Meeting Participants Jackson-Josephine Local Coordination Group. SW Oregon Resource Conservation District

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1 To: JCIFP Stewardship Group From: Resource Innovations, University of Oregon Re: JCIFP Stewardship Group Meeting Minutes June 19 th, 2007 Meeting Participants Jim Wolfe- Dale Rau- Jack LeRoy- Abbie Josei- Darren Borgias Cody Zook- Paul Galloway- Tim Gonzalez- Jude Wait Susan Chapp- Gary Gnauck- Amy Wilson Joseph Vaile- Rod Dale- Don Hammon- Don Bellville- Paul Showalter Marcus Kauffman- Jackson-Josephine Local Coordination Group Summit Wood Products The Nature Conservancy Josephine County Rogue River-Siskiyou NF Lomakatsi Restoration Project Forestry Action Committee Applegate Partnership SW Oregon Resource Conservation District Klamath Siskiyou Wildlands Siskiyou Project Don Hammon Inc. Rogue River-Siskiyou NF Illinois Valley Community Development Corporation Resource Innovations Decisions and Next Steps: Amy Wilson reported that she has contacted the Josephine County Commissioners about visiting a stewardship project with members of the stewardship group. Susan, Gary, Jude, Jack, Don Hammon, Cody, Jim, and Marcus agreed to attend to show the diversity of support. The Group agreed that that focus of the field tour would be on showing the effectiveness of stewardship as a tool to reduce fuels and lower fire risk. Other topics to touch on include: fire plan priorities, economic impacts, and partner support. Marcus agreed to coordinate information and presentation for the field tour. The Group suggested several other actions to help raise the County Commissioners understand the role and importance of the Group s work including:

2 o Present findings from Josephine County Contractor Assessment and follow up activities at work session. Paul S. and Amy agreed to participate in the briefing. o Present accomplishments to Jackson/Josephine Local Coordinating Group Marcus agreed to review and evaluate four BLM projects using criteria developed by the Group and provide a recommendation for the Group to consider. Announcements: Marcus announced that Resource Innovation s proposal to Josephine County for Title III funds was included in the budget for Josephine County that was voted on and approved by the Board of Commissioners. The Board is scheduled to adopt the budget, after which no changes could be made, on June 27, It was also announced that Josephine County was not designating any funds for Title II for the upcoming year. Josephine County Commissioners Field Tour: Amy reported that the Josephine County Commissioners are interested in attending a field tour but have not committed to a specific date yet. The Group discussed potential sites, times, information, etc and agreed that the Rich N Rocky project would be the focus of the tour. Jack LeRoy and Don Hammon agreed to attend and provide their perspective. In addition to the success of the project, the Group noted that it would be important to highlight the ecological context of fire and fuels in the county and the economic outcomes of stewardship contracts. Activities to Raise Awareness Several members of the Group noted that support from the Josephine County Commissioners is key to the success of the project. Mark Sorenson was effective at keeping the Board informed but the Group did not adjust its strategy after his departure. In response to this need, the Group suggested several actions that would help raise the level of awareness with the Board of Commissioners and federal land management leaders. It was suggested to: Provide the Commissioners with a summary of the Josephine County Federal Contracting Assessment and next steps at a commissioner work session. Present to the Jackson/Josephine Local Coordinating Group and Present to the Forest Service Leadership Team It was also suggested to inform the Oregon Congressional delegation of the Group s accomplishments. Josephine County Stewardship Group June 19, 2007 Meeting Notes 2

