Banner Mountain Lookout Fuels Treatment
Summary
SCH Number
2019070458
Public Agency
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
(CAL FIRE)
Document Title
Banner Mountain Lookout Fuels Treatment
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
6/14/2019
Document Description
This project is located on just over nine acres of property owned by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection at the Banner Mountain Lookout. The vegetation on the site is a mixed conifer forest with a brush understory. The trees are primarily Ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, incense cedar and black oak. The understory consists of manzanita, deer brush, buck brush, poison oak and bear clover scattered throughout it resulting in a fuel model 6. The surrounding properties are heavily forested with conifers and a thick brush understory. The proposed project involves utilizing CALFIRE hand crews and/or equipment to remove the fuels across the site to provide protection to the critical infrastructure and improve the visibility from the tower. Brush as well as trees that significantly impact the viewshed for the lookout, will be masticated, chipped or burned.
The primary purpose of this project is to protect critical infrastructure as the site houses not only a CAL FIRE lookout but also several communication towers that house transmitters for public utilities, law enforcement, fire and a variety of cell phone providers.
Contact Information
Name
Steve Garcia
Agency Name
California Department of Forestry and Fire (CAL FIRE)
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Location
Counties
Nevada
Cross Streets
see attached NOE
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
15304, Class 1, 4 & 7
Reasons for Exemption
Field review by CAL FIRE staff confirmed that no exceptions apply that would preclude the use of a notice of exemption for this project. The Department has concluded that no significant environmental impact would occur to aesthetics, agriculture and forestland or timberland, air quality, biological resources, cultural resources, geology and soils, greenhouse gas emissions, hazards and hazardous materials, hydrology and water quality, land use planning, mineral resources, noise, population and housing, public services, recreation, transportation or traffic, or to utilities and service systems. Documentation of the environmental review completed by the Department is kept on file at NEU Headquarters, 13760 Lincoln Way, Auburn, CA.
95603.
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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