com/files/69c4ad43d/_TNC_CBI+Paradise+Final+Report+June+2020_PUBLIC.pdf|publisher=Paradise Recreation and Park District}}</ref>

The most pressing challenges moving forward included obtaining rights to the mostly private land the Conservation Biology Institute identified as the most ideal location for a greenbelt, and funding the purchase of these properties.<ref name="bold-plan" /> With local fires worsening every year, PRDP is hoping residents will respond to their fire risk reduction models and sell their outskirt properties to the district. With the successful purchase of several properties so far, Dan Efseaff, district manager for PRDP, "hopes at least to create pockets or sections of that full vision."<ref name="bold-plan" /> If this becomes a successful model, the Nature Conservancy hopes to scale up lessons learned from Paradise and inspire other fire-threatened communities to implement their own buffers.<ref name="bold-plan" />