Consideration and Approval of Contract:  Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project (FWPP) Supplemental Project Agreement (SPA) 18-PA-11030408-002 with the US Forest Service, Coconino National Forest.

SPA 18-PA-11030408-002 authorizes City funding for timber harvesting activities (initial forest treatment work) within the Dry Lake Hills Phase II area on up to 2,165 acres on federal lands: 1,817 acres of "mandatory" work, with an allowance for up to an additional 348 acres of "optional" work (new acres), as well as other optional work which will increase scope of work within the acreage-area identified above.   Harvesting systems may include a combination of Cable, Helicopter, and both Steep Slope and Traditional Ground Base equipment.  All work is identified and incorporated into the Final Environmental Impact Statement and Final Record of Decision, signed by the US Forest Service October 22, 2015.  Operational planning, to include boundary survey's, individual unit harvesting prescriptions, and tree marking has been completed.  Following review/approval of this SPA, the US Forest Service will prepare and distribute bid packages summer 2018.  Bids will be received, reviewed, and award(s) made late summer 2018, with actual field work expected to begin summer 2019 and completion by fall/winter 2020.

Total cost for the forest treatment work identified in this SPA is not to exceed $4,598,541.40.  Cost per acre varies depending upon the Harvesting System that will be utilized.  The system identified for any given harvesting unit is based upon terrain, access, and material (size and amount) to be cut-and-removed, and is specified in the Final Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision. This SPA is budgeted and funded as part of the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Program bond in account number 407-09-425-3277-0.  Attachment C - Financial Plan - is CONFIDENTIAL and will not be publicly disclosed pending the public bid process.

COUNCIL GOALS: Forest Treatments . . . 
Climate Change:  improve/maintain forest ecosystems and positions them to better withstand change-agents such as climate change.  The work is science-based and a climate action-plan in operation.
Water Conservation: preserve water sources and prevent long-term damage to critical watersheds.
Environmental and Natural Resources:  protect and sustain our natural environment, reducing catastrophic fire and post-fire flooding events and insect infestations, preserving valuable wildlife habitat, allowing for recreational ventures and business operations,  and maintaining community well-being (to include public safety - first responders, residents, and visitors).
Community Outreach:  demonstrate need for, and solutions to, our forest health crisis, allowing us to showcase work, conduct field tours, and encourage residents to take action to protect their neighborhood, property, and home.  
Town and Gown:  permit us to attract students to a working outdoor laboratory to conduct studies, gather information, interact with the public, and support our efforts while furthering their education and experience.

REGIONAL PLAN:
Environmental Planning & Conservation – Vision for the Future:  In 2013, the long-term health and viability of our natural resource environment is maintained through strategic planning for resource conservation and protection.
Policy E&C.3.3 – Invest in forest health and watershed protection measures.
Policy E&C.6.1 – Encourage public awareness that the region’s ponderosa pine forest is a fire-dependent ecosystem and strive to restore more natural and sustainable forest composition, structure, and processes.
Policy E&C.6.3 – Promote protection, conservation, and ecological restoration of the region’s diverse ecosystem type and associated animals.
Policy E&C.6.6 – Support collaborative efforts for forest health initiatives or practices . . . to support healthy forests and protect our water system.
Policy E&C.10.2 – Protect, conserve, and when possible, enhance and restore wildlife habitat on public land.
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Not on this specific SPA.  Council has, however, engaged in wildfire management and forest treatment issues and efforts since the late 1990's.  Specific to FWPP, Council has engaged at numerous times throughout it's nearly six-year lifespan.  These engagements with FWPP have included approval of inclusion of the Bond in the Nov 2012 election, various Agreements, acceptance of grant funding, approval of contracts, public outreach events, field trips, and briefings.

Three exist:
1.  Approve the SPA, permitting City funding to be used to implement identified and necessary FWPP forest treatment work to proceed as planned within Phase II of the Dry Lake Hills area.
2. Pass on allocating City funding as specified in this SPA, and seek alternate City funding options to conduct all or part of the specified work.
3.  Reject the use of any City funding to be allocated toward forest treatments in the Dry lake Hills area.  This leaves the site vulnerable to damage/loss and voter desire/direction as identified in the passage of the bond (74% approval) unfulfilled.

