Conservation Almanac & Annual Report
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Conservation Almanac & Annual Report Trinity County Resource Conservation District Quarterly Newsletter Spring 2021 Vol. XXX No. 1 Behind the scenes of the Trinity County RCD What does the Trinity County RCD do? This is a ques on Some mes, we must change our way of thinking to fi nd the we get A LOT. The Trinity County RCD is a diverse team of best solu ons or assist with a project outside our tradi onal qualifi ed staff who are eager to learn and serve. Upon quick programs. It’s a general professional employment clause that glance, it may seem that we are departmentalized by specifi c states: “including, but not limited to, other tasks as assigned.” programs, but this relays an inaccurate image. Program Now you see us, now you don’t! You can o en catch us shmogram – while we lean towards diff erent fi elds depending working odd and long hours, scouring the forest for rare or on our work experience and educa onal studies, our real invasive plants, remembering our roots while leading youth strength comes from working as a team. Our “jobs” are on nature excursions, in the backwoods repairing a road connected in more ways than we can count, and it is cri cal that you never knew existed, being the ringleader at some that we work in a close intertwined web to bring all skill sets community events, dirty and greasy from working in the to the table for a holis c and landscape view on projects. brush, a bobbing head in a zoom mee ng, digging holes for Trinity County RCD is not just a job, it is a lifestyle. Our orphaned plants, cleaning up improper waste disposals, or dedica on to conserva on, educa on, and preserva on of fi nding zen in the art of water movement... just to name a the natural world is not something we just leave at work. few. The famous saying of “don’t take work home with you” does We are a highly mo vated and dedicated group which is not apply to us. Some of our greatest ‘aha’ moments come commi ed to providing service to our local communi es. from pondering our place in the world, and how we can best We hope you enjoy learning more about what we do in the be of service to the community, natural environment, and following pages. collabora ve partners. We spend a lot of me planning, collabora ng, and implemen ng natural resource projects on the ground. In order for a project to be successful, we must have a solid founda on before implementa on, achieved through extensive planning and collabora on across programs. However, there are always unforeseen circumstances that require us to adapt like chameleons to our current environment. Just as we start to learn the way a grant or project works, something comes along that rocks the ship. Grizzly Corps The Trinity County RCD embarked on a new opportunity in Center for Law, Energy & the Environment. The program 2020 by taking on a GrizzlyCorps fellow, Kathleen M., to assist sends recent college graduates into rural communi es across with various projects throughout the District. GrizzlyCorps California to promote regenera ve agri-food systems and fi re is a new AmeriCorps program designed by UC Berkeley’s and forest resilience. Since September 2020 when she was brought on, Kathleen has taken the lead on the Weaverville In This Issue Community Forest 2021- New 2020 Funding by Source & Project Type .........................1 2028 Strategic Plan Update, Behind the scenes of the Trinity County RCD .........................2 working with community Grizzly Corps ..........................................................................2 Fire: Planning & Recovery ......................................................3 and federal partners alike. Hazardous Fuel Reduc on .....................................................4 We are so grateful to have Ac ve Transporta on Planning & GIS ....................................4 Kathleen M. as this year’s Community Forest and Weaver Creek Projects.......................5 GrizzlyCorps fellow and are Gemmill Thin and Road Improvements ..................................6 looking forward to having Plants, plants, and more na ve plants! ..................................7 Educa on and the Young Family Ranch ..................................8 more GrizzlyCorps fellows Administra on ......................................................................9 in the future! TRRP 2020 Summary Report ...........................................10-11 2 Spring 2021 ~ www.tcrcd.net Fire: Planning & Recovery Community Wildfi re Protec on Plan The Trinity County Community Wildfi re Protec on Plan (CWPP) was a top priority in 2020, with the fi nalized plan released in March 2021. This plan updates the County’s wildland-urban interface (WUI) boundaries and priori zes fuel reduc on projects. Trinity County RCD staff collaborated with the Trinity County Fire Safe Council and the Trinity County Fire Chief’s Associa on to develop the priori za on strategy for the CWPP. Proposed projects were mapped in GIS and priori zed based on six characteris cs; i.) proximity