Project Summary Form Id Number 2006-029 NATIONAL FIRE PLAN COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE AND WILDLAND URBAN-INTERFACE PROJECTS Application for Fuels Treatment Projects Applicant Applicant/Organization: Jacksonville Woodlands Association Phone: (111 111-1111 x 1111) Type of Applicant: (enter appropriate letter in box) L 541-899-1710 FAX: (111 111-1111 x 1111) A. State B. County C. Municipal D. Township E. Interstate Please Call Ahead For FAX H. Independent School District I. State-Controlled Institution of Higher Learning J. Private University K. Indian Tribe L. Nonprofit Organization Address (Street or P. O. Box, City, State, Zip): P.O. Box 1210 Jacksonville, OR 97530 Project Coordinator Project Coordinator (Name and Title): Mr. Tony Hess JWA Treasurer/Board member Organization/Jurisdiction: Jacksonville Woodlands Association Phone: (111 111-1111 x 1111) 541-899-1710 FAX: (111 111-1111 x 1111) Call Ahead For FAX Email: thess2001@charter.net Project Information Project Title: Jacksonville Woodlands Fuel Reduction - South Proposed Project Start Date: 03/15/2006 Federal Funding Request: $ 265,200 Proposed Project End Date: 05/30/2008 Total Project Funding: $ 272,200 Are you submitting multiple projects? If so, please explain and prioritize: Yes - Treatment areas are divided geographically with area south of Jacksonville receiving 2nd priority. Brief Project Summary: Who, What, Where, Desired Outcomes in relation to NFP Goals and Community Risk Assessment and Mitigation Plans (This should summarize page 2). JWA in conjunction with private landowners and in cooperation with ODF, BLM and DEQ propose to implement fuel reduction treatments on 330 acres of private lands in the Jacksonville Wildland Urban interface. Desired outcome is to reduce the chance of a catastrophic fire occurring in the area by implementing fuel reduction treatments using a landscape aproach. Treatments would tie in with previous treatments by JWA, City of Jacksonville, BLM, ODF and private landowners. They would also follow through on needs identified in the Jacksonville Woodlands GMP, Rogue Valley Council of Governments's Jackson Creek watershed assessment and Oregon Department of Forestry's plan for Oregon Forestland Urban Interface Fire Protection Act for Jackson County. Project Location: Latitude: -122.977 Longitude: 42.2929 County: Jackson Name of Federal, State or Tribal contact with whom you coordinated this proposal: Federal Congressional District: 2 Telephone number of Contact: Ed Reilly - Medford BLM - Ashland RA 541-618-2384 Ext. Rita Dyer - Rogue River/Siskiyou NF 541-592-4020 Ext. Ext. Project Narrative Description Applications for funding must include a narrative response that describes the proposal. Please do not submit responses longer than one page, single space, 12-pitch font. Describe project including, but not limited to: x project relationship to the community risk assessment and x project location (e.g., Watershed, Address mitigation plan neighboring community) these items as applicable: x anticipated outcomes x amount or extent of actions (acres, number of homes, etc.) x project timeline and matching or contributed funds x community partners and their role(s) x proponent’s ability to complete project 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? JWA has consulted and worked with ODF, DEQ, BLM, City of Jacksonville and private landowners. Is this project adjacent to a current prescribed burn project on federal lands or to one that is planned within the next three years? (Yes/No) Yes Please indicate planned treatments and associated acres: * Treatment Hand Piling Acres 230 Treatment Hand Pile Burning Acres 230 Treatment Mastication/Mowing Acres 100 Treatment Acres 0 If you have a treatment type other than standard types above: Other 1 Acres 0 Other 2 Acres 0 Project is located in the Wildland Urban interface of Jacksonville, OR. Anticipated outcomes include the reduction of hazardous fuels to minimize the chance of a catastrophic fire occurring in the vicinity of Jacksonville. Homes, property, the Jackson Creek watershed and the City of Jacksonville would all benefit from the decreased chance of a catastrophic wildfire occurring in the area. Community partners include private landowners that are volunteering to have their lands treated to not only protect their homes and property but also the community and City of Jacksonville. This is being done by increasing the effectiveness of the treated area by having a buffer area of reduced fuels and fire hazard surrounding the City of Jacksonville. DEQ is also a community partner with the project by providing local burn weather forecasts and air quality monitoring in and near the project since it is located within and just outside an AQMA boundary. This project relates to the community risk assessment and mitigation plan by complementing and following through on needs identified and recommendations for fuel reduction activities outlined in the Jacksonville Woodlands General Management Plan developed by Jacksonville Woodlands Association, Southern Oregon Land Conservancy, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Jackson County Parks Department, City of Jacksonville and private