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Forest Service outlines fuels reduction projects, fire cameras and campground reopenings in Trinity County
Summary
A U.S. Forest Service deputy district ranger told the Trinity County Board of Supervisors about multiple fuels-reduction and restoration projects, progress on fire cameras and reopening of campgrounds; officials described continued collaboration with tribes, partners and county agencies.
Ben Sundahl, deputy district ranger for the Hayfork, Hayfork-Wei… (Shasta-Trinity) ranger districts, gave the Board of Supervisors a mid-year update on July 1 on Forest Service work in Trinity County, outlining a range of fuels-reduction, watershed restoration and recreation projects and progress on early-warning cameras.
The Forest Service is advancing several landscape-scale projects and treatments aimed at reducing wildfire risk and improving watershed function. Sundahl said the Big Ranch Community Wildfire Risk Reduction Project is in “final draft stages” and should be released in early July. He described ongoing field survey work and said the Forest Service hopes to include a drone flight to help target surveys by vegetation and slope.
Sundahl told the board the North Trinity County Community Risk Reduction Project is working toward a draft environmental assessment with implementation targeted for spring 2026. He reported the Coral Gulch Watershed Restoration Project has been signed and work will start this summer, and that the Klamath–Shasta–Trinity Prescribed Fire Project’s comment period has closed and those comments are being reviewed.
Other projects Sundahl mentioned included the South Fork Mountain Project (analysis under way, led by the Mad River Ranger District), the Musselor Hill fuels-reduction fuel break (a recent field trip with Trinity County Resource Conservation District and collaborators), Junction City watershed restoration planning led by Watershed Center, and the Barman project, which the ranger said began work after NEPA completed there.
Sundahl described ongoing fuels treatments tied to SPI timber work and noted the Forest Service sees a need to “connect the dots” across ownerships so fires do not exploit untreated landscape gaps. “We’re trying to connect all the dots to create a good buffer around our local communities here in Trinity County,” he said.
On cameras and detection, Sundahl said six new fire cameras were part of a network installed with DigitalPath and PG&E; two—at Pico Peak and Lime Dyke—had been installed and were expected to be operational soon. He also said the Forest Service secured tribal approval and a site on Ironside Mountain to install a camera on a telecommunications tower used by a local provider and schools; that camera is being permitted as a special use and he said the county should see it online this fire season if permitting and coordination complete.
Sundahl reported fuels and hazardous-tree work near Forest Glen are finished, enabling the Forest Service to work with the county to remove a bridge (the “Bailey Bridge”) that will restore heavier-equipment access for operations; he said staff would notify residents affected by the removal timetable. He also said Burt Ranch Campground has reopened for the first time in years after hazard-tree mitigation, and staff and volunteers have been active on trail work in the Trinity Alps backcountry.
On staffing and readiness, Sundahl said local fire modules passed recent readiness reviews and are available for local, regional and national assignments; he said all the modules were “fully staffed” subject to normal illness or injury. To date in the fiscal year he reported roughly 15,000 acres cleared through NEPA and said that work is being staged to support increased prescribed fire and higher timber-volume outputs.
Board members thanked the Forest Service and praised volunteer trail crews; one supervisor noted wildlife encounters at a campground and Sundahl and other board members discussed public safety messaging for recreation users. The presentation closed with Sundahl wishing the community a safe Fourth of July week.
Why this matters: The projects and camera rollouts described by the Forest Service affect wildfire risk, public access and local emergency preparedness across Trinity County. Work that connects fuel breaks and treatment areas across ownership boundaries can materially change fire behavior near communities and influence insurance and evacuation planning.
