ID Number 2007-103
Fuels Treatment Projects Application
NATIONAL FIRE PLAN COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE AND WILDLAND URBAN INTERFACE PROJECTS
Applicant
Applicant/Organization:
Betsy Bloomfield/ The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
Type of Applicant:
L (Nonprofit Organization)
Email:
bbloomfield@tnc.org
Phone:
509-248-6672
FAX:
509-248-6697
Please Call Ahead for FAX:
Off
Address (Street or P. O. Box, City, State, Zip):
507 S. 5th AVE Yakima, WA 98902
Project Coordinator
Project Coordinator (Name and Title):
Betsy Bloomfield, South Central Washington Program Director
Organization/Jurisdiction:
The Nature Conservancy
Email:
bbloomfield@tnc.org
Phone:
509-248-6672
FAX:
509-248-6697
Please Call Ahead for FAX:
Off
Project Information
Project Title:
Tieton Canyon Forest Collaborative Project Phase 1
Project Location:
Naches, WA
County:
Yakima
Congressional District:
4
Latitude:
46.7295
Longitude:
120.6973
State the desired outcome in relation to NFP Goals and the Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). Project Objectives:
The Highway 410 and 12 CWPP goals that this proposal seeks to implement include reducing hazardous fuels and restoring fire adapted ecosystems. These
goals were adopted by the citizen planners as direct principles of the NFP in keeping with the HFRA of 2003. The Tieton Canyon Forest Collaborative
Project(Tieton Project) is a multi-agency effort within the CWPP planning area to manage for mutually agreed upon desired future conditions on agency and
TNC ownership. The long-range goal of our Tieton Project is to scientifically guide the use of prescribed fire and timber harvest to restore stand structure to
levels that will support the natural fire regime and provide protection for surrounding residences, businesses, and public infrasture. To leverage the adjoining
USFS Elderberry fuels treatment project, we will treat, in phases, significant slash debris and piles left by the previous owner across 5,000 of acres of
ponderosa pine forest lands. Phase 1 will treat 1000 acres.
Name of CWPP:
Highways 410 and 12 CWPP
Name of Communit(y/ies) at Risk:
Highway 410 and 12 Communities
Proposed Project Start Date:
07/01/2006
Proposed Project End Date:
10/31/2008
Federal Funding Request:
$171,864.00
Total Project Cost:
$280,758.00
Are you submitting multiple projects?
No
If YES indicate the relationship of the projects to one
another:
If YES, please list the titles of projects by priority and briefly explain their relationship.
Name of Federal, State or Tribal contact with whom you coordinated this
proposal:
Organization/Jurisdiction:
1) James Bailey
USFS/Wentachee NF Naches Ranger District
Phone
509-653-1470
Washington State Department of Natural Resources
2) Len Riggin
Phone
Email jbailey@fs.fed.us
509-925-0969
Email len.riggin@wadnr.gov
3)
Phone
Email
Project Planning Information
Name of Local Coordinating Group:
The Yakima County Local Coordinating Group
For this project, explain the level of cooperation, coordination or strategic planning, through a "Local Coordination Group." If you have not worked with a
local coordination group, why not?
The Yakima LCG discusses project proposals collectively and pre-selects priority projects
List federal lands that are adjacent to the project and proximity.
Wenatchee National Forest abuts project in checkerboard
A) Is there a current hazardous fuels treatment or one that is planned in the next three years on federal land that is adjacent to this project?
Yes
B) Specifically is this project adjacent to a current prescribed burn project or one that is planned in the next three years on Forest Service lands?
Yes
Please indicate planned treatments and associated acres:
Treatment
Machine Pile Burn
Acres
30
Treatment
Broadcast Burn
Acres
1000
Treatment
Acres
Treatment
Acres
Treatment
Acres
0
If you have a treatment type other than standard types above:
Acres
0
Treatment
Project Evaluation Criteria
Applications for funding must include narrative responses that address the following criteria. Be sure you address every one briefly, yet thoroughly.