citizens. This project also follows through on fuel reduction needs identified in the Jackson Creek Watershed Assessment developed by the Rogue Valley Council of Governments in cooperation with a Citizens Advisory Committee. This project also plans to treat properties identified by Oregon Department of Forestry's plan under the Oregon Forestland Urban Interface Fire Protection Act for Jackson County. These properties are those identified as an extreme fire risk within the wildland urban interface. The proposed project ties in with, compliments and enhances previous fuel reduction treatments done by JWA and other public agencies [BLM, ODF and City of Jacksonville] and private landowners by filling in the gaps by treating an additional 330 acres of private land. Doing so will help provide a continuous buffer area where fuels have been reduced in Wildland Urban interface around the City of Jacksonville. Project timeline is to have the endangered plant species [FRGE] surveys done in spring 2006, the cutting/piling and slashbuster work done in winter 2006/spring 2007 and the piles burned winter 2007/spring 2008 with DEQ providing local burn weather forecasts and air quality monitoring. DEQ monitoring and weather forecast costs will be covered under the first grant. In kind donations of time, labor and project management by JWA would be performed during the life of the project. JWA has already demonstrated its ability to effectively follow through and complete a project of this nature with the previous grants it has received through the NFP. JWA has done so in a cost effective manner by doing fuels treatments on 150% the amount of area as originally proposed under previous NFP grants that JWA has received. Outreach has been over 95% effective in partnering with private landowners to have this work done on their properties. JWA has also effectively managed its previous NFP grants it has received with 99.8% of the grant money going towards on the ground fuel reduction implementation. Project Evaluation Criteria Applications for funding must include narrative responses that address the following three criteria. Be sure you address every one briefly, yet thoroughly. Limit your responses to the area provided. 1. Reducing Hazardous Fuels (50 points) A. Describe the community infrastructure that will be protected. B. Explain how the proposal reduces fire behavior in high hazard areas by describing the fuels to be disposed or removed, and the techniques and timing of the treatments. C. How will the proposed treatments be maintained in future years? D. How will you use multi-party monitoring to improve this and future projects? Response: A] Homes and property will be better protected due to a reduced chance of a catastrophic fire occurring in the Wildland Urban interface. A landscape approach is being used so whole properties are being treated with emphasis on treating large blocks of adjoining landowners. B] Much of the area hasn't seen fire for 100+ years so is unnaturally dense with brush and trees. Treatments include removing ladder fuels by removing understory brush and trees, pruning trees and thinning dense pockets of vegetation so that the remaining vegetation stays healthy and vigorous. The canopy is retained to inhibit resprouting of brush. Hand crews will cut and pile in the winter with the piles burned the following winter. In less steep areas where the endangered plant species Gentner's Fritillaria and noxious weeds aren't present there may be some slashbuster work done with approving private landowners. C] Treatments in the future 10 to 20 years should be minimal since project was designed to minimize resprouting of brush and understory species that served as ladder fuels. Also dense pockets of vegetation were thinned so the remaining vegetation stays healthy and vigorous. Many of the private landowners have done some fuel reduction work in the past but the amount and scope of the work to be done is beyond their physical and financial abilities to do. This project will immediately reduce the fire hazard while enabling many of the landowners to be able to perform any future maintenance work themselves to keep the area less of a fire hazard. D] BLM and Oregon Department of Agriculture Botanists are currently doing monitoring of endangered plant species in areas where fuel reduction activities have occurred. Outcome of monitoring will help evaluate how the project design features have worked in implementation of fuel reduction treatments in endangered plant species habitat. JWA and the City of Jacksonville have implemented monitoring projects on their lands to document effectiveness of treatments over time. DEQ will do localized air quality monitoring and provide local burn weather forecasting by a meteorologist since project falls within and is adjacent to an AQMA where air quality is a concern. Such monitoring and forecasting should help provide information and a basis for other communities planning fuel reduction activities in and near AQMA's. Project Evaluation Criteria 2. Increasing Local Capacity (25 points) A. How would the proposal improve or lead to the improvement of the local economy in terms of jobs and sustainable economic activity? B. How