Tahoe National Forest and Nevada County collaborate to advance wildfire-resilient communities and landscapes
NEVADA CITY, CA —Yesterday, the Nevada County Board of Supervisors approved the Good Neighbor Agreement (GNA) between the USDA, Tahoe National Forest and the Nevada County Office of Emergency Services (OES) for a decade-long collaboration to advance county-wide fuels reduction and forest health initiatives.
“This collaboration is a vital step for protecting the East County area. The intersection of water quality, recreation, economy and fire has a pivotal impact on all areas of our east county communities,” said Hardy Bullock, District 5 Supervisor.
More than half of Nevada County’s 612,900 acres is the Tahoe National Forest land. The GNA culminates nearly a year of discussion between OES and the Tahoe National Forest around how to best work together to support wildfire resilient communities and landscapes in Nevada County. Included in the agreement are three primary objectives: (1) roadside hazardous fuels reduction, (2) forest health project development and implementation, and (3) vegetation management and project maintenance.
“Wildfire mitigation in Nevada County requires partnership and action at all levels. This agreement demonstrates the long-term commitment of County of Nevada and our federal land managers to proactively work together into the foreseeable future” said Craig Griesbach, Director of Emergency Services.
The GNA is a durable framework for the implementation of multi-jurisdictional and multi-benefit projects on both federal and private lands. The first project under the GNA, a 118-acre roadside hazardous fuels reduction project in east county, will roll out later this summer. The inaugural project is demonstrative of cooperative action – it is funded by County of Nevada and Truckee Meadows Water Authority with in-kind support from both the Tahoe National Forest and Nevada County OES.
The roadside vegetation project leverages and extends work implemented by the Truckee Ranger District last year.
“The wildfire mitigation work being done through this agreement is extremely important. We are looking forward to strengthening our relationship as we work together to give our firefighting resources more opportunities to suppress new fire starts while improving ingress and egress safety for our shared visitors” said Jonathan Cook-Fisher, Truckee District Ranger.
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