to WUI, ii.) proximity to essen al infrastructure, iii.) con nuity with past fuel reduc on projects, iv.) wildfi re hazard poten al in the project area, v.) fi re history in the project area, and vi.) ingress and egress score based on a local CAL FIRE survey for roadside projects. Community input and feedback was received from surveys and mee ngs hosted by Trinity County RCD staff . The GIS program assisted with the development of 20 maps, spa al analysis, data management, WUI boundary updates, projects geodatabase design, printed and web-based map books and development of the Trinity County CWPP Projects applica on. The CWPP 2020 Update and the online GIS applica on can be found at tcrcd.net/e8b8. The CWPP 2020 Update was funded by CAL FIRE. August Complex Recovery Eff orts Staff also completed cartographic layout and GIS data Trinity County RCD staff completed a small road inventory coordina on for post August Complex Recovery eff orts within the August Complex Fire area. Data collected from including damaged structure assessments and the Trinity this inventory included culvert sizes, diversion poten al at County Debris Removal Dashboard. stream crossings, failed dips and drainage features, and other To see how GIS data was used to aid debris removal eff orts, road related erosion features. This data will be used to apply view the Trinity County Debris Removal Dashboard on for funding for road work and watershed restora on in the trinitycounty.org/recovery. This project was funded by Trinity August Complex burn area. County Department of Environmental Health & Offi ce of Emergency Services. Burned streambed (leŌ ) and stump (right) following the 2020 August Complex Fire Spring 2021 ~ www.tcrcd.net 3 Hazardous Fuel Reduction In ongoing eff orts to foster wildfi re-resilient ecosystems and and increasing forested areas’ ability to experience wildfi re communi es across the county, Trinity County RCD staff without undergoing severe tree mortality. con nued fuel reduc on implementa on, despite setbacks Funding partners for hazardous fuel reduc on projects and reduced crew sizes due to COVID-19. Building on over included the Bureau of Land Management, CAL FIRE, 20 years of fuel reduc on work, our Forest Health crews California Fire Safe Council, Pacifi c Gas and Electric, State cut, pruned, chipped, piled, and burned excess fuels in and Water Resources Control Board, Trinity County, and the US around Trinity Center, Salyer, Weaverville, Lewiston, Douglas Forest Service. City, and Ruth. This work benefi ed the county by increasing Trinity County RCD staff also assisted local landowners the safety of homes and other structures; making roads safely with fuel reduc on on private lands through fee-for- drivable for evacua ng residents and emergency personnel in service agreements and funds from the Natural Resource the case of a wildfi re; empowering landowners to treat their Conserva on Service’s Environmental Quality Incen ves own proper es; protec ng waterways, soils, and wildlife Program. habitat from the nega ve eff ects of catastrophic wildfi res; Fuel reducƟ on project in JuncƟ on City, before (leŌ ) and aŌ er (right) Active Transportation and Geographic Information Systems Trinity County Ac ve Transporta on Plan collision loca ons, bus stops, crosswalk loca ons, public infrastructure, levels of traffi c stress, land use, exis ng and In June of 2020, the Trinity County Ac ve Transporta on proposed bikeways, signage, sidewalks, bus routes, and Plan (ATP) was fi nalized for the Trinity County Transporta on proposals for new improvements. Commission. This plan iden fi ed over 200 projects to complete within Trinity County and Cartography and Data Support ranked them based on ease and cost of Geographic Informa on Systems (GIS) implementa on. This project was funded staff supported every Trinity County by Safe Routes to School funding through RCD program based on assorted project the County and focused on crea ng streets needs as you will fi nd throughout this safe for pedestrian travel, and safe travel newsle er. Cartographic layout and for kids to school. Connec vity is a main data management was provided for component of the project with a focus the Weaver Creek Watershed Flow on “complete” streets. Complete streets Enhancement Project, Caltrans Slate Creek are where a whole block is connected by Project Phase II, State Water Resources sidewalks or where mul ple blocks along Control Board roadside fuel reduc on a main street are connected by sidewalks projects, PG&E Trinity County fuel and cross walks. A total of 90 maps were reduc on projects, Trinity River educa on created that covered exis ng and proposed and stewardship projects, and Caltrans bicycle parking, bicycle and pedestrian Collins Bar Curve Improvement projects. 4 Spring 2021 ~ www.tcrcd.net Community Forest and Weaver Creek Projects Weaverville Community Forest Browns and West Weaver Creeks. In 2020, Trinity County RCD staff worked on treatment plans for noxious weed removal Trinity County RCD embarked on a large project for the and fuel reduc on.