Gibbons names three to Tahoe fire commission

Gov. Jim Gibbons has named three Nevadans to a commission that will oversee implementation of the California-Nevada Tahoe Basin Fire Commission recommendations.

The bi-state commission was created by Gibbons and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger after the Angora fire, which burned more than 3,100 acres and destroyed 254 homes at South Lake Tahoe.

Nevada’s members of the oversight commission are former Tahoe Regional Planning Agency member Coe Swobe, Nevada State Forester Pete Anderson and Bud Hicks, president of the Glenbrook Homeowners Association.

Gibbons said they were selected in part for their diverse knowledge of issues facing the Tahoe Basin.

The bistate commission presented its final report to the two governors in May, making a total of 90 recommendations in categories including environmental protection, fire prevention, governance, fuels management and funding.

Gibbons has already directed state agency heads to implement the recommendations they have control over. And he has signed an emergency declaration designed to help agencies help local governments on the Nevada side of the basin.