Pathway to Fire Resilient Landscapes Northern Sonoma Coast Planning Unit TA
Project Overview
Basics
Pathway to Fire Resilient Landscapes Northern Sonoma Coast Planning Unit TA
- Address Climate Change and Extreme Event Effects, Impacts and Vulnerabilities
- Document and Share the Sustainable Economic Benefits of Working Landscapes and Natural Areas
- Ensure that Disadvantaged and Underrepresented Communities Benefit from Initiatives
- Integrate Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Collaboration with Tribes
- Prioritize Plans, Projects and Actions that Result in Long Term Sustainability of Jobs & Revenues
- Protect and Enhance Forest Based Carbon
- Protect and Enhance Watersheds and Ecosystems that Provide Water Quality and Supply Benefits
- Respect Local Autonomy and Local Knowledge in NCRP Planning and Implementation
- Work across Jurisdictional Boundaries to Achieve Common Objectives Effectively and Efficiently
NCRP RFFC Technical Assistance (DOC)
Completed
The forested landscape of the Sonoma coast is characterized by overly dense timber stands and excess fuel loading. This area was damaged by wildfires in 54, 65, 78, and 2020. Following the 1978 Creighton Ridge Fire, approximately 200 acres of Ponderosa and Coulter Pines were planted, funded by the State of CA. The concept was to establish a forest of ponderosa pine to serve as ‘nurse trees’ to allow Douglas fir and redwood trees to fill in, allowing for removal of the pines. There has been little management and the pine stands are about 40 years old and still growing densely, rendering them vulnerable to wildfire and threatening the safety of communities and natural and cultural resources.
2024
2024
2024
11/4/2024
Project Attributes
General Information
Project Description Narrative (1,000 character limit)
Approximately 200 acres of Ponderosa and Coulter Pine Plantations were planted between 1979 and 1985. In all, there are about 40 plantations spread across the general area of the Creighton Ridge Fire. These trees were planted to help repair pyrolyzed soils and create shade in areas that can reach over 100 degrees in the summer months. The plan was to plant redwoods and Douglas-fir in the understory to help them adapt to extreme conditions. Almost none of these acres had any follow-up either through the planned replanting, or precommercial thinning. Approximately 30% of these stands are in need of full removal, while others are in need of thinning. This project proposes to thin most of these stands by 50% to allow for them to recover and grow into the site. Treatments would include thinning of brush, pruning, and interplanting. This project builds upon a multi-phase, collaborative long-term program designed to reduce wildfire risk and promote healthy ecosystems at a landscape scale.
Solutions
Capacity - Technical Assistance, Capacity - Year-round Local Capacity, Community Health and Safety - Fuel Breaks, Fire Resilient Forests - Fuel Management
Spatial Information
Tribal Region
None
Project Size (Acres)
200
acres
Location
Organizations
| Contract Manager | |
| Funders | |
| Partners |
|
| Project Sponsor | |
| Local and/or Political Support | Gold Ridge Fire Protection District, County of Sonoma 5th District Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, Timber Cove Fire Protection District, North Sonoma Coast Fire, Sonoma RCD, Cazadero Community Services District, Local HOAs, Sea View Ranch Roads Committee |
Contacts
| Contact | |
|---|---|
| Additional Representative |
|
| Authorized Contact |
|
Project Benefit Performance Measures
Expected Project Benefit Performance Measures
| Capacity Enhancement - # of projects | 1 count | |
| Capacity Enhancement - Type(s) of CE | Type: Technical Assistance | 1 |
| Grant applications submitted - # of proposals | 1 | |
| Jobs created or retained (FTE) | 0.1 | |
| Technical Assistance - Type(s) of TA | Type of Technical Assistance: Grant applications | 1 |
| Technical Assistance - Type(s) of TA | Type of Technical Assistance: Plan development | 1 |
Reported Project Benefit Performance Measures
| Capacity Enhancement - # of projects | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Units | |
| 1 | count | |
| Total | 1 | count |
| Capacity Enhancement - Type(s) of CE | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type | 2024 | Units |
| Technical Assistance | 1 | number |
| Total | 1 | number |
| Grant applications submitted - # of proposals | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Units | |
| 3 | number | |
| Total | 3 | number |
| Jobs created or retained (FTE) | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Units | |
| 0.1 | number | |
| Total | 0.1 | number |
| Technical Assistance - Type(s) of TA | ||
|---|---|---|
| Type of Technical Assistance | 2024 | Units |
| Grant applications | 3 | number |
| Plan development | 1 | number |
| Total | 4 | number |
Financials
Budget
| Comment: | None provided |
|---|
Reported Expenditures
| 2024 | Total | |
|---|---|---|
| NCRP Technical Assistance (CA Dept of Conservation) | $15,000.00 | $15,000.00 |
| Grand Total | $15,000.00 | $15,000.00 |
| Note: | None provided |
|---|
Project Types
Project Types
This project is being added to Sonoma County CWPP and will contribute available data, mapping, analysis, and monitoring for the region.
