DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY AND FIRE PROTECTION
135 Ridgway Avenue
SANTA ROSA, California 95401
(707) 576-2935
Website: www.fire.ca.gov
COMMUNITY FORESTS FACT SHEET
WHAT IS A COMMUNITY FOREST? Community forests are owned or managed by local residents for the benefit of their community. The Aspen Institute defines them as, “… a participatory approach to forest management that strengthen communities’ capacity to build vibrant local economies, while protecting and enhancing their local forest ecosystems.”
The Forest Guild has identified the following characteristics of community forests:
Ø Protects and restores the forest
Ø Residents have access to the land and resources, and participate in management decisions
Ø Resource managers use residents’ knowledge in developing plans
Ø Forestry is a tool to strengthen the community
Ø Cultural values, historic uses, forest health, and local economic needs are considered in making management decisions
Ø Decision-making is open, transparent, and inclusive
Examples of community forests can be found around the world. Over 25 percent of forests in developing nations are owned or managed by communities and indigenous peoples. In the United States, over 4,500,000 acres of forestland in 43 states are owned by over 3,000 communities. Some “town forests” in New England were established more than 100 years ago. Legislation enacted in Oregon in 2005 created the first state Community Forest Authority. Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico, and California also have substantial areas owned or managed as community forests.
Owners of community forests include national, state, county, and city agencies, tribes, land trusts, other non-profit organizations, and private landowners.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF A COMMUNITY FOREST?
Ø Protects ecosystem services, such as filtering air and drinking water and reducing flood damage
Ø Maintains open space and scenic values
Ø Protects water supplies
Ø Conserves wildlife habitat
Ø Cycles economic resources and provide local jobs
Ø Provides timber, other forest products, and related revenues
Ø Offers outdoor recreation
Ø Serves as an outdoor classroom for schools and other educational programs, offering living laboratories to learn about forestry, hydrology, biology, ecology, and other subjects.
WHERE ARE COMMUNITY FORESTS LOCATED? Examples in California include the Arcata Forest, Weaverville Community Forest, Usal Redwood Forest, and Burney/Hat Creek Integrated Watershed Management Project.
Ø The Arcata Community Forest was the first municipally-owned forest in California. It was dedicated in 1955 to be “managed for the benefit of all citizens of the city”. The forest now covers 2,134 acres. Goals include maintaining forest health; protecting the integrity of watersheds, wildlife, fisheries, and plants; promoting the development of old-growth habitat; sequestering carbon; providing for forest recreation, demonstrating sustainable forestry, producing forest products, and generating income in perpetuity.
Various parts of the forest are managed as preserves, special management areas, and the working forest. The maximum allowable harvest is half of the annual growth.
Timber sales provide revenue that support forest management activities. The City manages the forest with oversight from a volunteer Forest Management Advisory Committee and third-party review by the Forest Stewardship Council. The public is encouraged to participate in meetings and to support their community forest.
Ø The 13,000-acre Weaverville Community Forest was formed in 2005. The original 1,000 acres is owned by the Bureau of Land Management and the remaining 12,000 acres is part of the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. The forest is managed through agreements between the Trinity County Resource Conservation District, the Bureau of Land Management, and the US Forest Service. The initial concerns were to protect drinking water, scenic views, and access to private lands on the Bureau of Land Management property on the west side of Weaverville. Additional goals are improving forest health, fire resiliency, and retention of scenic values. Completed projects include thinning, trail construction, water quality monitoring, controlling invasive plants, road rehabilitation, wildlife habitat improvement, and initiating educational programs.
The primary funding source is stewardship contracting*, which allows money made from the sale of forest products such as saw logs and firewood, to be retained and used for other work on the forest. Other funding sources include the Secure Rural Schools Act, Bureau of Land Management’s Hands on the Land, and the US Forest Service’s Children’s Forest programs.
Ø The Usal Redwood Forest is owned and managed by the nonprofit Redwood Forest Foundation, Inc (RRFI). RRFI purchased the 50,000 acre parcel in 2007. The primary goals are to integrate the community in forest management decisions, and to improve the local economic, environmental, and social well-being. Current projects on the property include restoring streams, re-establishing redwoods as the dominant species, and repairing and decommissioning roads. Funding sources include private donations, grants, and sale of a conservation easement. The property is a working forest, and through management will become self-supporting in the future.
* Stewardship contracting enables the US Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management to work cooperatively with communities and local businesses. In the 2005 fiscal year, 45 projects covering almost 35,500 acres in 11 states were approved under stewardship contracts.
Ø The Burney Creek – Hat Creek Integrated Watershed Management Project is a new effort begun in 2010 to organize these two watersheds as a community forest. The Project covers 364,000 acres owned by the Lassen National Forest, Lassen National Park, the Pit River Tribe, and farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners. Partners include the Shasta Resources Advisory Committee, Fall River Resource Conservation District, environmental groups, fire departments, the FireSafe Council, and representatives of the wood products, fisheries / recreation, and tourism industries. There is broad support from the community, including the largest landowners. Primary goals are to improve local economic, social, and environmental conditions. Project work accomplished includes restoration of meadows and wetlands in Burney Creek, streambank stabilization and restoration of aquatic habitat in lower Hat Creek, and 5,000 acres of thinning on Forest Service land (Whittington Forest). Funding to date has come from public grants.
WHERE CAN I GET MORE INFORMATION? The University of California Cooperative Extension hosted a “webinar” lecture series on community forestry in April, 2011. These lectures may be viewed on-line at http://ucce-plumas-sierra.ucdavis.edu/Community_Forests_Webinar/
The Communities Committee of the Seventh American Forest Congress offers lists of projects, links to other resources, and publications including Acquiring and Managing a Community-owned Forest: A Manual for Communities, through their web site – www.communitiescommittee.org.
The Forest Guild has a community forestry program offering technical assistance, training opportunities through the Forest Guild Youth Conservation Corp, and definitions and examples of community forest projects in New Mexico and Vermont - www.forestguild.org/community-forestry.html.
The National Community Forestry Service Center offers technical assistance, lists of community forestry projects, and a resources’ bibliography – www.conservationfund.org/nationalcommunityforestryservicecenter.