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Supervisor Ranalli recommending the Board receive:
1) A presentation provided by Mark Egbert, District Manager of the El Dorado County and Georgetown Divide Resource Conservation Districts on the King Fire Restoration and Reforestation Project and the Sand Fire Restoration and Reforestation Project; and
2) Updates provided by Laurence Crabtree, Eldorado National Forest Supervisor, and, Division Chief Mike Webb and Captain Clint Hamilton, CAL FIRE Amador-El Dorado Unit, on the South Fork American River Cohesive Strategy Project; the Fire Adapted 50 Plan; and the King Fire Restoration Project. (Est. Time: 1 Hr.)
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In August 2014 the Sand Fire burned 4,240 acres of land, and in September and October of 2014 the King Fire burned 97,717 acres of land. In both areas there are many non-industrial forest landowners within the burn perimeters with parcels ranging in size from 10 acres to 160 acres. These owners suffered losses ranging from complete mortality of trees and destruction of homes and other structures to relatively minor losses of forest cover.
The El Dorado County and Georgetown Divide Resource Conservation Districts (RCD's) have conferred with the majority of the affected private landowners to discuss their needs for assistance with reforestation. The affected properties have been inspected in the field. For many landowners, the expense of restoration and reforestation is prohibitive. Some have generated revenue through salvage logging but because of current log prices and limited timber volumes, revenues are generally not adequate to offset restoration costs.
Working on behalf of landowners, and in cooperation with Federal, State and local agencies, including the County of El Dorado, the RCD's have received funding from the State of California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) for restoration and reforestation efforts.
CAL FIRE awarded $793,551.00 for the Sand Fire Restoration and Reforestation Project and $1,893,956.50 for the King Fire Restoration and Reforestation Project.
The overall objective of these projects is to begin the process of reversing the ecological, economic, environmental, aesthetic and social impacts of these fires. Specific objectives include: 1) treat private lands affected by the fires to reduce the potential for wild fire in the future by removing accumulated debris and dead trees; 2) conduct site preparation and planting to re-establish forest cover on the private lands; 3) increase potential carbon sequestration and achieve greenhouse gas emissions reduction through the reforestation of the burned area; 4) identify measures that may be required to protect watershed values and water quality in watersheds that are important sources of domestic water supply; and 5) utilize the project as an educational opportunity for informing others about community responses to wild fire.
On April 14, 2015, Eldorado National Forest Supervisor Laurence Crabtree and Cal Fire Amador-El Dorado Unit Chief Mike Kaslin provided the Board with presentations on the South Fork American River Cohesive Strategy Project and the "Fire Adapted 50" Plan. They also provided an update on the King Fire Restoration Project.
Eldorado National Forest Supervisor Crabtree and Division Chief Mike Webb and Captain Clint Hamilton from the CAL FIRE Amador-El Dorado Unit will provide the Board with new information on these projects.