The Forest Service has been working on a major plan for addressing Forest and Wildlife health in the Lake Wenatchee area.  Wed eve there will be a online meeting to go over the plan.  The press release on the plan is below.  There will be major thinning and regular prescribed burns;  removal of many unused roads that contribute to sediment run off into salmon streams.  This meeting will kick off a 30 day public comment period.

Check out the Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project page to view the project interactive story map; learn how to access the virtual meeting details, as well as to submit comments on the project.  The meeting will be available on Wed at 5:00 at this link  https://tinyurl.com/UWPPMeeting

Leavenworth, WA (January 14, 2021) — Twenty miles north of Leavenworth, Wenatchee River District Ranger Jeff Rivera hikes through a swath of forest at the boundary between national forest land, and state or private lands. This swath was thinned to remove ladder fuels to create a safe anchor point for firefighting resources and reduce the risks of fire spreading from national forest to other lands. This area is part of the Upper Wenatchee Pilot Project Environmental Assessment, a plan for improving forest health and returning good fire to the landscape on over 74,000 acres, including 62,500 acres of national forest land. Proactive thinning and prescribed fire are planned in key areas throughout the planning area to enhance fire protection efforts of private property and other natural resources described in the newly released draft analysis for the Upper Wenatchee area.

 

“Forest conditions in the Upper Wenatchee area need proactive management to be wildfire resilient as well as restored and maintained in healthy, functioning condition,” said Rivera. “Wildlife and fish habitat, water quality will also benefit from returning fire to this landscape and other proposed restoration actions,” River added.

 

  • Over the next 10 years, good fire will be returned to the landscape, reducing hazardous fuels with approximately 2000 to 4500 acres burned per year.
  • Proactive thinning and prescribed fire will reduce the high-intensity wildfire risk to thousands of acres of adjacent private and state lands, and homes in the nearby communities. Approximately 54 miles of shaded fuel-break would be developed to slow fire movement, reduce the potential for crown fire initiation, protect habitat and improve fire control capabilities
  • Thinning treatments (both commercial and non-commercial) are planned across 32,321 acres to help restore dense, overcrowded forests. Resource managers will be using a condition-based approach to identify final treatment areas, so acres represent an estimate of the potential upper limit of what could potentially be treated.  Stand regeneration treatments are planned on 2581 acres.
  • The project is projected to generate approximately $10.3 million dollars in timber value at the mill and support potentially 16 jobs.
  • Aquatic habitat would be improved throughout the watershed with the replacement of more than 30 culverts and/or removal of 101 fish passage barriers or stream crossings, and road drainage improvements. Potentially more than 10 miles of in-stream fish habitat could be opened and further improved with wood placement and side channel improvements.
  • There are 175 miles of national forest system roads within the project area that would remain open to provide for sustainable and safe forest recreation access. An estimated 65 miles of road have been identified for decommissioning, and 14 miles identified for closure. These actions will help reduce road densities, and sediment delivery to streams and to improve hydrologic flows in watershed, and address impacts to other resources, such as wildlife habitat quality.

 

“We want to make sure folks have a chance to really look over and understand the project, so all of the documents and an interactive project map are now available online,” said District Ranger, Jeff Rivera. “We invite you to comment on the Upper Wenatchee Restoration project and are looking forward to hearing from the community to assist us in crafting the best possible decision.”

 

In accordance with federal regulations, the Forest Service will offer a 30-day comment period on the draft Environmental Analysis (EA), which will begin with a legal notice published the Wenatchee World, the comment period will close on February 12, 2021. A final EA and draft decision are expected in the spring 2021.

 

In lieu of an in-person public meeting an online informational meeting is planned for Wednesday, January 20, 2021 from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

 

 

Photo Credit: Ryan Anderson, Washington Resource Conservation & Development/NCWFHC

For more information regarding the project, please contact project lead Paul Kelley, Environmental Coordinator at 509-548-2583