Project Summary Form
Id Number 2006-226
NATIONAL FIRE PLAN COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE AND WILDLAND URBAN-INTERFACE PROJECTS
Application for Fuels Treatment Projects
Applicant
Applicant/Organization:
State of Washington, Department of Natural Resources
Phone: (111 111-1111 x 1111)
Type of Applicant: (enter appropriate letter in box)
A
509-684-7474
FAX: (111 111-1111 x 1111)
A. State
B. County
C. Municipal
D. Township
E. Interstate
509-684-7474
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 190 Colville, WA 99114
Project Coordinator
Project Coordinator (Name and Title):
Mr. Chuck Johnson Community Fire Planner
Organization/Jurisdiction:
Department of Natural Resources, NE Region
Phone: (111 111-1111 x 1111)
509-684-7474
FAX: (111 111-1111 x 1111)
509-684-7484
Call Ahead For FAX
Email:
chuck.johnson@wadnr.gov
Project Information
Project Title:
Malo East Wildland Urban Interface Fuels Reduction Project
Proposed Project Start Date:
05/01/2006
Federal Funding Request:
$ 193,000
Proposed Project End Date:
05/01/2007
Total Project Funding:
$
214,000
Are you submitting multiple projects? If so, please explain and prioritize:
Yes, DNR is submitting multiple projects that are all stand alone. All projects will be prioritized by Local Coordinating Groups.
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).
Local fire managers have recognized and are recommending a hazard fuels reduction project for the creation of strategic fuel breaks and ladder fuel
reduction across the landscape in the Wildland Urban Interface [WUI] 15 miles northeast and northwest of Republic, Washington in the Aeneas and
Art Creek watersheds. The project intends to implement intensive fuel reduction treatments on approximately 160 acres of hazard fuels in an
intermixed community. The purpose is to mitigate potential adverse fire behavior that could threaten over 100 private improvements in the area.
The project is intended to complement planned fuels reduction projects on adjacent federal lands on the Colville National Forest. This project will
reduce condition class 2 and 3 fuels within the WUI and has been identified as needing treatment in the Ferry County Fire Planning process.
Project Location:
Latitude: 48.64906
Longitude: 118.731
County:
Ferry
Name of Federal, State or Tribal contact with whom you coordinated this proposal:
Federal Congressional District:
5
Telephone number of Contact:
Loren Torgerson, Asst. Reion Mgr., WA DNR
509-684-7474 Ext.
Reed Heckly, AFMO - Fuels, Rebublic Ranger Station
509-775-7400 Ext.
John Foster, Chief, Ferry Co. FPD #14
509-779-4766 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?
This proposal has strong support from the Highlands Local Coordinating Group.
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 Thinning
Acres 160
Treatment Hand Pile Burning
Acres 160
Treatment Hand Piling
Acres 160
Treatment
Acres 0
If you have a treatment type other than standard types above:
Other 1 Ladder Fuel Removal
Acres 160
Other 2
Acres 0
A. The Granite-Trout/Malo East WUI Fuels Reduction Project area lies northwest and northeast of Republic, Washington in the vicinity of the
Aeneas and Art Creek drainages. The area is bordered by Colville National Forest lands to the east and west, where the Aeneas Fuel Reduction
project is in the planning stage. That federal project proposes considerable fuels reduction activity in the WUI on national forest. Granite-Trout Malo
East proposes to complement Forest Service efforts by extending fuels reduction work from the National Forest boundary outward where fuels
reduction work to mitigate fire behavior is needed. The Granite/TroutMalo East project is in a community that has been identified as an urban
interface community within the vicinity of Federal lands that are at high risk from wildfire.
The Granite-TroutMalo East proposal involves planning and developing strategic fuel breaks and a pattern of ladder fuel reduction units across the
landscape to reduce problematic fire behavior potential in the vicinity of private properties. Selection criteria for selecting properties for fuels
reduction work will be established. Prior to beginning fuels reduction work, a fuels management consultant and the property owners would conduct
an onsite inspection and develop a treatment strategy and work agreement. If tasks are beyond the capabilities of an owner to do themselves, the
work order will be passed to a contract hazard reduction crew using small-mechanized equipment.
The community is categorized as an Intermix community, where structures are scattered throughout a wildland area. The community fits Situation
1 in Risk Factor 1 - Fire Behavior Potential, describing continuous fuels close to structures and fuels conducive to crown fire or high intensity surface
fires. The community fits Situation 2 in Risk Factor 2 - Values At Risk, describing an intermix of structures and wildland vegetation. The community
fits Situation 1 in Risk Factor 3 - Infrastructure, described as having no hydrants, no evacuation plans, and narrow dead end roads with steep grades
and one-way ingress/egress routes. The community has been identified as having fuels conditions common in western states needing fuels
reduction funding by the National Fire Plan.
