SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Lukins Brothers Water Company (LBWC) is aiming to be the first water company in the basin that is Firewise certified. It’s already joined the Fire Adapted Communities program and with new legislation, owner and president Jennifer Lukins hopes it could potentially lower insurance fees and water rates for the community.
Born and raised in Tahoe, Lukins says that she began thinking about this as a result of the Caldor Fire. “As a small water system, our resources are limited,” she said. Despite never filing a claim, the insurance rates increased by over 200% after the Caldor Fire. “That burden falls on the rate payers, and it makes you sick to your stomach to see such a ridiculous amount to pay.”
As part of the California Water Association’s executive board, she sought to address the larger issue of water affordability and insurance issues through legislation. Lukins and the California Water Association supported AB428 in the California legislature, which essentially allowed regulated water corporations to participate in risk pooling insurance—a bill that passed last October.
“It’s a huge risk to insure utilities, and a lot of that isn’t the utilities’ risk,” said Lukins. “We provide the pipes underground and the risk lives above us. So, I thought, ‘How can I make my water system and community as safe as possible?'” That led Lukins to seek out Firewise and the Fire Adapted Community program, which focus on reducing wildfire risk through neighborhood-level mitigation.
With the help of the Tahoe Resource Conservation District, LBWC’s service area was mapped out for Fire Adapted Community management, which will have a committee and outreach like Fallen Leaf Lake’s. Like other FACs, LBWC will also be setting up a cleanup day on June 13, which will provide the neighborhoods they serve with free chipper service, green waste pickup and access to help with defensible space.
“We’re the first water system to be seeking Firewise status,” said Lukins. “This really stemmed from trying to find a solution to lower insurance rates.” She says that it could lower insurance rates anywhere between 10 to 30%. For Lukins, that would translate to $100,000 in savings on the lower end. Homeowners who are participating could also get discounts on their insurance by participating in Firewise.
Lukins said she’d learned from water systems in other places, such as Paradise and the effort to the Tubbs Fire. “Water systems work together. All our local ones meet regularly and work together on emergency response. This is just another step in hardening and protecting our community.”
The goal this year is to get to the 20% of residents participating, with the aim to increase by 10% every year. Lukins said that they serve nearly 1,000 customers, so they hope each property will get one hour of defensible space cleanup done.
“We’re super fortunate in Tahoe. We have a great community, and everyone just wants to make it a better place,” said Lukins, who feels optimistic about their outreach and getting locals involved.
Lukins believes other water systems could join Firewise as well, and it’s possible that once LBWC sets the precedent, more water systems may follow suit—especially as the water affordability crisis grows more critical in California with rising wildfire risks and insurance costs.
Lukins Brothers Water Company’s first ever Neighborhood cleanup day will take place on Saturday, June 13 from 9 a.m. till 12 p.m. You can find more details on their website at https://lukinswater.com/firewise/
