Valles Caldera National Preserve receives significant snowfall this winter. Courtesy/NPSNPS News:
JEMEZ SPRINGS ― Members of the public are invited to the 2019 “All Hands” meeting for a comprehensive update on the largest landscape-scale forest restoration project in New Mexico March 28-29 in Santa Fe. Both days are free and open to the public.
The Southwest Jemez Mountains (SWJM) Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project is a long-term collaborative effort to restore forest ecosystems at the landscape scale and improve resilience to major disturbances, including forest fires, insects, diseases and climate warming.
The project covers 210,000 acres in the Jemez Mountains, including Valles Caldera National Preserve and most of the Jemez Ranger District of the Santa Fe National Forest.
From 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m., Thursday, March 28, project managers will give updates on implementation, including forest thinning, prescribed fire, and riparian and wetland restoration. Scientists and natural resource specialists will address the effects and benefits on watershed hydrology, vegetation and soils, fisheries and wildlife. Other topics include monitoring cultural and archaeological resources, and socioeconomic impacts.
The March 28 meeting will be at the Santa Fe Community College, 600 Richards Ave, Santa Fe, NM 87508; the meeting will be held in the Jemez Rooms next to the cafeteria. Parking is free, and the college cafeteria will be open for lunch. The campus is ADA-accessible. From 8:30 a.m. to noon Friday, March 29, the meeting moves to the Santa Fe National Forest’s Supervisor’s Office at 11 Forest Lane, Santa Fe, NM 87508.
Collaborators and public will discuss restoration projects for the 2020 season.
Lead partners in the SWJM project include the Santa Fe National Forest, Valles Caldera National Preserve, U.S. Geological Survey, Forest Stewards Guild, New Mexico Forest and Watershed Restoration Institute, New Mexico Forest Industry Association, Pueblo of Jemez, WildEarth Guardians and The Nature Conservancy.
The agenda for the public meeting and directions to SFCC are posted here.
For additional information, contact: Bob Parmenter, Chief of Science & Resource Stewardship, Valles Caldera National Preserve, at 575.829.4850 or Robert_Parmenter@nps.gov.
