Group works to make forest healthy and wildfire-resilient

Published: January 10, 2011

Just outside of Leavenworth, that quaint Bavarian town off of Hwy 2, you’ll find a group of dedicated community members and other stakeholders, including The Wilderness Society,  working together to reduce the impacts of wildfires in the Chumstick area.

The Chumstick includes about 50,000 acres of private and public dry forest land that historically saw low-level wildfires rip through the area every five to fifteen years. This kept the fuel levels low and the chance of a large fire at bay.  But with a century of fire suppression, the forest is poised for a catastrophic wildfire the next time flames reach this part of the North Cascades.  This poses a serious concern for the Forest Service and those folks whose homes and fields are nestled within this landscape.

Knowing that fire is a part of a forest’s healthy lifecycle—not to mention you can’t stop Mother Nature—this committed bunch decided to take matters into their own hands.  They started the Chumstick Wildfire Stewardship Coalition (http://www.chumstickcoalition.org/)  to implement the Leavenworth Area Community Wildfire Protection Plan that prioritizes fuel reduction projects, such as reducing the number of trees in dense forests (also known as “thinning”) and other fire mitigation efforts on both private and public lands.

In its third year, the coalition made big strides in 2010. A few highlights are:

• Created a CWSC Private Land Cost-Share program to support fuel reduction projects on private lands

• Completed baseline tree stand inventories in nine of the National Forest Service treatment units

• Developed a monitoring protocol in partnership with the Forest Service

• Completed two-year strategic and financial plans

In 2011, the coalition will continue to implement private land fuel reduction projects on 100 acres in the Chumstuck area. They will also continue reach out to landowners in the community and educate them on the importance of fuel reduction and forest restoration.  The Forest Service will be coming up with their proposal to reduce the fuels on their lands in the Chumstick in early 2011.  Watch out for an opportunity to weigh in on their proposal.

The result of all of the coalition’s work will be a safer, healthier and more fire-resilient Chumstick watershed.