Tamarack Fire Restoration 2

Our November meeting will hopefully in person, but if necessary it will be switched to Zoom as there are still some lingering problems at the Community Center after the Tamarack Fire.  Should it not be possible to meet in person the Zoom connection information will be sent out as soon as a decision is made.  There will be three presentations, all related to the Tamarack Fire.  The first will be by Danny Cluck, the Forest Entomologist for the Sierras on how to determine if a tree is dead, will soon be dead, or will survive.  The second presentation will be by Annabelle Monti, Forester and Vegetation Management Specialist with the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.  Finally Any Lovell of the Alpine Trails Association will be presenting his idea of how the community can help speed up restoration after the Tamarack Fire.

Abstracts:  Danny Cluck:  There has been considerable concern in the community that some of the trees being removed from Forest Service and private land after the Tamarack Fire are not dead and if given the chance would survive.  The presentation will be a tutorial on how to identify dead trees, those that soon will be dead, and those that will survive.

Annabelle Monti:  Restoration following a fire can be an overwhelming proposition. Restoration on Forest Service lands has certain protocols and steps that need to be taken, and it can be confusing to understand what’s happening behind the scenes when it doesn’t appear anything is happening on the ground. The presentation will focus on explaining ongoing restoration strategy, timelines, priorities, and answering questions.

Andy Lovell:  Restoration after the Tamarack Fire will be a slow process, in part because of burdensome regulations that the Forest Service needs to follow, and in part because with all the fires last year and this year there is more demand for seed and seedlings than there is supply. The community could help by setting up a community nursery that would be staffed by volunteers and supported by the non-profit organizations in the County.

Biographies:  Danny Cluck:  Danny Cluck is a Forest Entomologist with the U.S. Forest Service and works in the Forest Health Protection Division for the Northeastern California Shared Service Area.  He graduated from Humboldt State University in 1992 with a B.S. in biology, and has spent 29 years with the Forest Service in NE California with experience in wildlife biology, fuels/fire, forestry, plant pathology and entomology.  He is a co-author of USFS Pacific Southwest Region fire-injured tree marking guidelines and hazard tree guidelines, and has studied post-fire tree mortality, bark and woodboring beetle activity, effectiveness of pre-fire fuel treatments, and fire-killed tree failure rates.

Annabelle Monti:  Annabelle Monti is the Vegetation Management Officer for the Sierra Zone of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest.  As a professional forester, she focuses on forest management for resistance and resiliency of forest lands in the face of disturbances, and the silvicultural practices to meet those objectives.  Having worked on the Carson Ranger District for over ten years, she’s very familiar with the community, the projects that have taken place, and the future goals of the forested lands in Alpine County.

Andy Lovell:  Andy Lovell is the President of the Alpine Trails Association and was one of the two people that made the world ranked disc golf course at Turtle Rock Park come about.  He has been an active member of the community for over a decade.

Future Meetings:  December: Pending.  January:  No meeting.  February:  Michelle Coppoletta, an Ecologist with the Forest Service will be making a presentation on her recent paper with Dr. Brandon Collins on post-fire management of vegetation and fuels.

The November meeting will hopefully be in person on Tuesday November 2^nd at 6:00 pm at the Turtle Rock Park Community Center.  Should it not be possible to host the meeting at the Community Center the meeting will be via Zoom video conference, and the Zoom connection information will be sent out as soon as the decision is made.