The forested watershed that provides Baker City’s water supply is at high risk of severe wildfire. Active forest management is urgently needed to restore this federally owned land back to health and reduce risks to local communities.

The good news is the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest has proposed the Baker City Watershed Fuels Management Project to thin overstocked forests as well as to protect municipal water supplies and reduce severe wildfire risks to homes and vital infrastructure that are identified within the Baker County Community Wildfire Protection Plan.

The project would also help restore ecosystem resiliency and reduce fuel loads by establishing shaded fuel breaks, and by carefully reintroducing fire on the landscape. The project has been in development for the past couple years in consultation with city leaders, and the National Forest is now accepting public comments through Aug. 30.

Considering the area’s history of wildfires, the Baker City Watershed Fuels Management Project would create conditions that would give firefighters better and safer opportunities to protect the watershed and nearby communities. Many of the treatments are focused on areas within the wildland urban interface — where forests and homes intersect — so they can provide defensible space for more safe and effective firefighting operations.

We should encourage the National Forest to implement this project as soon as possible to protect local water supplies, homes and infrastructure. They should also maximize forest health treatments across the proposed project area, including riparian areas that are at high risk of wildfire.

A strong public-private partnership is necessary to ensure this project is implemented successfully. Public lands managers should work proactively with contractors to allow a variety of forestry equipment that can improve safety and reduce ground disturbance. There is also an important opportunity to support local jobs and Eastern Oregon’s forest infrastructure through commercial thinning treatments that provide wood products.

By reducing the risks of severe, high-intensity wildfire, the project will help maintain high-quality drinking water supplies for Baker City residents that all depend on healthy, high-functioning forests. You can submit a comment directly at Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities web site here- https://bit.ly/3AjROD8e

Nick Smith

Executive director, Healthy Forests, Healthy Communities

Sherwood