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<H1 style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; mso-line-height-alt: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 22pt; COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 24.0pt">Trinity
district may expand community forest<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></H1>
<P class=byline style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt">By
<A href="http://www.redding.com/staff/dylan-darling/"><FONT color=#017890>Dylan
Darling</FONT></A><BR>Wednesday, December 17, 2008 <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333"><A title="Click to enlarge photo"
href="http://www.redding.com/photos/2008/dec/17/26308/"><SPAN
style="COLOR: windowtext"><IMG height=148
alt="Kenneth Baldwin of Douglas City discusses the Weaverville Community Forest along with other community members during a tour of the area with Bureau of Land Management officials and local politicians in October. The board for the Trinity County Resource Conservation District, which oversees the forest, is set to vote tonight on adding 12,000 acres to the forest."
src="cid:001f01c9609c$668a63c0$6801a8c0@HAL" width=220 border=0
v:shapes="_x0000_i1025"></SPAN></A><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoCaption
style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Kenneth Baldwin of Douglas City
discusses the Weaverville Community Forest along with other community members
during a tour of the area with Bureau of Land Management officials and local
politicians in October. The board for the Trinity County Resource Conservation
District, which oversees the forest, is set to vote tonight on adding 12,000
acres to the forest.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=fxtitle style="MARGIN: auto 0in 4.5pt 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial"><STRONG><FONT
color=#666666><FONT face=Georgia>If you're
going<o:p></o:p></FONT></FONT></STRONG></SPAN></P>
<P class=fb
style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN><STRONG>What:</STRONG>
Trinity County Resource Conservation District board
meeting.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=fb
style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><STRONG><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Where:</SPAN></STRONG><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> No. 1 Horseshoe Lane, off of Highway
3 in Weaverville.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=fb
style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><STRONG><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">When:</SPAN></STRONG><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> 5:30 p.m.
today.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=fb
style="MARGIN: auto 0in auto 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><STRONG><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Agenda includes</SPAN></STRONG>: Vote
on adding 12,000 acres currently managed by the U.S. Forest Service to the
Weaverville Community Forest.</P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Already encompassing 1,000 acres, the
Weaverville Community Forest could be growing - by 12,000
acres.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">"We will really have a
landscape-wide, community forest," said Colleen O'Sullivan, chairwoman of the
board of directors for the Trinity County Resource Conservation District, which
oversees the forest.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The U.S. Forest Service has already
approved a stewardship contract that would give the community responsibility of
managing the forest via the district. The district's five-member board votes
this evening on whether to sign the 10-year deal.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">"If all goes well we'll approve it,"
O'Sullivan said.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">First brainstormed in 1999, the
Weaverville Community Forest was established in 2005 when the U.S. Bureau of
Land Management signed a similar stewardship contract with the
district.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Such contracts had typically been
made with timber companies, which would manage the land for harvest, said Alex
Cousins, a grant coordinator for the district. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">While timber is still cut in the
community forest, he said, it's done by loggers hired by the district, and
proceeds from timber sales are spent on management costs and projects in the
forest. Cousins said the funds from typical timber harvesting on federal lands
would go into the U.S. Treasury.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The BLM had originally planned to
swap the 1,000 acres of forest southwest of Weaverville with Sierra Pacific
Industries when people in the small town proposed taking care of it on their
own. He said they wanted to manage fire risk, preserve the "viewshed" - or the
forest's appearance - and enhance recreation.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">"They felt that if this land was
traded out it would be clear-cut and it wouldn't look so good," Cousins
said.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Cousins said anyone can join the
steering committee that helps the district manage the
forest.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Although the acreage would be
increasing by more than tenfold with the addition of the Forest Service acres,
Cousins said the district and its steering committee are ready to manage
it.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: #333333; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">"We are not going to take on anything
we can't handle," Cousins said.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN-LEFT: 4.5pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 13.5pt">R<SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt">eporter Dylan Darling can be
reached at 225-8266 or <A href="mailto:ddarling@redding.com"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><FONT
color=#017890>ddarling@redding.com</FONT></SPAN></A>.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P></DIV></BODY></HTML>