1. Reducing Hazardous Fuels (40 points)
A. Describe the community infrastructure that will be protected. This should include how this project implements all or part of the CWPP strategy. (15
points)
Response:
Infrastructure identified in this CWPP include 545 summer residences, 1 municipal watershed, 1 state and 1 U.S.
highway with associated infrastructure, power distribution infrastructure, 1 church, 21 administrative sites, and 56
developed recreation facilities and businesses. The CWPP states: "the best approach to minimize the risk to people
and potential property losses is to modify and /or reduce fuels surrounding the home as well as the landscape level."
This phased project seeks to implement this CWPP recommended action.
B. Explain how the proposal reduces fire behavior in high hazard areas by describing the fuels to be disposed or removed, the techniques and timing of the
treatments, and the treatment location relative to the values to be protected. (15 points)
Response:
Targeted fuels consist of both piled and scattered slash. Treatment areas will be inventoried by The Nature
Conservancy during summer/fall 2006 (in-kind task). Sites will be prepared, invasive species treated, and treatments
will be applied during spring and fall 2007 (grant task). Pile burns will be reseeded to native grass. Untreated priority
areas and areas needing followup treatment will be treated during spring/fall 2008(grant task). Treatments are within a
state wildlife recreation area in the CWPP planning area,thereby reducing risk to recreational infrastructure.
C. Explain how the project is designed to reduce smoke production impacts that affect public health. (10 points)
Response:
This slash treatment project contains these fuel burns to controlled sequences that will fall under, and comply with,
local smoke regulations. Leaving these fuels in place without treatment heightens the risk of fire events that would
result in smoke production far in excess of limits set by community standards and associated regulation.
2. Increasing Local Capacity (20 points)
A. How would the implementation of the proposed project improve or lead to the improvement of the local economy in terms of jobs and sustainable
economic activity assuming that these grant funds would be used as "seed monies" for future projects. i.e. How many community supported jobs would be
created and for how long would they expect to last? (10 points)
Response:
The first phase of this project will supply the necessary "seed money" to help support one new full time permanent
local Tieton Project coordinator/burn boss who will be responsible for leveraging other private and public funding
sources to implement the future phases of the project, together with the long term goals of the Tieton Collaboration.
Local work crews will be employed during the two years of the project. Student interns will be used with potential
longer term employment.
B. Will biomass that is produced by the project be utilized; if so, in what manner and how much? (10 points)
Response:
An important part of this project will be an outreach campaign to donate slash materials for two types of use: 1)
support or develop local niche markets for firewood, furniture material, fencing material, landscaping or other
commercial uses will be promoted. 2) Provide a source of coarse woody debris for use in bioengineering projects
including slope stabilization, erosion control, and stream restoration projects. No program income is expected to be
generated from this project.
3. Demonstrating Community and Intergovernmental Collaboration (20 Points)
A. Describe how this project has been collaborated and coordinated with adjacent landowners, local/state/Tribal/federal agencies, and community groups
such as neighborhood associations. (10 points)
Response:
The Tieton Project began when TNC purchased 16 sections of private timberlands in checkerboard ownership within
the Naches RD and began transferring the property to the abutting state wildlife recreational area. With the
public/private checkerboard threat resolved, the public/public/non-profit checkerboard management problem remains.
TNC is coordinating an MOU with the USFS, DNR, WDFW and Yakama Nation to manage across borders. This
project is a cooperative strategic action under the MOU.
B. Describe the communities/partners contributions to this project such as: cash or in-kind contributions, cost share agreements, equipment, or labor
(including volunteer work). (10 points)
Response:
Partner 1 WDFW: Landowner--contributing staff time to treatment and monitoring practices. Partner 2 DNR: Staff
time, timber sale data to landscape goals/prioritization through the Collaboration. Yakama Nation: Staff timedeveloping strategic landscape goals through the Collaboration. Federal Agencies Contributing to the project but not
able to be included as match: USFS contributing fire prescriptions, project planning, GIS data and maps. Further
partner contributions expected under MOU.
