While the pandemic raged in 2020, and communities shut down with strict shelter-in-place orders, fires raged as well. California experienced the largest wildfire in its history. 38 separate fires, lit by lightning strikes, spread across northern California at the same time. More than a million acres burned – more than any other fire in the state’s recorded history.
The August Complex Fire – this network of 38 northern California fires – was overshadowed in the press, but it hit rural California hard.
What are these communities doing to recover from the destruction?
In November, forest supervisors of three huge forests joined together as a post-fire rapid assessment team. The Mendocino National Forest, Six Rivers National Forest, and Shasta-Trinity National Forest all began to combine their forces. Of the 913,300 acres made up by these three forests, more than 612,000 acres burned to the ground in 2020.
In April of 2021, these forest leaders met again to discuss their immediate needs, and to brainstorm restoration opportunities. Hydrologists, geologists, and foresters all convened over Zoom to talk strategy.
What Are They Doing to Prepare?
A primary project in their early plans is the Plaskett-Keller Project. Throughout the 15,500-acre Plaskett Meadows, tree service companies will remove hazardous trees and do “fuel reduction treatments” on those trees than remain.
Forester Emily Dolhansky explained some of their approach to hazardous tree removal.
“There’s often a misconception that if a tree still has a full, nice crown after a fire than it doesn’t pose a threat,” Dolhansky said in an interview with the Chico Enterprise-Record. “However, when we’re assessing hazardous trees, we account for injuries to the base that can sometimes be overlooked when we’re only focusing on the crown.“
Given the landslides on Chico-area roads, forest experts suggest that drivers carry a saw with them in case a branch or tree falls behind them on a road. Many cars have been trapped after trees fall across those rural roads.
