Grasses Found to Carry Pitch Canker Pathogen   

Rim Fire Recovery Update

  The 2013 Rim Fire on the Stanislaus National Forest burned 257,314 acres, making it the third largest wildfire in California history. The US Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Response team has been working since last fall to implement a holistic plan to restore forest health in a manner that promotes fire resiliency while also addressing immediate hazardous conditions. Accomplishments to date include working on hundreds of miles of roads to restore ditches, repair or replace culverts, and prepare roads for winter. In addition, many archaeological and historic sites have been protected from additional damage from falling trees and erosion. To help protect fragile soils, approximately 4,000 acres have been treated with aerial mulching and 800 acres with ground-based chipping. The recovery plan includes the Rim Hazard Tree project, which is underway and addresses hazard tree removal along 194 miles of roads, recreation facilities, and areas adjacent to private infrastructures, and the Rim Fire Recovery Project, which will allow for fire-related dead fuels reduction through timber salvage. For more on the Rim Fire, go to http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/stanislaus/home/?cid=stelprd3790883.