Damage to and loss of our forests from destructive wildfire, and subsequent post-fire flood events, is an ever-present threat to our community.  The Dry Lake Hills area is particularly vulnerable due to terrain, exposure, limited access, fuel loadings, and forest condition.  The community is especially vulnerable to catastrophic damage from the flood events that would follow.  Proactive forest treatments (ie – thinning, debris disposal, and/or prescribed/managed fire) result in healthy and resilient forests, greatly reducing the threat of uncontrolled wildfire and the flood events that all too often follow such fires.  Public safety is enhanced, infrastructure protection is ensured, and community well-being is safe-guarded.   Within our community and immediate area, the Woody Fire (2005), Hardy Fire (2010), and Slide Fire (2014) dramatically demonstrate the value of these treatments: the Schultz Fire (2010) shows what can happen when such treatments are not in-place. The proposed forest treatment activities on federal lands within the Dry Lake Hills area were presented to the Community during the campaign leading-up to the bond election, and in the subsequent environmental planning and community outreach that occurred (and is still underway).  Regardless of cause, wildfires in the Dry Lake Hills area are a challenge: access, lack of on-site water supply, adjacent neighborhoods, steep rough terrain, and forest conditions all contribute to the difficulty of safely and effectively managing such an event.  Post-fire flood events would be devastating, and require huge amounts of both capitol and time to address.

 

Dry Lake Hills Phase II operations are complex and expensive.  The Cable, Helicopter, and Steep-Slope Ground-Based Harvesting Systems to be employed are not found in the Southwest, necessitating use of companies from out-of-state who have both the equipment and skills/knowledge to effectively operate.  It is anticipated that multiple operators will be required to do the work: due to the special-nature of the Systems to be employed, no one operator is likely to do more than one type of work.  Due to wildlife restrictions, all forest treatment work (every Harvesting System) encompassed by this SPA needs to be completed within two years of when the first tree is cut, regardless of which Harvesting System is the first to begin operations: as such, getting all operators in the area and able to start at the same time will most likely not be possible until late spring/early summer 2019.

Actual bids have not yet been received and will not be received until later this summer.  Federal procurement regulations require that funding be available (appropriated and/or committed) prior to bid packets being distributed and bids received: thus the need to allocate City funds at this time. Based upon actual bids received, Project Managers, in consultation with appropriate City and Forest staff, will, if necessary, move/reassign planned Harvesting System acreage (Primary and/or Optional) to both fully utilize the allocated funds and treat the maximum # of acres possible.  Preliminary discussions have occurred with Council concerning the potential funding shortfall and options to address.

Multiple partners have been engaged in FWPP effort since its inception in 2012, and these partnership efforts continue today.  Working with Forest and City Staff, AZ Game & Fish Department, US Fish & Wildlife Service, and NAU's Ecological Restoration Institute have assisted the effort.  The Nature Conservancy, Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership, Campbell Global, Coconino County, AZ Dept of Forestry and Fire Management, and NAU's School of Forestry have also been engaged and provided assistance.  Completion of this work will protect adjacent neighborhoods, recreational opportunities, and wildlife habitat, while promoting forest resiliency and sustainability.
 

Inform – Following the 50 campaign events leading up to the bond election (Nov 2012), we have continued to work at keeping the community informed of what we are doing, and why.  The Project website (www.flagstaffwatershedprotection.org) is one way: numerous news stories have also been crafted and/or otherwise reported.  Impromptu and announced field trips have been conducted, as well as various outreach events and meetings.  This past October, CityScape featured the FWPP 5-Year Community Report.  Forest and City staff have interacted with numerous individuals hiking, running, or biking through the area, as well as with other community members interested in the work.  Information kiosks have also been established at various trailheads and road junctures.     
 
Consult – We were part of the US Forest Service Inter-Disciplinary Team engaged in the environmental planning effort.  The community was afforded multiple opportunities to provide input during that process, which included interested citizens, adjacent neighborhoods and members of the recreational community.  . 
 
Involve – A few individuals who have raised issues about the proposed work have been directly engaged by either Forest or City staff or other partners.  Members of the American Conservation Experience, a locally-based conservation organization, as well as NAU graduate students, various volunteers (groups and individuals), and members of the Fire Dept's seasonal crew have been engaged in conducting some of the work itself. 
 
Empower – The planned forest treatments are part of a larger effort underway in our area and throughout northern AZ.  We and our many partners have been engaged for over two decades in this work, on various jurisdictions and site conditions, and have utilized a variety of prescriptions and approaches to insure we have a full-suite of treatments across the greater landscape.  The work to be funded by this SPA is based upon credible and proven science-based forest restoration and hazard fuel management standards and knowledge.  It adheres to guidelines established in the Greater Flagstaff Area Community Wildfire Protection Plan (City & County - 2005, revised 2012), is consistent with forest treatments designed and implemented by the Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership (1999-present) and the City of Flagstaff Wildland Fire Management program (1998-present), meets the goals of the State of AZ 20-Year Strategy (2007), is consistent with plans and actions underway as part of the Four Forests Restoration Initiative (4FRI), and adheres to the FWPP Final Records of Decision (USFS - 2015).