ARCATA, Calif.— The Bureau of Land Management will continue fuels reduction work in the King Range National Conservation Area to reduce the risk of wildfire and restore forest health. The work will begin in September and continue until February 2025. Work will occur along King Peak Road and the Paradise Royal Mountain Bike Trail.

Drivers could expect delays along King Peak Road and could encounter project work along trails.

“This project is aimed at improving fire resilience and forest health,” said King Range NCA Manager Paul Sever. “We are asking anyone visiting the area to be patient as this critical work is completed.”

On King Peak Road and connecting roads, crews will be cutting small trees and moving the material to a chipper on the roadway in a six-mile-long work area about two miles from the community of Shelter Cove. Along the Paradise Royale Mountain Bike Trail, crews will be cutting and piling material away from the trail along the entirety of the trail.

The project is part of an ongoing project funded by a Cal Fire forest health grant. More information is available from the King Range office in Whitethorn by calling 707-986-5400, or by contacting the BLM Arcata Field Office, 707-825-2300.

THREE RIVERS, Calif. – The Bakersfield Field Office plans to conduct prescribed fire operations of up to 1,000 piles of downed hazard trees, branches and understory brush at Case Mountain Extensive Recreation Management Area, southeast of Three Rivers, Tulare County, to prevent wildfire risk.

Pile burn operations will start as early as Wednesday, Nov. 29, and continue periodically until spring, depending on weather and air quality conditions, onsite observations and resource availability. Burning will take place only when weather and fuel moisture allow for safe and successful operations. The burn is being closely coordinated with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District. Smoke may be visible in Three Rivers.

“Partnerships are vital to managing sustainable, working public lands,” stated Bakersfield Field Manager Gabriel Garcia. “The prescribed burn is being done as part of a CalFire grant and a joint effort of the BLM, CAL FIRE, Tulare County Resource Conservation District, tribes, private landowners and technical experts.”

The prescribed burn is part of a multi-year fuels reduction effort in the Bureau’s only giant sequoia groves to strategically thin trees; remove ladder fuels, which can feed flames to the treetops; and remove needles, branches and brush on the forest floor. The prescribed fire will help increase protection of the wildland-urban interface for the town of Three Rivers in Tulare County and improve landscape health and remove hazardous fuels near giant sequoia trees that could feed wildland fire at the recreation area.

Case Mountain encompasses approximately 18,500 acres of BLM-managed public lands and supports many sensitive plants and animals, important riverbank ecosystems, areas of cultural significance, and a 400-acre Giant Sequoia Complex with six distinct giant sequoia groves. The BLM is committed to keeping public landscapes healthy and productive.

 

For more information, please contact the BLM Bakersfield Field Office at 661-391-6000, or visit the website.