REDDING, CA – Redding Rancheria Economic Development Corporation (RREDCO) has established the Redding Rancheria Environmental Vegetation Management Corporation (RREVMCO), a company dedicated to the care and preservation of the natural environment. The company is especially focused on the provision of services aimed at protecting against the ravages of wildfires that have devastated California and many other states.
“I love being outdoors, but it distressed me to see that the half-burned trees from the last fire became the fuel for the next one,” said Jeremy Hayward, RREDCO President. “It was clear that something more needed to be done. When I met the leaders of Essential Vegetation Management Services (EVM), I knew we had found the right solution. Additionally, these types of projects honor Redding Rancheria’s guiding values of Serving Others, Working Together, and Doing What’s Right.”
EVM’s leadership has decades of experience in providing vegetation management services that ensure public safety and preservation of the natural environment.
“There’s a science to doing this work correctly,” said Stephen Cieslewicz, EVM Director, a past President of the Utility Arborist Association. “Through collaboration with our partners at CalFire and various FireSafe and FireWise Councils, we know we are utilizing the best and most effective practices in the field.”
Cieslewicz was the lead investigator of the 2003 NorthEast Blackout and has been involved in designing and implementing vegetation management programs for more than 40 years. He’s also been involved in drafting the regulations that govern the industry.
“The main reason we do this work is safety – we are driven to protect the safety of the public, the environment, and, of course, our workers,” said Lawrence Kahn, an EVM Director, and Director of Tulane University Law School’s Utility Vegetation Management Initiative. “That’s why we’ve developed and implemented a culture that promotes health and safety above all else.”
Effective January 2023, RREVMCO and EVM are working together with a singular mission – to take the wildfire challenge head-on, perform the highest quality work, perform it in the safest possible manner, and ensure that their work is environmentally sound and culturally sensitive. Together, they will work to combat the threat of wildfires by creating defensible space, shaded fuel breaks, access road clearing, utility pole clearing, and eliminating excess fuel from the forest floors. By focusing on root causes, they will save lives and property, and promote a thriving environment.
Redding Rancheria is a sovereign nation located in Redding, CA. Redding Rancheria Economic Development Corporation (RREDCO) was established in 1995 to ensure economic vitality, create economic and employment opportunities, and further the tribe’s interest in self-determination and self-sufficiency. The tribe looks to RREDCO as its business arm for diversification of investments. RREDCO is responsible for the acquisition and development of new or existing businesses.
