The Move to Large Landscape Projects
In 2016, YSS began to actively advocate for a “larger” landscape pilot project to increase mechanical thinning treatments by 5,000 acres per year and prescribed fire by 3,000 acres per year above the current average treatment levels attained by the Stanislaus National Forest. In 2019, the FS proposed an approach for treating 1.5M acres on multiple forests over a period of 15 years. In response to this proposal, YSS offered a modified “larger” landscape pilot project.
Ultimately, in 2020, a “large” landscape project was drafted. Over the course of the following two years, YSS and the FS worked collaboratively to develop a plan for 55,000 acres, most of which is in the YSS footprint. Called “Social and Ecological Resilience Across the Landscape” (SERAL 1.0), this project is part of the larger Stanislaus Landscape which covers a 305,000-acre planning area. You can find out more about SERAL 1.0 by clicking here.
The Stanislaus Landscape project aims to apply a full suite of needed treatments to restore forest resilience at a landscape scale. These treatments include mastication, biomass removal, machine piling for burning, hand piling for burning, hand thinning, timber harvest, hazard tree removal, prescribed fire, and fuel break construction and maintenance. Combined, these efforts will reduce hazardous fuels and create a landscape that can better withstand disturbances such as wildfire, insects, disease, and drought conditions, while also protecting local communities, providing for critical species habitat, supporting forest use and recreational opportunities, and fueling local existing and expanding businesses. You can find more information about the Stanislaus Landscape project by clicking here.
Funding from multiple sources has enabled much work to be done within SERAL 1.0. While work is still underway in this portion of the landscape, planning for SERAL 2.0 has been undertaken and some initial prep work has begun. You can find out more about SERAL 2.0 by clicking here.
Large landscape work is important for multiple reasons. It leverages resources by completing NEPA and planning documents on a large scale. It allows for contracting across large swaths of land rather than one small project at a time. It provides a way to accomplish a meaningful amount of work that can positively impact the spread of wildfire and the effects of insects and drought. Working at landscape scale is also more effective at protecting local communities and infrastructure, providing for critical species habitat, and supporting forest use and recreational opportunities. Ultimately, it greatly improves the health and sustainability of the forest and the watershed.
Untreated vs. Treated
