Scoping Notice: July 23, 2020

The Forestry Division of the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) and the Parks, Recreation and Open Lands Department for the City of Helena are proposing to mitigate the risk from wildland fire to the community and residents of Helena. Through a partnership with the U.S. Forest Service State & Private Forestry, grant funds for this project are applied for and awarded through the DNRC’s Western States Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Grant program.

Fire suppression efforts over the past century, coupled with past management practices and forest growth have led to hazardous fuel conditions in forests across Montana. This has led to increased risk of wildfire to communities, homes, and other highly valued resources and assets. Grant funds from this program support reducing hazardous fuel conditions, establishing fire adapted communities and restoring resilient in the wildland urban interface.

The project being proposed is located on northern portions of Mt. Helena Park, the purpose is to reduce wildfire risk to the community of Helena and the potential for stand-replacing wildfire within the park by managing hazardous fuel conditions on approx. 120 acres of city-owned forest land. The proposed treatment area is adjacent to, and within a half-mile of residential homes. Additionally, the area identified for treatment has received a forest fuel hazard rating of "Very High" in the Tri-County Regional Community Wildfire Protection Plan. Tree thinning, pruning, pile burning, and mechanical chipping/mastication are the identified forest management methods. The area is a mixed conifer forest primarily comprised of ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir. The project would start fall of 2020 and be completed by the end of 2021. If funded, the prescription would be to reduce the density of trees and ladder fuels to reduce the likelihood of high-severity wildfire and mimic historic conditions of a dry mixed conifer forest; promoting age-class and species diversity.

The proposed action, to award grant funding and implement the fuels reduction project, would contribute to the city of Helena meeting its goals and objectives identified in the City of Helena Open Lands Management Plan and the DNRC meeting goals and objectives identified in Forests in Focus 2.0 and the Montana Forest Action Plan. The City of Helena and DNRC invites your comment on the proposed actions in order to comply with the Montana Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) and provide public participation to the City’s activities. Please respond by end of business August 21, 2020 to:

Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Attn: Erik Warrington, MT DNRC

2705 Spurgin Road Missoula, MT 59804

or: ewarrington@mt.gov

Map provided by City of Helena; Parks, Recreation & Open Space