3 BLM Planning Process and Upcoming Projects Abbie Josie, Grants Pass Resource Area Manager, presented the BLM s planning process and stewardship contracting strategy. Agency s direction with the Oregon and California Act (O&C Act). Abbie passed out a publication that briefly described the history of the O&C Act over the years and its current status. BLM s land management allocations in western Oregon includes several designations: o Special Management Areas 15% o Riparian Reserves 25% o Adaptive Management Areas 3% o Connectivity Diversity Blocks (Matrix) 3% o General Forest Management Areas (Matrix) 15% o Reserves (LSR, Congressional, Owl & Murrelet Sites, District Defined) 40% From the management allocations in western Oregon, she detailed the allocations on the Grants Pass Resource Area. She noted that the District manages 266,000 acres or 14% of the land base for timber production. Joseph remarked that the BLM can do and is doing stewardship contracting in the LSRs which account for 32% of the District s land base. NEPA planning process is comprised of eight main steps and includes several opportunities to seek public input, feedback, and comments. The handout Abbie provided lists the steps and general time frame for completion. She noted that the process of consultation with regulatory agencies took place concurrently with the other steps and that the agency was required to complete consultation prior to issuing a decision. o Abbie mentioned several current planning efforts that occupy her staff s time including: Eastfork, Althouse Sucker, and East Lime Granite Joe, Cheney Slate, Quartz Centennial, Deer Willy, and appeals. The District s (Tom s) vision for stewardship contracting is developing several large indefinite quantify indefinite quality (IDIQ) contracts that cover most of the District. The district can then add NEPA-ready acres to as they become available. The four current contracts are: o Rich N Rocky o North Stew o Two Bit Stew o South Stew Josephine County Stewardship Group June 19, 2007 Meeting Notes 3

4 Dale Rau informed that Group that the solicitations for Two Bit Stew and North Stew had been posted on fedbizops.gov earlier that day. He also mentioned that working with the Group to develop small contracts to build the capacity of more entrepreneurs is a possibility. It was asked if the Forest Service could utilize the contract structures that the BLM has developed. Dale said the BLM state office and the FS Regional Office are trying to figure out how to do that but have encountered, barriers and challenges to success. Biomass and Stewardship Contracting Dale also clarified that while biomass utilization was a part of many of the BLM s stewardship contracts it was not the primary purpose of the project. Biomass removal would be a by-product of another treatment like hazardous fuel reduction or thinning to improve stand density. Role of Group with BLM Abbie s presentation generated discussion on several potential activities for Group engagement with the BLM including: Review potential projects Select one to be involved in similar to the Group s involvement in East IV Managed Stands EA o Weigh in on scoping o Participate on interdisciplinary team Distill general principals of what would make an effective stewardship contract o Focus on hazard and risk aspects from JCIFP Focus on particular aspects of the EA such as fire and fuels or weeds or wildlife The Group cautioned to not take on more than they could accomplish and to be strategic in its involvement. This discussion also generated other more broad-scale ideas that would be relevant for the Group s overarching goal of developing stewardship projects that implement the JCIFP. Develop more specific goals for Group Develop guidelines for successful projects Several potential projects seemed to surface as likely candidates for more in-depth Group involvement especially the Cheney Slate project. Cheney Slate is adjacent to private lands, near the community of Wonder, includes lots of WUI lands. Marcus agreed to review the four potential projects using the evaluation criteria the group developed earlier and provide the Group with a recommendation to consider at the July 17, 2007 meeting. Josephine County Stewardship Group June 19, 2007 Meeting Notes 4

5 Meyers Creek Stewardship Best Value Criteria The Group also reviewed the draft evaluation criteria that developed by George Panek. The Group was supportive of the draft and provided a few small additional recommendations including: Include Del Norte County in the list of "tier two" counties along with Jackson, Douglas, and Curry. and specify how the location of businesses will be evaluated. The Group suggested using the business addresses. Such as the text below: Business addresses within Josephine County a score of 10 Business addresses w/i Jackson, Douglas, Curry, or Del Norte counties a score of 5 Business addresses outside these counties a score of 0 The last recommendation was to ensure that criteria D Treatment Method and Utilization of Non-sawtimber material were clear to contractors. Don Bellville agreed to forward the Group s recommendations to George Panek. Adjourn The meeting adjourned at 4:05pm Josephine County Stewardship Group June 19, 2007 Meeting Notes 5