Consideration and Approval of Contract: Wildland Fire Hazardous Fuels (WFHF) 17-203 grant award - Observatory Mesa Fuels Reduction.

The 154-acre area within the City's Observatory Mesa Natural Area (OMNA) targeted for forest treatment with this grant award is dense ponderosa pine forest, highly vulnerable to damage from wildfire.  It is one of the last areas within OMNA to undergo initial thinning operations.   Under current conditions, a fire in this area will easily transition into the crowns of the trees: predominate wind direction will easily transport embers into adjacent National Forest lands and/or residential neighborhoods.  The OMNA is part of the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project (FWPP), and extremely popular with recreationalists.  We've engaged nearby neighborhoods and residents on various firewise outreach efforts and partnered with them on hazardous fuel reduction work for many years.  General resource-management planning and community outreach efforts for the entire OMNA have been underway for the past three years.  The completed area would mimic historical forest conditions by reducing overall density and creating a more open forest structure, resulting in a forest resilient to fire, insects, and drought/climate change.   

• TOTAL Project Cost is $135,398 (154 acres x $879.21/acre}.
• The grant award is for 90% of this total cost ($121,858).
• The City, via the FWPP bond, is responsible for the remaining 10% ($13,540).
• This will permit what the City would otherwise spend from the bond to accomplish the treatment work on this 154 acres (the 90%) to be applied elsewhere within the FWPP area for other needed forest treatments.
• This project is budget as part of account number 407-09-425-3277-1-4290.  The budget in this account for FY2018 is $2,784,789.

COUNCIL GOALS: Forest Treatments . . . 
Climate Change:  improve/maintain forest ecosystems and positions them to better withstand change-agents such as climate change.  The work on Observatory Mesa and elsewhere 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.
Code Compliance:  address requirements of the City's Wildland Urban Interface Code (2008) and demonstrate their effectiveness.

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, such as the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI), 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.

Not on this specific issue/award.  Council was, however, engaged in the bond issue when it was approved to be presented to the voters (summer 2012), has approved other grant awards and contracts related to FWPP, and has been kept updated on issues throughout the overall effort.  

Three exist:
1) Approve the grant award, permitting forest treatment work to proceed as planned.  This permits full-use of the grant funds and saves bond funds.
2) Pass on the award and fund the effort entirely from bond funds.  This increases city costs and reduces bond funds for other FWPP required work.
3) Reject the need for forest treatments on the OMNA.  This leaves the site vulnerable to damage/loss and voter desire/direction as identified in the passage of the bond (74% approval) unfulfilled.

Damage and loss of our forests from destructive wildfire and insect infestations are ever-present threats to our community.  Areas that have undergone proactive forest treatments (ie – thinning, debris disposal, and/or prescribed/managed fire) are not only healthier and more resilient to damaging agents, they also provide a barrier to the spread of these agents once they do become established elsewhere.  Treated areas enhance public safety, ensure infrastructure protection, and safe-guard community well-being.   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 OMNA and the forest treatments planned, as well as those that have occurred, were presented during the bond campaign leading-up to the election, as part of the overall goal, area, and effort that would occur with passage of the measure.   Regardless of location or casual factor, insect infestations are always difficult to manage, and wildfires on Observatory Mesa are a challenge due to access, lack of on-site water supply, adjacent neighborhoods, and other factors.  Completion of forest treatments have proven highly effective in reducing occurrence and severity of these events.

None

Multiple partners have been engaged in the FWPP effort since its inception, and these partnership efforts have continued throughout planned and completed work on the OMNA.  Working with City Staff, DFFM was the principle author of the OMNA Forest Stewardship Plan.  AZ Game & Fish Department (AZGF), US Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), and NAU's Ecological Restoration Institute (ERI) provided input and review.  The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Greater Flagstaff Forests Partnership (GFFP), US Forest Service (USFS), private consultants, and NAU's School of Forestry (SoF) have all been engaged on the OMNA during-and-following other forest treatments.  Completion of the forest treatment work funded by this grant award 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, most recently during the Festival of Science: OMNA stakeholder members, city staff, and Council members have also been provided tours.  City staff has interacted with numerous individuals hiking, running, or biking through the area, as well as with other community members interested in the work.  The OMNA Stakeholder Group and the Friends of the Rio have been briefed.  Information boards have established, and continue to be maintained, where the Urban Trail crosses the site and where roads enter the parcel. 
 
Consult – We’ve worked with both AZGF and USFWS to protect habitat, with adjacent neighborhoods regarding access, the USFS regarding transportation routes, Kinder Morgan/El Paso Natural Gas and the Snowbowl regarding pipeline crossings, and DFFM regarding plans. 
 
Involve – Following treatment work on other OMNA sites, both the public and the Winter Wood For Warmth program have been engaged in removing firewood for use and distribution to area/regional residents.  A few individuals who have raised issues about the work have been engaged directly by staff from ERI and volunteers from GFFP to provide a more complete understanding of the need, and the work, itself.  Other City Staff, including those from Sustainability and Stormwater, have also been engaged.  Community members have also been hired as seasonal Fire Dept crew members and 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 nearly two decades in this work, on various jurisdictions and site conditions, and have utilized a variety of prescriptions and approaches to ensure we have a full-suite of treatments across the greater landscape.  The work to be funded by this award 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), is consistent with forest treatments designed and implemented by GFFP (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 the required actions identified in both the initial and final Observatory Mesa Forest Stewardship Plan (2013 and 2015, respectfully) and both the Four Forests Restoration Initiative's and the FWPP's Final Record of Decision (USFS - 2015).  Further, it meets grant requirements for post-treatment conditions.