Is This Ironic Or What?

I've been reading about the California fire issue for a couple of weeks now, mainly refreshing my memory because these huge life threatening fires have been going on since 2017.

I read one article, where a man said that his father had to pay $35,000 to have a small grove of trees cut down and the wood hauled away, and that the exorbitant cost was due to the "byzantine" environmental regulations in place in California, which no one seems willing to change.

I can understand not clearing the land yourself if you are in your 80's and can't operate a chain saw. Otherwise, I simply don't understand why the residents aren't clearing their own brush, and why the forestry service isn't doing the same, or asking for volunteers if they don't have enough personnel.

I was part owner of a very wooded property here in Massachusetts, and every year we had to get down into the woods and pick up fallen branches. We snapped and saved most of them for our firepit, and leaves and smaller brush was composted.

The ex had a chainsaw, and he took down the dead trees, mainly because they were unsightly. Again, we saved some of the wood for our firepit, and I understand they can't do that in California because it is THAT dry, but I fail to understand why they can't do the clearing and put the wood and brush into Bagsters and have the wood and brush hauled to an appropriate dump site. Must be one of those byzantine environmental regulations, right?

I also understand that property owners sometimes own stretches of land where it's just not clear if the road crews are supposed to take care of dead or overhanging branches. The rule in Massachusetts is that if a tree or branch has grown over the electric lines, the city or state is responsible for hiring tree crews to take down those branches.

I saw the same video as everyone else, where a branch from a Eucalyptus tree broke off, fell on an electrical line, and started the latest fire.

And last night, the wind was so high here in Massachusetts our power went out three times during the night.

I'm just speculating, but I would say that if you know you are going to have Santa Anna winds every single year, then wouldn't it make sense to cut down ALL the trees that overhang the electric wires? Then they wouldn't NEED to cut off the electricity. Or is their electric just falling off the telephone poles because it is so old and rotten?

I think they need some lawmakers with actual brains to sit down and figure out how to do that.