National Fire Plan Success Story
Successful Use of Mechanical Fuels Treatment in the WUI
Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit
National Fire Plan - Fuels Reduction
2006
The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) is successfully implementing a program of mechanical fuels treatment in the WUI (Wildland Urban Interface). Fuels management projects are a major part of the Lake Tahoe basin Environmental Improvement Program, an ambitious multi-agency, multi-year year program of environmental restoration and protection.
The goal of this fuels treatment method is to reduce the wildfire hazard adjacent to urbanized areas by reducing potential wildfire intensity. This results in a safer firefighting environment as well as an improvement in community safety. Forest health and watershed protection will also benefit.
This national forest project is directly adjacent to the community of Tahoe City, California. The treatment utilized a contracted cut-to-length harvesting unit with forwarder. The stand was thinned up to a diameter of 24 inches. After cutting, the larger material was forwarded to a nearby landing as commercial saw logs, fuel wood, or biomass. Slash that was generated from this activity or that was pre-existing was masticated. Slash next to residential development was chipped for safety reasons. Forest Service personnel burned scattered piles of cull material.
Pre-existing conditions. Notice the ladder fuels and high density of small conifers.
The same area after treatment.
Contact: Scott Parsons, Vegetation Program Manager, (530) 543-2687, sparsons@fs.fed.us.