Tree Planting and Public Review of Proposed Forest Health plan
Tree Planting takes place as Part of Fire Recovery Efforts
The Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests has partnered with the National Forest Foundation to plant approximately 400,000 seedlings in June within burn areas from the five large fires of 2020 that burned over 25% of the Forest.
Some of these seedlings were already planted on 235 acres of the Boulder Ranger within the Lefthand and CalWood fire areas. Planting is expected on 1,100 acres of the Sulphur Ranger District, with around 200 acres of Williams Fork and around 900 acres of East Troublesome targeted. The Cameron Peak Fire burn area on our Canyon Lakes Ranger District will see planting on around 600 acres. Planting is taking place in areas that are less likely to naturally revegetate.
Most of this work will be done with contractors and some in areas that were previously mulched to help stabilize the soil even more. Planting is just one piece of the fire recovery efforts that continue from the 2020 fires with our partners. Fire recovery information is available online.
Forest Service releases St. Vrain Forest Health Project
planning documents for public review
The Roosevelt National Forest’s Boulder Ranger District, today, released initial project documents for the Saint Vrain Forest Heath Project. Public scoping and comment are critical components of the National Environmental Policy Act process, commonly referred to as “NEPA.”
The formal 30-day public comment period is expected to begin June 8. The proposal creates a framework for considering small National Forest management projects across the St. Vrain Valley, from Lyons to Meeker Park, that would complement work being completed on neighboring lands. Embracing a “conditions-based approach,” this proposal would allow the Forest Service to be responsive to future community requests for forest management in the St. Vrain Watershed while remaining adaptive to a changing environment and protecting forest resources.
The Saint Vrain Forest Health Project spent a long time in development. Years of discussion, field trips and input from scientists, area residents, partners and community leaders led the way forward.
The proposal package, which includes about 300 pages of project information, scientific research, maps and illustrations, outlines a shared vision for this national forest landscape: a “Desired Future Condition.” It provides concepts about what different habitats should exist across an entire watershed and provides a toolbox of appropriate management actions to achieve that vision.
“This project is about preparing our communities and landscapes to be resilient to wildfire,” McLaughlin said. “We can proactively foster a greater diversity of habitats, giving our watersheds a better chance of recovering from fire when it happens. We can bring fire back in managed ways to benefit the ecosystem. And we can prepare our communities and watersheds for changing climates.”
Learn more about the St. Vrain Forest Health Project through our interactive story map. Project documents are available for review at www.fs.usda.gov/goto/StVrain.
