REGIONAL FORESTER NAMES SALMON GROUP AS NATURAL RESOUR= CES STEWARDS FOR HUGHES CREEK EFFORTS
Regional Forester Harv
Forsgren recognized the Lemhi County Forest Restoration Group for the Inter=
mountain
Region’s annual Natural Resources Stewards award. The Intermountain
Region includes
Forsgren noted the
collaborative group’s assistance in designing of the 13,000-acre Hugh=
es
Creek Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project on the North Fork Ranger District. =
In
recent years, attempts to move projects forward in the fire-prone district =
were
limited because of appeals by environmental groups.
"Thanks to the
collaborative efforts of the Forest Restoration group, the Hughes Creek pro=
ject
became the first large scale fuels reduction project to go unchallenged in =
over
10 years. In the past, we've spent our resources on appeals and court
challenges instead of actually improving fuels conditions on the ground. &n=
bsp;People
seeking common ground led to great results here and builds trust for future
projects," commented North Fork District Ranger Russ Bacon.
“This is a far =
cry from
the way business was done with the Forest Service in the past few decades,&=
#8221;
noted retired wildlife biologist Hadley Roberts, also a collaborative membe=
r.
“I wish this group had been around in the early 80s when we were work=
ing
on the Forest Plan. More public involvement back then might have changed the
direction of the
“Conservation g=
roups
were at the table from the very beginning, designing a project that address=
ed
some important ecological values, most especially areas with old growth tree
stands,” explained Salmon Valley Stewardship director Gina Knudson.
She said while Salmon=
Valley
Stewardship has coordinated the group for more than three years, the forest=
ry
collaborative is successful because of the wide variety of organizations and
individuals who are members. Conservation groups such as the Wild West
Institute of Missoula, Idaho Conservation League, the Nature Conservancy, a=
nd
American Wildlands of Bozeman all sit at the ta=
ble.
“To have these folks in the field instead of in the courtroom has made
all the difference,” Knudson commented.
At the same time, loc=
al
loggers like Vic Phillips, County Commissioner Bob Cope and Wildland
Urban Interface Coordinator Karin Drjnevic, Lemhi County Economic Developme=
nt
Association, and North Fork Fire Department Chief Mike England, to name jus=
t a
few, worked diligently to identify community needs, Knudson said. Still, none of this would have wor=
ked if
agency representatives from the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Manageme=
nt,
and Idaho Fish and Game hadn’t fully embraced a more collaborative
approach, Knudson contends. “Nobody was forced to do business in this=
new
way – they have all been extremely willing, supportive partners who a=
re
putting differences aside and talking about what’s best for the land =
and
the community.”
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