Stuart Creek Hill Shaded Fuel Break
Summary
SCH Number
2021100302
Public Agency
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
(CAL FIRE)
Document Title
Stuart Creek Hill Shaded Fuel Break
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
10/19/2021
Document Description
Sonoma Land Trust plans to install a shaded fuel break at its 14-acre Stuart Creek Hill property near the town of Glen Ellen.
Treatment types includes thinning from below to a height of 8 feet, reducing slash to 24” overall height, and cutting of resprouting brush species using a lop and scatter method. All healthy trees will be retained. The proposed shaded fuel break spans 0.30 miles, encompassing approximately 4 acres along the western and southern boundaries of the property. The width of the fuel break will be about 100’ or twice the height of the vegetation. Work will be carried out by contract hand crews according to forestry prescriptions developed by a Registered Professional Forester. Tree removal will not occur during the main bird nesting season (March 15-August 15). No work will occur within a 50-foot buffer of Stuart Creek, which runs along the north end of the property.
The vegetation type in the project area is mature oak woodland dominated by blue oak (Quercus douglassii), with a discontinuous canopy, grassy understory, and some manzanita understory. The entire stand burned in the Nuns Fire of October 2017. The goal of this shaded fuel break is to reduce fire intensity near adjacent homes, improve fire holding capacity during fires, and provide safe ingress and egress for firefighters.
Contact Information
Name
Tim Holliday
Agency Name
California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Email
Location
Counties
Sonoma
Total Acres
3
State Highways
12
Other Location Info
Portions of T6N, R6W, Sec 15 MDBM
Other Information
East of the community of Glen Ellen in Sonoma County.
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Categorical Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Class 4 § 15304 Minor Alterations to Land
Reasons for Exemption
This project fits under portions of Class 4 §15304 Minor Alterations to Land.
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, energy, 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, utilities and service systems or wildfire. Documentation of the environmental review completed by the Department is kept on file at the CAL FIRE Sonoma Lake Napa Unit located at 1199 Big Tree Road, Saint Helena CA 94574.
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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