many jobs are expected to be created or retained and for how long? (Please distinguish between essentially year-round and seasonal jobs). C. What tools and skills will be gained or utilized as a result of this project? D. Will biomass be utilized; if so, in what manner and how much? Response: A] This proposal improves the local economy by providing jobs to local contractors doing fuel reduction work and endangered plant surveys. A meteorologist would also be employed by the DEQ and partially funded when providing local burn weather forecasts during the pile burning phase of the project. B] Jobs created would be seasonal in nature and provide work for approximately 40 people up to 4 months time over a two year period. C] Contractors will become familiar and build upon their experience of doing fuel reduction treatments in SW Oregon. This project will enhance their ability to do this kind of work under other contracts and grants in the area. This project also intends to demostrate the feasibility of doing fuel reduction activites with burning in and near a designated AQMA by utilizing local burn weather forecasting and air quality monitoring. D] Biomass will mostly be piled and burned due to small size and economics of removal and due to restrictions on using mechanized equipment in endangered plant species habitat. Some private landowners will utilize some material of firewood size for their own personal use that was on their property. In areas where there are no endangered plant species or noxious weeds and the slope is less than 30%, Slashbusters may be used instead and biomass will be slashed and scattered on site. 3. Demonstrating Community and Intergovernmental Collaboration (25 Points) A. How will this project implement a community risk assessment and mitigation plan? Include name of plan, date it was prepared, and local contact to get a copy of the plan if requested. B. How has this treatment been coordinated with adjacent landowners and local/State/Tribal/Federal agencies? C. Identify the cooperators/partners involved in implementation of this project. D. Describe the extent of current local support for the project, including any cost-sharing agreements. Response: A] This project follows through and implements needs identified in the Jacksonville Woodlands General Management Plan [1998], the Rogue Valley Council of Governments Jackson Creek Watershed Assessment [1999] and the Oregon Department of Forestry plan for Oregon Forestland Urban Interface Fire Protection Act for Jackson County [2004]. Copies of the aforementioned plans can be obtained from the Jacksonville Woodlands Association [Larry Smith], the Rogue Valley Council of Governments [Corky Lockard] and the Oregon Department of Forestry in Central Point [Brian Ballou]. B] Treatment ties in with previous fuel reduction treatments done by JWA, City of Jacksonville, BLM and private landowners in cooperation with ODF in and around Jacksonville. The burning portion of the project will also be coordinated with DEQ who will be providing local burn weather forecasting and air quality monitoring. Costs related to DEQ are covered under the first grant application. Treatments will fill in gaps of previously untreated lands in Jacksonville's Wildland Urban interface where private landowners have requested to be included to have this work done. C] Cooperators/partners include JWA, DEQ and private landowners in the Wildland Urban interface surrounding Jacksonville. The BLM has and will be treating their adjacent lands in the vicinity. D] Extent of local support includes the previously mentioned partners/cooperators. Private landowners in the area have been contacting JWA voicing their support of JWA's fuel reduction efforts and their desire to be included in this project to help protect their homes, property and the community from wildfire. JWA is providing in kind donations of time, labor and project management to implement this project. Project Work Form Tasks Time Frame Endangered Plant Surveys Responsible Party JWA Spring 2006 Cut/Pile and Slashbuster JWA Fall/Winter 2006 Burn Piles JWA Winter 2007/Spring 2008 DEQ Local burn weather forecasting in and near AQMA Winter 2007/Spring 2008 Air Quality monitoring of burning DEQ Winter 2007/Spring 2008 Project Budget Cost Category Description Federal Agency Applicant Partner 1 Partner 2 Total Partner 3 Personnel Project mgr (in kind) Subtotal $7,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $7,000 $0 $0 $0 $7,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 $7,000 Fringe Benefits $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $1,200 $0 $0 $0 $1,200 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $1,200 $0 $0 $0 $1,200 Endangered Plant Survey $0 $3,300 $0 $0 $0 $3,300 Implement Fuel Reduction $0 $260,700 $264,000 $0 $0 $0 $260,700 $0 $0 $0 $0 $264,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $272,200 $0 $0 $0 $272,200 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 Subtotal Travel $0 Subtotal Equipment Subtotal Supplies mailing/contract/supplies Subtotal Contractual Subtotal Other Subtotal Total Costs Project (Program) Income1 ___________________________________ 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.