Sonora, CA…The U.S. Forest Service announces the publication of the completed environmental impact statement for the Mokelumne Amador Calaveras Forest Health and Resilience Project in the Federal Register tomorrow. The project area spans 246,838 acres and aims to reduce wildfire risks, protect communities, and improve forest health.

The project activities include thinning through timber harvest, fuel reduction through mastication, fuel break construction, prescribed fire, and mitigation of non-native invasive plants. Several treatments will often overlap on the same acres. These actions help to reduce the density and accumulation of vegetation in strategic areas improving forest resilience to wildfire and drought.

The project has been a collaborative effort in partnership with the Upper Mokelumne River Watershed Authority, who provided planning management with a consultant team (Stantec). The project has also been developed in collaboration with the Amador-Calaveras Consensus Group – a collaborative, comprised of professionals, environmental groups, industry representatives, recreation groups, local and regional government, and research scientists.

Public input throughout the planning process has been vital to ensuring the project meets the needs of communities and forests. Feedback from diverse stakeholders has provided practical insights that strengthen environmental protections and enhance forest resilience strategies.

The completed environmental impact statement is available on the project website. Following the Federal Register notice each forest will sign a record of decision, which also will be posted to the project website.

For more information, contact Stanislaus National Forest Public Affairs Officer, Benjamin Cossel at benjamin.cossel@usda.gov.
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