The project connects to regional wildfire resiliency work of Sonoma Land Trust, The Wildlands Conservancy, CA State Parks, and Kashia Band of Pomo Indians. Fuel reduction projects are underway on four subdivided ranches including Gualala Ranch, Navarro Ranch, and Sea View Ranch in Cazadero, and Muniz Ranches in Jenner. These projects are funded by a CAL FIRE Wildfire Prevention grant. Partners on the 2022 CAL FIRE Wildfire Prevention grant proposal are Kashia Band of Pomo Indians, Save the Redwoods League, Richardson Ranch LLC, and Rips Redwoods. Awards have not yet been announced.
CRCF is leading the way for fire prevention on the north Sonoma coast. We are working with four local fire services, from Cazadero to the Mendocino County border, to help build capacity for this work in their individual districts and together on fire prevention planning throughout the region. Working with local HOAs, community groups, and Kashia Band of Pomo Indians, we are providing through these projectsg trainings and tools to help build a local workforce and reduce fire risks. Partnerships with local, regional, and state agencies are building support for project development and funding.
CRFC is working with multiple operators in the area to develop a local workforce for fuel reduction work. We are partnering with Fire Forward on prescribed fire offering trainings and opportunities for hand crews and local operators for site preparation. Through our partnership with UCCE, we are developing a grazing school to expand the network of community grazers who can provide contract grazing for fuel reduction and vegetation management.
Seven community workshops were held in 2022 with more than 150 people in attendance. Two prescribed fires brought more than 100 local residents and community groups together for workdays, trainings, and the fire event. Through our partnership with UCCE, CRFC developed a grazing school to increase the network of community grazers in local communities along the coast. CRFC executive director will present a talk on collaboration at the Sonoma County Forest Working Group Conference in June 2023 further increasing support and capacity throughout the north coast.
The collaborative project aims to improve forest ecosystem health and minimize the impacts of future wildfires. Project activities include the construction of shaded fuel breaks, targeted grazing and prescribed burning as tools to reduce hazardous fuels and improve soil health, biochar workshops and demonstrations, and partnering with a local forest collective that utilizes small diameter trees for designed collections of wood products.
Phase I of this multi-phased project was a fuel reduction and evacuation route shaded fuel break. This project was prioritized in an evacuation planning meeting with CalFire and local fire chiefs. It is the main access to four rural communities and a model for similar projects in the region. Creating defensible space and home hardening are at the core of fall community outreach meetings.
This project is a part of a multi-phase program designed to renew and restore natural ecosystems that have been degraded, damaged or destroyed by fire and human activities.
There are a range of projects which could include thinning, pruning, fuels reduction (by hand labor, mechanized labor, livestock, prescribed fire, piles and herbicide applications), planting and restoration efforts to restore the landscape from several significant wildfires since the 1950s, the current pest problems which range from Sudden Oak Death, pitch canker, and several insect issues, to expanding forest cover to areas which have been cleared for historic practices. The general idea is to thin out overstocked stands, encourage multi-aged stands, & reduce competition for healthy stands.
Project Details
Attachments
No attachments
No attachments
No attachments
NCRP TA Proposal - Coast Ridge Northern Planning Unit TA
- Uploaded On
- 8/4/2023
- File Type
- Description
No attachments
Notes
No Notes entered.
External Links
No External Links entered.