TreeClimber
Well-Known Member
Mods, move this to Legislative Updates, if need be.
http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/286976508537290
Ranger district looking for trail-maintenance grant support
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC
If you're an active user of Forest Service trails and recreation areas within the Naches Ranger District or have ever attended a Trails and Wilderness Interest Group (TWIG) meeting, you probably already know how trail-maintenance funding works.
A hefty chunk of the money the ranger district gets to maintain and improve its trail system comes from grants issued by what is generally referred to as the IAC â€" the Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation. Almost every trail and campground project in the National Forest is funded in part by the IAC, with money generated by the gas tax.
Among the things IAC takes into consideration in prioritizing grant-worthy projects are public support of those projects â€" how much people want them to happen, and how much effort they're willing to contribute themselves.
This month, the Naches Ranger District is trying to assess â€" and drum up â€" support for five grants for which the district has applied to the IAC. The district is asking outdoor recreationists to write letters of support for any or all of the five projects, particularly the ones for which they would be willing to contribute volunteer labor.
The grants the district is applying for:
* $63,896 for Wilderness trails maintenance and operations. The grant would provide salary for a five-person backcountry trails crew and one crew leader for two years to clear trails, provide basic drainage and trail-tread work. For the past couple of years, the district has been able to aford only a two- to three-person crew.
* $42,388 for reconstruction of 5.4 miles of Bumping Lake Trail 971, from the Trail 970 junction to Fish Lake, and 1.8 miles of Fish Lake Trail 971A. The work would address 25 water crossings and replace six bridges.
* $199,624 for motorized trail maintenance and operations. This grant â€" essentially the same kind that the district has used to run its motorized program for several years â€" would pay for a six-person trail crew and leader to main 250 miles of the district's single-tread and 4x4 motorized trails for two years.
* $22,300 for reconstruction of 1.8 miles (and two bridges) of the 3.5-mile single-tread motorized Milk Creek Trail 965, a popular early-season trail also used by mountain bikers and hikers.
* $16,000 to pay for an environmental analysis of a Rock Crawl Challenge course in the Cold Creek Sno-Park, off Forest Road 1204 south of Rimrock Lake. The course is intended to redirect off-highway vehicle use away from more environmentally-sensitive areas without interfering with winter Sno-Park use. Boulders would be placed in a 100-yard-long course designed to be challenging and fun for 4x4 users.
If any of those grants sound like something you'd like to support, send an e-mail noting that support â€" or your willingness to provide volunteer help â€" to Sam Bissell ([email protected]) or Sue Ranger
([email protected]) at the Naches Ranger Station, or to either c/o Naches Ranger Station, 10237 U.S. Highway 12, Naches, WA 98937.
For more information, call Bissell at 653-1438 or Ranger at 653-1446.
http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/286976508537290
Ranger district looking for trail-maintenance grant support
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC
If you're an active user of Forest Service trails and recreation areas within the Naches Ranger District or have ever attended a Trails and Wilderness Interest Group (TWIG) meeting, you probably already know how trail-maintenance funding works.
A hefty chunk of the money the ranger district gets to maintain and improve its trail system comes from grants issued by what is generally referred to as the IAC â€" the Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation. Almost every trail and campground project in the National Forest is funded in part by the IAC, with money generated by the gas tax.
Among the things IAC takes into consideration in prioritizing grant-worthy projects are public support of those projects â€" how much people want them to happen, and how much effort they're willing to contribute themselves.
This month, the Naches Ranger District is trying to assess â€" and drum up â€" support for five grants for which the district has applied to the IAC. The district is asking outdoor recreationists to write letters of support for any or all of the five projects, particularly the ones for which they would be willing to contribute volunteer labor.
The grants the district is applying for:
* $63,896 for Wilderness trails maintenance and operations. The grant would provide salary for a five-person backcountry trails crew and one crew leader for two years to clear trails, provide basic drainage and trail-tread work. For the past couple of years, the district has been able to aford only a two- to three-person crew.
* $42,388 for reconstruction of 5.4 miles of Bumping Lake Trail 971, from the Trail 970 junction to Fish Lake, and 1.8 miles of Fish Lake Trail 971A. The work would address 25 water crossings and replace six bridges.
* $199,624 for motorized trail maintenance and operations. This grant â€" essentially the same kind that the district has used to run its motorized program for several years â€" would pay for a six-person trail crew and leader to main 250 miles of the district's single-tread and 4x4 motorized trails for two years.
* $22,300 for reconstruction of 1.8 miles (and two bridges) of the 3.5-mile single-tread motorized Milk Creek Trail 965, a popular early-season trail also used by mountain bikers and hikers.
* $16,000 to pay for an environmental analysis of a Rock Crawl Challenge course in the Cold Creek Sno-Park, off Forest Road 1204 south of Rimrock Lake. The course is intended to redirect off-highway vehicle use away from more environmentally-sensitive areas without interfering with winter Sno-Park use. Boulders would be placed in a 100-yard-long course designed to be challenging and fun for 4x4 users.
If any of those grants sound like something you'd like to support, send an e-mail noting that support â€" or your willingness to provide volunteer help â€" to Sam Bissell ([email protected]) or Sue Ranger
([email protected]) at the Naches Ranger Station, or to either c/o Naches Ranger Station, 10237 U.S. Highway 12, Naches, WA 98937.
For more information, call Bissell at 653-1438 or Ranger at 653-1446.
