Update on Angora restoration

unedited 3/09 Tahoe Mt. News

By Kathryn Reed

Less than two years after the South Shore’s worst wildland fire scorched 3,100 acres and upended 254 households, the Forest Service is embarking on a long-term restoration plan that in many ways reflects what the community wants and not just what officials deem best.
One contentious proposal is restoring the manmade Seneca Pond to its original wetland status. It would mean Rover could swim there in a wet year, but his mistress would not have that option.
Les Marsh lives near Seneca Pond. His home survived the June 24, 2007, inferno. Proposed changes to the pond are what brought him out the blustery night of March 3 to hear Forest Service officials say their piece.
“It seems like it is a well thought out plan. It’s not going to look the same,” Marsh said of the pond that he visits almost on a daily basis.
He’s impressed with the completeness of the overall proposal.
“Anybody who looks at the forest knows it’s not going to be a quick fix. It’s going to be generational,” Marsh said.
On the same day the USFS had an open house to enlighten the public, officials spoke before the City Council about what will happen with the 2,700 acres of national forest land that burned.
The goals for the next 20 plus years are to reduce fuel loading, create a diverse wildlife habitat, improve the health of the watershed, reforest, and devise a road-trail network system that makes sense.
Chain saws will remove trees closest to neighborhoods. It is likely 951 acres will have fuels removed on the ground, while another 447 – mostly near the top of Angora Ridge – will require a helicopter to lift out the dead trees. About 1,400 acres could be treated in three years.
Approximately 1,100 acres will be reforested with small trees. Larger trees are expensive and require more water.
“We are not trying to restore it to what it looked like before because it was not a healthy forest,” USFS spokeswoman Cheva Heck said at the Inn by the Lake meeting.
Historical photos point to Angora Ridge not being inundated with trees. The idea is to restore it to its more natural chaparral vegetation.
Although a number of aspen groves are coming back and some will get a boost by having the encroaching conifers cut back, 11 plots or a quarter-acre of aspens will be planted.
The 13-acre Gardner Mountain Meadow which is next to Highway 89 will be restored.
About 1,200 feet of Angora Creek will be reconstructed.
Three miles of new roads will be built.
Part of the Angora plan will overlap with the South Shore Fuels Reduction Plan that encompasses 10,000 acres. That plan will be released this spring.
The Angora plan is expected to cost close to $15 million. Of that, $10.6 million is for fuel reduction. Officials expect that money to come from regular congressional appropriations. The rest may be paid for from the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act.
All of these plans are still ideas and not written in granite. The public has until March 13 to express its opinions and offer suggestions. A final decision is expected by mid-summer, with some of the projects being implemented in late fall.

Urban issues

Instead of a mishmash of growth in the Angora neighborhood Susie Kocher, natural resources advisor with UC Cooperative Extension, has been meeting with residents to create a more cohesive network of vegetation.
“I so appreciate this kind of planning,” said Carolyn Meiers, who attended the Feb. 18 meeting at South Tahoe High. The longtime local gardening guru didn’t lose her house, but wants to give back. She is working on the demonstration garden at 1383 Mount Olympia Circle and may get the South Tahoe Garden Club members to volunteer their expertise.
All the guidelines being developed for homeowners are voluntary. The idea is that working together and being cognizant of neighbors will make for a better neighborhood. Paying attention to where a tree is planted in relation to someone’s solar panels or views is important. Buying in bulk may save everyone money.
“The goal of this project is to develop a vision for a future landscape that integrates defensible space, water quality, wildlife and aesthetic values,” according to the Angora Community Newsletter.
Kocher is using a grant to fund the project. The timeline is designed with the upcoming planting season in mind. Although a significant percentage of the 254 households that became homeless have moved back, landscaping was last on the to-do list.
Some of the priorities and concerns for homeowners include using fast growing plants and large trees, wanting ground cover, needing wind breaks, being fire safe, working with the high water table and adding a splash of color.
The Forest Service sent Brian Garrett to that meeting. He said his agency’s urban lots will be reforested, possibly starting in April. About 210 acres outside the urban area where the USFS is currently removing trees in the burn area for public safety reasons will be replanted with 2-year-old trees.
The Angora Stewardship Program was created by the National Forest Foundation. It gave money to the Nevada Tahoe Conservation District and Tahoe Resource Conservation District to help the USFS replant its urban lots. Mostly Jeffrey and Sugar pine, and incense cedar will be planted.
Maintenance and monitoring are part of the program.
To be involved, call Sarah Ford at (530) 543-1501, ext. 114.
The next meeting about homeowner landscaping is March 18 from 6-8pm at South Tahoe High, Room B9. Kocher may be reached at (530) 542-2571.
The thrust of that meeting is to present a community landscape plan and get homeowner feedback.
At the April 1 meeting a refined plan will be available. On April 22, the final plan will be unveiled. At that time suggestions will be sought from homeowners on how to implement it.
To signup for a vegetation consultation, contact the Tahoe Resource Conservation District at (530) 543-1501, ext. 113.

Getting kids involved

The fire has created a unique learning opportunity for area schoolkids. Even though the national Project Learning Tree has been around since 1976, local educators are just now being trained to be part of this multifaceted program.
The next educators training workshop is March 21 from 9am-4pm at the Forest Service office at 35 College Drive in South Lake. It’s free, but registration is required – http://ucanr.org/pltworshops2009. For information, call (530) 543-2685 or (530) 542-2571.
The workbook comes with forest based lesson, meets California curriculum standards and ties into the Angora tree planting.
Eric Winford with the Nevada Tahoe Conservation District is working to get classroom involvement in planting, watering and continued care of the trees that will be planted.
“The main idea is to get students to participate in what is their national forest and see it grow,” Winford said.

City erosion concerns

When the City Council went forward with its Angora erosion control measures, the weather was rather balmy. That was Feb. 10.
Even though Mother Nature has hit the South Shore with a vengeance this month, the slopes burned in the Angora Fire are holding.
Nonetheless, the city is taking preventative measures to ensure any debris that comes into the city limits is taken care of before it would reach the Lake. At the February meeting the council allocated $48,500 to Resources Concepts Inc. for engineering design and preparation of construction documents.
“We just want to err on the side of caution,” explained John Greenhut, director of public works. He said the city can’t wait for vegetation to come back or replanting to solve potential problems.
He said the Forest Service’s current tree removal and ongoing plans for taking out dead timber in the burn area could create a runoff situation that would impact the city.
The company will design a system for stormwater that flows from Forest Service property at Gardner Mountain along Gardner Street and the area below. The storm drain below South Tahoe High on Lake Tahoe Boulevard will be enlarged so it can handle larger flows.