Council Communication

ASHLAND FOREST RESILIENCY PROJECT UPDATE
Meeting Date:	January 12, 2005		Primary Staff Contact:	Keith E. Woodley, 552-2217
Department:	Ashland Fire & Rescue		Email:	woodleyk@ashland.or.us
Contributing Departments:			Secondary Staff Contact:
Approval:	Gino Grimaldi		Email:
Estimate Time:	30 minutes

Statement: The USFS is preparing a Final Environmental Impact Study (FEIS) for the Ashland Forest Resiliency Project (AFR) within the Ashland Watershed. An update on this process has been scheduled for the January 12th City Council special session. District Ranger Linda Duffy, the AFRCA Technical Committee and Ashland Forest Lands Commission, have been invited to be present to describe the ongoing process and respond to questions.
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Background: The purpose of the Ashland Forest Resiliency (AFR) is to protect forest ecosystem values at risk, reduce crown fire potential, and establish forest ecosystem conditions that are more resilient to wildland fire events. AFR has been granted status as a project under the Healthy Forest Restoration Act (HFRA). The City of Ashland (COA), through a diverse group of dedicated community scientists and forest resource specialists known as the "AFRCA Technical Committee", submitted a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) on October 6, 2004, to be evaluated by the USFS. The COA Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) addresses City Council 2005/06 FY Goal # 22, which states: "Establish a stronger, formalized role for the City in the stewardship of entire Ashland Watershed". Under the HFRA, if the at-risk community has adopted a CWPP and the USFS proposed action does not implement the recommendations in the plan regarding the general location and basic method of treatments, the USFS is required to analyze the recommendations in the plan as an alternative to the Proposed Action. The AFRCA group continued to work with the Forest Service reviewers from November 2004 through May 2005 to provide additional detail and clarification regarding the proposal. The Forest Service released its draft analysis on June 24th, 2005, and invited public response within a 45 day comment period which concluded on August 7th, 2005. Following this deadline the COA and USFS jointly agreed to create the opportunity for further collaboration and information sharing between USFS resource specialists and the AFRCA technical committee in preparation for the development of a blended alternative that would combine the best practices of the CWPP and USFS alternatives to meet the purpose and need of the AFR. This work cumulated in a task-oriented work meeting of the parties on November 28, 2005, to discuss the similarities and differences between the two proposals and to pursue opportunities for a "blending" of the two alternatives. The USFS is presently engaged in the preparation of a FEIS for the project. Questions have arisen from the community and involved parties regarding the future process and opportunities for involvement and comment. These questions will be addressed during the council meeting.
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Related City Policies: The 1929 US Forest Service / City of Ashland Memorandum of Understanding (with 1996 / 1999 amendments) provides for City of Ashland participation in any resource activity within the Ashland Watershed.
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Council Options: Information only.
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Staff Recommendation: Information only.
Potential Motions: Information only.
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Attachments: None