Gualala River Forest Conservation Easement: Letter for February, 2011

Conservation easement
to protect 14,000 acres
of Gualala River Forest

Update: February 25, 2011

Thanks to everyone who wrote letters in support of this project! The Wildlife Conservation Board received over 350 letters in the past week in support of funding for Gualala and Usal Forest conservation easements.

Background

The Wildlife Conservation Board (WCB) has decided to delay a decision on funding conservation easements for a 14,000 acre parcel in the Gualala River watershed and the ~50,000 acre Usal Redwood Forest in northern Mendocino County, in order to give the public more time to review the appraisals.

The easements would be held by The Conservation Fund, which already holds similar easements protecting large parcels in the nearby Garcia River, Big River and Salmon Creek watersheds.

The easements would permanently protect these working forestland from fragmentation and development. The forests would be managed in a protective way, with the goal of rehabilitation of over-logged lands to make them productive, to recover old growth type characteristics, and to recover and protect water quality and wildlife habitat values.

The WCB is a state agency whose primary purpose is to approve funding for wildlife habitat protection, restoration and wild-oriented public access projects. In this case, the funds are from Proposition 84, which was approved by voters in 2006.

Below is the draft message that we asked supporters to
send to the WCB prior to their meeting on February 24.

Send to these addresses

director@dfg.ca.gov
fgc@fgc.ca.gov
Karen.Finn@dof.ca.gov
Senator.Pavley@sen.ca.gov
William.Craven@sen.ca.gov
Tisha.Simpson@asm.ca.gov
Assemblymember.Gordon@assembly.ca.gov
Erica.Costa@asm.ca.gov

Message

To: Chairman John McCamman, Mr. Jim Kellogg, and Ms. Ana Matosantos

Cc: Senator Fran Pavley, Assembly Member Jared Huffman, Assembly Member Richard Gordon, Assembly Member Michael Allen

Subject: Approve Gualala River Forest Conservation Easement

Dear Wildlife Conservation Board and Legislative Advisory Committee members:

Please approve the Gualala River Forest Conservation Easement (item 23 on the Wildlife Conservation Board’s agenda for February 24, 2011).

Timely approval of this project is of vital interest to the economic and ecological health of the region and represents a cost-effective fulfillment of the voters’ intent in passing Proposition 84 that authorized funds to “promote the ecological integrity and economic stability of California’s diverse native forests for all their public benefits through forest conservation…of productive managed forest lands….”

This project, along with the Usal Redwood Forest Conservation Easement (agenda item 24), will protect redwood/Douglas fir forest on the Mendocino Coast. These forests are among the most biologically rich and economically productive forests in the world.

Half of California’s annual timber revenue comes from the Redwood Region and the forest products industry remains an extremely important part of local economies in the region. Permanent protection of these forests will protect wildlife, water quality and jobs.

These projects also fulfill a number of public objectives that have long been priorities for the State and the region, including:

The California Department of Fish and Game’s Coho Recovery Strategy for California Coho Salmon recommends [e]ncourag[ing] economically sustainable management of forest…land in the range of coho salmon to reduce the potential for conversion to residential or commercial development and acquir[ing] conservation easements or lands in fee title from willing landowners to protect coho salmon habitat.
The State Water Board’s Nonpoint Source Program Strategy and Implementation Plan, 1998 – 2013 identifies forest management measures to address nonpoint source pollution. The conservation easements proposed for funding include specific measures to increase riparian buffers and limit road construction which will reduce sediments to important coho and steelhead streams.
The Mendocino County General Plan Land Use Element states that “The County shall protect and maintain commercial timberland.”
The Mendocino County Coastal Conservation Plan dated April 2003 and prepared by the Mendocino Land Trust with funding support by the State Coastal Conservancy recommends the [p]urchase …of working forest easements from willing landowners to provide for large areas of connected, sustainable working forests on highly productive soils.

As you can see, these are excellent projects that deserve your support and approval. Thank you very much.

Gualala River Forest