San Bernardino National Forest Land Management Plan - Part 2

September 2005 Land Management Plan Part 2
San Bernardino National Forest Strategy
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
ponderosa, Jeffrey,and Coulter 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 these 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 life and property (e.g., the urban
interface), to improve wildlife forage, and to protect watersheds from the adverse impacts
of large, destructive, high intensity fires.
• Remove ladder fuels and forest floor fuel accumulations to protect stands of Parry pinyon
from stand replacing crown fires. Reduce fuel loading in chaparral adjacent to these
stands so that future wildland fires are less likely to initiate crown fires from surrounding
shrublands.
Linked to National Strategic Plan
Goal 1- Reduce the risk from catastrophic wildland fire, objective 1.
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