B. There are several anticipated outcomes: -- Reduce fire intensity and torching potential in the wildland/urban interface, -- Break up the continuity
of hazard fuels conditions across the landscape, --Provide firefighters with a chance to mount a reasonable defense against wildfire, Increase
firefighter safety, --Increase property owner awareness of fire hazard mitigation.
C. There are several community partners involved in planning this project. Fire leaders from Ferry/Okanogan F.P.D. #14, Colville NF, and the WA
State DNR support this proposal. Collaboration and coordination has occurred within the Highland Fire Defense Team Local Coordinating Group
and steering team members for the Ferry County Fire Plan , Ferry County Commissioners, and Republic City Council. These people recognize the
danger of catastrophic fire in the community and are willing to bring focus to fuels problems and prioritize mitigation strategies.
D. The community fire planning process is underway for the Ferry County Fire Plan. Although not yet complete, participants in the county fire plan
have already identified obvious fuel hazards in the neighborhoods of the Malo East project. This application for funding assistance is being
submitted in recognition of hazard fuels conditions and recommendations in the Ferry County Fire Plan. Local fire leaders recognize a critical
opportunity in timing a fuels reduction project in conjunction with the Trout-Aeneas project on national forest land. Granite-Trout/Malo East occurs in
a recognized high risk area, and fuels reduction efforts would be well placed.
E. It is estimated that there are over 100 homes in the project area, which covers an area over to 2,000 acres. Project consultations will focus on
strategic treatments on less than 10% of the area, or approximately 160 acres. The treatments may include thinning, slashing, pruning, chipping,
piling, and moving/removing flammable fuels generated in Fuels Condition Class 2 and 3 stands.
F. The WA State DNR has successfully operated fuel reduction programs with this combination of local consultants and contractors in the past, so
implementation can start quickly after funding. Match from DNR and agency partners are available to assist in public relations, education,
monitoring and administration.
G. The proponents operate within a stable organization that has good working relationships with the local fire districts and Forest Service.
Procedures regarding landowner screening, fuels consultations, work orders, billing and payments have been worked out years ago. Experienced
fuels consultants, contractors and loggers are available in the area. The scale of the project can be completed within a year.
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. The project area is mountainous and wooded. It provides scenic views for the Curlew Valley area, a recreational zone
important to the local economy. Parts of the project area lie close to the City of Republic, the county seat of Ferry County. Rural
neighborhoods are served by a network of private and county roads with parallel power lines. These roads and powerline corridors
also serve as potential fuelbreaks. As the Granite-Trout/Malo East project proceeds, the consultant will look for opportunities to
make improvements to these corridors where they may work well as future fuelbreaks.
Protecting this area from catastrophic fire is required for water quality reasons. The Trout Creek watershed is the main source for
Curlew Lake and is a prominent trout spawning stream for the lake. The lakes water quality is largely dependent upon a steady
supply of good quality water for the health of Curlew Lake and the recreational and economic opportunities it provides. The
Granite Creek watershed is a main tributary to the San Poil River, a river listed for Bull Trout habitat. It also serves as a water
source for irrigators and residents on the reservation of the Colville Confederated Tribes. Water quality is always a concern
expressed by the tribe and local residents who depend upon healthy watersheds for economic, subsistence, and recreational
support.
B. The proposal will change fire behavior by breaking up the continuity of hazard fuels across the landscape in the area of private
improvements and reducing Fuels Condition Class from 2 or 3 down to 1. Contractors will thin overstocked trees, cut brush, prune
low limbs, pile debris, chip larger woody pieces, and/or remove debris to safe burning areas. This will decrease fire intensity, flame
length, and the tendency for fire to ascend into tree crowns. Individual fuel reduction projects will be strategically placed and linked
to create a network of fuel breaks.
The project meets National Fire Plan Implementation Plan goals by: --focusing on treating improvements and hazards that would
most threaten firefighters defending homes, -- increasing homeowner education by distributing FireWise literature during the
project, restoring portions of unhealthy forests by reducing fuels condition class from 2 or 3 down to 1, --collaborating across
agency lines to prioritize common goals, --achieving fuel reduction goals in the wildland/urban interface where adjacent to federal
lands, --planning cross-boundary fuels work both by this grant and neighboring fuel reduction projects on the Colville National
Forest to achieve a coinciding implementation schedule, --monitoring results so work can be improved during the project and in the
future.
C. Many citizens do not know what a safe fuels condition looks like. Once the initial time-consuming and financial expense of
fuels reduction takes place, a public example has been created. Past experience in this program results in enthusiastic
landowners that can see what to do, and why it will lessen fire danger. Landowners have been much more willing to maintain fuel
reduction projects after labor-intensive fuel reduction work has been completed.
