PROJECT REPORT
CALIFORNIA 2023- HOG AND SHEEP FIRE RESTORATION
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT
Dear friend,
Thanks to your support, a total of 163,378 trees were planted to restore 481.50 hectares of land in Lassen County, California.
Planting trees in areas that have been degraded or deforested helps the environment by accelerating and assuring the re-establishment of healthy forests. Through reforestation, the canopy is restored, ecosystems are made whole, and biodiversity can thrive.
None of this would be possible without you. On behalf of everyone at One Tree Planted, thank you!
What follows is a report outlining the project you supported in California. I hope you enjoy reading it and truly feel the impact you have made.
OVERVIEW
This project reforested private lands that were impacted by the Hog and Sheep fires that occurred during the summer of 2020. These high-severity fires heavily impacted local watersheds and habitat areas. The Hog Fire began on July 18, 2020, and burned 9,567 acres in total. The Sheep Fire began on August 17, 2020, and burned 28,157 acres of land in the Diamond Mountains and at the base of the mountainstowardthecityofSusanville,CA.
Reforestation in these locations will help restore habitat, improve soil stability, and increase carbon sequestration. Seedlings were planted at variable densities depending on slope, aspect, soils, site class, and soil moisture in late winter/early spring.
TREES PLANTED
163,378
TREE SPECIES PLANTED
WOMEN INVOLVED
5
JOBS SUPPORTED
FAMILIES BENEFITED 4 50
HECTARES REFORESTED
481.50 ACRES REFORESTED 1,189.81
WILDLIFE SPECIES BENEFITED
7 300
SPECIES PLANTED THROUGH THIS PROJECT
Ponderosa Pine
Jeffery Pine
Douglas Fir
Incense Cedar
Sugar Pine
Giant Sequoia
White Fir
I CANNOT THANK THE FUNDERS OF THESE TREES ENOUGH FOR THEIR SUPPORT. AS THESE TREES GROW, COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND TOURISTS WILL BE ABLE TO SEE A HEALTHY GROWING FOREST. ON THIS PROJECT, WE DIDN'T JUST PLANT TREES, WE RESTARTED A FOREST AND BROUGHT A GREEN FUTURE BACK TO LASSEN COUNTY. "
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE IMPACT
YOUR IMPACT ON THE MAP
The funds provided by One Tree Planted will allow Lassen Fire Safe Council to mechanically site prep more acres for reforestation. The trees planted will work to outcompete brush species and provide fire resiliency to the 20,000 people who live in Susanville that are within a few miles of the scar of the Sheep fire. The ecosystem services provided to the 4 landowners will provide benefits to everyone in the town of Susanville as can be seen from all parts of the community. Lassen County is nearly out of 732 zone seed and these trees will act as a genetic recovery to what was lost in the Sheep fire and the adjacent Hog fire, Dixie fire, Moonlight fire, Goat fire, and others that have affected Lassen County in the last 10years.
BIODIVERSITY BENEFITS
This project's variable density tree planting of seedling plugs occurred within the planting area based on slope, aspect, site class, and soil moisture to improve forest health and increase resilience to climate change and other stressors, including pests, drought, and climate-induced variability. Reforested areas will stabilize carbon loss from soil and will begin to sequester carbon more quickly than the areas that are allowed to regenerate naturally. Forested areas will also sequestercarbonatgreaterratesthanareasofshrubsorgrassland.
Planted areas will become more biodiverse over time than untreated areas and will provide habitat for forest-dwelling species. As soil becomes stabilized, additional species colonize in an environment more amenable to plant growth (more shade, cooler soil temperatures, retained surface soil moisture). Soil microbes, insects, birds, and mammal diversity will increase concomitantly with increased plant diversity.
COMMUNITY BENEFITS
Before planting, the remaining fire-killed trees posed a risk to life and property. If not treated and replanted, these trees would have become fuel for future wildfire eventsthatthreatenhumanlivesandpropertyintheSusanvillearea.
The Hog and Sheep fire impacted watercourses that are used to irrigate local farmlands and pastures. Reforesting critical areas to stabilize slopes and banks, trap sediment, and slow runoff velocity will prevent widespread erosion, protect against significant reductions in water quality, and minimize damage to farm/ranch infrastructure from heavy sediment loads. There are about 100 landowners that will benefit from this project, and many jobs were created in the process
U.N. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
THIS PROJECT CONTRIBUTED TO THE FOLLOWING SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS:
WHAT ARE SDGS?
Sustainable development entails seeking out solutions that not only boost the economic outcomes of developing and poorer nations, but also work to limit (or eliminate)ourimpactontheplanet.Treesareonesuchsolution.
From creating jobs and reducing hunger to improving gender equality, cleaning air and water, absorbing carbon, protecting life on land and water, and more, planting treescanaddressall17sustainabledevelopmentgoals.
"Planting trees here will protect, restore, and conserve California's forestsandrelatedresources.Asthetreesgrow,theywillimprovesoil and water conservation, store carbon, moderate local climate by providing shade, regulate extreme temperatures, increase wildlife habitat,andimprovetheland'scapacitytoadapttoclimatechange.”
Brittney Burke Senior Project Manager Southwest US
