US Forest Service Completes First Phase of CLERC-Funded Roadside Hazard Tree Removal Project

​After being severely impacted by the 2018 River Fire, the US Forest Service began looking for partners to help restore the land within the Mendocino National Forest. CLERC stepped up and worked with the staff at the Upper Lake Ranger District to include roadside hazard tree abatement on federal lands as part of the Lake County Hazardous Fuel Reduction Project – Phase 1.

Drone photo showing roadside hazard tree abatement work completed as part of the Lake County Hazardous Fuel Reduction Project - Phase 1

​The scope of work for this portion of the project includes 500 acres of roadside hazard tree abatement in areas burned in wildfire. The goals of the project include improved ingress/egress, reduction of roadside fuel loading, and creation of fuel breaks to slow the spread of future wildfires.

Work consists of mechanical felling and piling of standing dead trees within 200 feet of key roads within the Mendocino National Forest. Several routes cleared with the first contract are identified in the Lake County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) as important for maintaining ingress/egress.

Typical roadside conditions in the Mendocino National Forest prior to treatment.

After the River Fire, travel through the forest became difficult due to the substantial number of downed trees.

​The contractor completed the first contract of 175 acres and a contract has been awarded by the USFS for the remaining 325 acres of work, which will be completed by the end of 2023. The US Forest Service is planning to burn the piles produced by the project as soon as conditions permit. Control lines have been installed around the piles in preparation for burning during the winter of 2022-23.

Inflation Drives Up Costs, Federal Funds Come to the Rescue

​For the initial 175 acres, bids came in $600/acre higher than budgeted in the grant.  This was largely due to the passage of time between the time the grant application was submitted and the time the project was implemented (about 2 years), in addition to pandemic-induced labor supply chain issues, and record high inflation across the economy as a whole. However, the USFS was able to provide federal funds to cover the difference in contractor costs, which resulted in over $105,000 being invested in Lake County that otherwise would have been spent in a different community.

More Projects Planned

​With this successful collaboration under our belts, CLERC and our partners at the Upper Lake Ranger District are excited about working together on future projects. CLERC has secured additional funding for work within the Mendocino National Forest as part of the Lake County Wildfire Resilience Project Phase 1.

USFS Silviculturist examines two piles of logs created as part of the Lake County Hazardous Fuel Reduction Project, Phase 1.

​The USFS also just recently completed the environmental review for the North Shore Restoration Project, which will facilitate ecosystem restoration on over 40,000 acres of federal lands. The USFS and CLERC have entered into a Master Participation Agreement in order to allow CLERC to play a greater role in implementing projects on federal lands, in addition to securing the funding.