D. The fuels consultant will be required to take before and after photographs of the treatment areas. These will be compiled in a
notebook with the work orders and costs.
A monitoring field trip will be organized twice during the project, once early, and again when the project is partially completed.
Members of the Highlands Fire Defense Team, the Project Coordinator, the Fuels Consultant, and local city and county officials will
visit the site to look at how the work is progressing. Appropriate changes or recommendations will be incorporated into the project
and noted for inclusion in future projects.
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. The project will benefit the economy by paying local workers. The tasks will likely include equipment rental and repair at local saw
shops. Property values will be increased. The potential economic damage to a weak local economy will be lessened as the potential
for catastrophic fire and its effects is reduced. Some landowners may receive a financial benefit to commercial commodities removed
from their properties, which would offset the costs of other treatments on their properties.
B. One contract Fuels Consultant would work with landowners in designing projects. A contract crew of 3-6 people will be employed.
The work must be done in non-snow months. The project is seasonal extending for less than 1 year.
C. The consultant and the contract workers will be doing forestry maintenance work that is different than typical logging work. There
will be work with chainsaws, pruners, brush cutters, and chippers. They will gain an understanding of the kinds and volumes of
material that can be generated by fuels reduction work, mostly involving small diameter vegetation. As the workers and landowners
see what and how much debris is generated, a greater understanding will develop about feasibility of any economic utilization.
D. Biomass is beginning to be appreciated locally as landscape mulch and livestock bedding. Such utilization has been limited to
homeowners. The Granite-TroutMalo East project may be large enough to spawn some peripheral utilization schemes.
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:
Response:
A. This project is tied to the Ferry County Wildfire Protection Plan that is currently in progress. The area has had a risk assessment
of High. Local Fire Managers have an opportunity to concurrently implement this project along with the adjacent project on USFS
land.
B. The project has been reviewed and will be prioritized by the Highland Fire Defense Team Local Coordinating Group. This team
is heavily represented by local, state, and federal fire agencies and community-minded citizens. Through this collaboration, the
group recommended fuels reduction work adjacent to the Colville National Forests upcoming WUI fuel reduction projects on
adjacent Forest Service lands.
C. Cooperators/partners are: 1. Ferry/Okanogan Fire Protection District #13, Republic, 2. Highlands District, Northeast Region,
Washington State Department of Natural Resources, 3. Ferry County.
D. Local support has been enthusiastic among those landowners who have seen past fuel reduction work from previously funded
projects in other areas. More public interest and participation will occur since this project will gain widespread exposure. Match will
occur from fire districts and DNR in the form of publicity assistance, project coordination, and monitoring.
Project Work Form
Tasks
--Obtain funding
--Obtain the services of a Fuels Consultant
--Obtain the services of fuels reduction
contractors
Time Frame
Responsible Party
Chuck Johnson, DNR
May 2006
--Begin project design
June 2006 and ongoing
--Begin Fuel Reduction Plans
Chuck Johnson, DNR
Assisted by:
Fuels Consultant
John Foster, Fire Chief
Fuels Consultant
July 2006 and ongoing
Fuels Reduction Contractors
--Implement fuel reduction work orders.
July 2006 and ongoing
--Monitoring visits to treatment areas
Chuck Johnson, DNR
Local county and fire district officials
July 2006 and ongoing
Chuck Johnson, DNR
--Project completion and accomplishment
report
May 2007
Project Budget
Ferry Co. FPD #14
Cost Category
Description
Federal
Agency
Applicant
Partner 1
Partner 2
Total
Partner 3
Personnel
Administration
$0
Monitoring
Subtotal
$5,750
$1,000
$0
$0
$6,750
$0
$5,750
$1,000
$0
$0
$6,750
$0
$11,500
$2,000
$0
$0
$13,500
$0
$2,500
$0
$0
$0
$2,500
$0
$0
$2,500
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$2,500
$0
$2,000
$500
$0
$0
$2,500
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$2,000
$0
$500
$0
$0
$2,500
$0
$500
$0
$0
$0
$500
$0
$500
$500
$0
$0
$1,000
$0
$1,000
$500
$0
$0
$1,500
$500
$500
$0
$0
$0
$1,000
$500
$500
$0
$0
$0
$1,000
$1,000
$1,000
$0
$0
$0
$2,000
$20,000
$0
$0
$0
$0
$20,000
$172,000
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$172,000
$192,000
$0
$0
$0
$192,000
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$193,000
$18,000
$3,000
$0
$0
$214,000
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
$0
Fringe Benefits
Indirect Costs
Subtotal
Travel
Mileage, per diem
$0
Subtotal
Equipment
Digital Cameras, GPS Un
Laptop, Printer
Subtotal
Supplies
educational materials
advertising, mailing
Subtotal
Contractual
Fuels Consultant
Contract Crew
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.