4. Managing Cost Efficiency (20 points)
Discuss the process you used to arrive at your cost structure for the main Project Budget areas such as personnel, equipment, supplies and other (i.e.
overhead). In your response please justify: cost per acre, purchase of equipment, percent of overhead, percent of partner or matching funds, and portion of
administration cost. (20 points)
Response:
Personnel: Project coordination/burn boss based on Applicant (non-profit) pay range for two years, split between
Applicant and Federal Agency. Fire crew rates based on USFS documented costs, average of per-acre cost by
treatment type. (Machine pile burning @ 50.00/acre, occurring on 30 acres. Underburning @100$/acre on 1,000
acres.) Fringe: At Applicant's approved benefit rate of 40%. Travel: Estimate for total project travel at $.445/mile and
other incidental travel expenses. Supplies: Field treatment supplies. Applicant will seek donations for most supply
needs. Estimate for native grass seed mix at 15lbs /acre application rate for 50 total acres (burn sites plus margins).
Contractual: Licensed applicator rate of $200/per day based on industry standard; estimate 2 weeks for invasives
treatments. Other: Fuel load assessment to be conducted by grad interns/TNC volunteers. Values based on ongoing
post-doc research project at the Tieton project site. Indirect rate used is 12%. Applicant's negotiated federal rate is
22% and Applicant is waiving a substantial amount so that more funds can be directed to on-the-ground conservation.
Project Work Form
Tasks
Time Frame
Responsible Party
Fuels Inventory, coordinate with USFS to leverage
adjacent federal Elderberry fuels treatment project.
(Non-grant funds)
July-September 2006
The Nature Conservancy with graduate interns
Invasive species inventory (Non-grant funds)
July-September 2006
The NatureConservancy/ volunteers/interns
Prioritize sites, coordinate with USFS to leverage
adjacent federal Elderberry fuels treatment project.
(Non-grant funds)
Prepare sites/ treat invasive plant species (Grant
funded)
Apply treatments (Grant funded)
September 2006
The Nature Conservancy, USFS, DFW, DNR
March/April 2007
The Nature Conservancy
Spring-Fall 2007 (weather-dependent)
The Nature Conservancy
Monitor reseeding response (Non-grant funds)
Spring-Fall 2008
The Nature Conservancy and
volunteers/interns/DFW
Monitor invasive species response (Non-grant
funds)
Spring-Fall 2008
The Nature Conservancy and
volunteers/interns/DFW
Prepare and treat remaining priority sites, re-treat
2007 sites if indicated by monitoring results. (Grant
funded)
Spring-Fall 2008(weather-dependent)
The Nature Conservancy
Project Budget
Cost Category
Description
Federal
Agency
Applicant
DFW
DNR
Partner 1
Partner 2
Partner 3
Total
Personnel
Salaries-regular
Subtotal
$40,000.00
$50,000.00
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$0.00
$100,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$40,000.00
$50,000.00
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$0.00
$100,000.00
$14,000.00
$20,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$34,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$14,000.00
$20,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$34,000.00
$2,800.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$2,800.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$2,800.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$2,800.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$4,650.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$4,650.00
$0.00
$1,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$1,000.00
$4,650.00
$1,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$5,650.00
$2,000.00
$250.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$2,250.00
$90,000.00
$10,000.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$100,000.00
$92,000.00
$10,250.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$102,250.00
$0.00
$4,575.00
$2,500.00
$0.00
$0.00
$7,075.00
$18,414.00
$10,569.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$28,983.00
$18,414.00
$15,144.00
$2,500.00
$0.00
$0.00
$36,058.00
$171,864.00
$96,394.00
$7,500.00
$5,000.00
$0.00
$280,758.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
Fringe Benefits
benefits @ 40%
Subtotal
Travel
@.445/mile
Subtotal
Equipment
captital equipment
Subtotal
Supplies
native grass seed
drip torch/fuel/safety
Subtotal
Contractual
Invasives treatments
Burning treatments
Subtotal
Other
inventory and monitoring
Indirect costs@ 12%
Subtotal
Total Costs
Project (Program) Income 1
(using deductive alternative)
1 Program income is the gross revenue generated by a grant or cooperative agreement supported activity during the life of the grant. Program income can be
made by recipients from fees charged for conference or workshop attendance, from rental fees earned from renting out real property or equipment acquired
with grant or cooperative agreement funds, or from the sale of commodities or items developed under the grant or cooperative agreement. The use of Program
Income during the project period may require prior approval by the granting agency.