Land Management Plan - Part 2 Los Padres National Forest Strategy

September 2005 Land Management Plan Part 2
Los Padres National Forest Strategy
FH 1 - Vegetation Restoration
Restore vegetation through reforestation or other appropriate methods after stand replacing fires,
drought, or other events or activities that degrade
or cause a loss of plant communities. Where
needed implement reforestation using native tree species grown from local seed sources. In such
plantings consider long-term sustainability of the forest vegetation by taking into account factors,
such as fire regime and regional climate.
Consider small nursery operations to facilitate
reforestation and to improve restoration success where direct seeding is ineffective. Use noxious-
weed-free
seed in all plantings.
Linked to National Strategic Plan
Goal 5 - Improve watershed condition, objective 3.
FH 3 - Restoration of Forest Health
Protect natural resource values at risk from wildland fire loss that are outside the desired range
of
variability,
or where needed for wildlife habitat improvement:
• Implement vegetation management activities to reduce tree densities and fuel loading in
yellow pine and mixed conifer forests to levels similar to those that characterized forests
of
the pre-suppression and early suppression eras (ca. 1880-1930). Restore species composition
comparable to forests of the same era with an emphasis on increasing the relative abundance
of large-diameter (greater than 24 inches diameter breast height), shade-intolerant conifer
species.
• Implement vegetation treatments that improve the health of Coulter pine forests and
woodlands growing in chaparral. Focus treatments on stands greater than 35 years, except
where it is necessary to protect life and property. In the latter case, treatments may occur in
stands greater than 20 years so long as seed (cone) banks are adequate to perpetuate the
stands.
• Remove ladder fuels and forest floor fuel accumulations to protect stands of bigcone
Douglas-fir from stand replacing crown fires. Reduce fuel loading in chaparral adjacent to fir
stands so that future wildland fires are less likely to initiate crown fires from
surrounding
shrublands.
• Treat fuel loading in montane chaparral to reduce the likelihood that fires originating in this
type will generate crown
fires in adjacent forested stands.
• Manage chaparral in selected locations to protect the life and property
of human inhabitants
(e.g., the urban interface), to improve wildlife forage, and to protect watersheds from the
adv erse impacts of large, destructive, high intensity fires. In selected watersheds, manage for
even-aged patch sizes of less than 5,000 acres.
Linked to National Strategic Plan
Goal 1- Reduce the risk from catastrophic wildland fire, objective 1.
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