A Year in Review: 2023
It’s been another whirlwind year for CLERC! As we close out 2023, it’s an excellent time to reflect on the major wins from the last year.
Strategic Plan and New Logo
New Logo for 2023
We started out 2023 by engaging a consultant to facilitate the creation of CLERC’s first ever strategic plan. CLERC has a broad mission and we’ve experienced significant growth in the last few years, so the moment seemed right to pull all of our heads together and focus on a few important goals over the next few years. The plan runs from 2024 thru 2027 and includes five major strategic initiatives.
Continue to play a leadership role in wildfire preparedness and fuels reduction in Lake County.
Promote overall ecosystem health in Clear Lake and its watershed through key initiatives in water quality and endangered species conservation.
Spearhead the redevelopment of the Carnegie Library in Lakeport as a center and repository for environmental education and research.
Strengthen our local and regional partnerships.
Build the systems, structures, and teams, CLERC needs to sustainably implement its mission and this strategic plan.
As part of the process, we also redesigned our logo and launched a new website domain, theclerc.org.
New Staff and Board Members
CLERC Staff and Board
In July, the CLERC Lab hired Deborah Walker as our first Lab Assistant. In September, Cindy Jassar joined the Fire and Forestry staff as a Project Coordinator. Eduardo Alatorre, Russ Cremer, and Karen Suenram all joined the CLERC Board of Directors. Our new team members will help us to serve more people and have a greater positive impact on the community.
Learn more about our team and opportunities to work with us.
Increased Pace and Scale of our Fire and Forestry Projects
Our Fire and Forestry team have continued to deploy many “boots on the ground” projects. A total of 450+ acres of fire resiliency projects were completed on 50+ different land ownerships, with the majority of projects occurring in areas impacted by severe wildfires in the last decade. On the federal side, a total of 60+ acres of roadside hazard tree abatement in the Mendocino National Forest was completed utilizing funds secured by CLERC.
Why do we do this? Every acre of fuel reduction, hazard tree abated, and roadside cleared makes our community and environment more resilient, not just to wildfires, but also drought, pest infestation, and climate change in general.
Get the latest project information by checking out CLERC’s Fire and Forestry Project Dashboard.
Hogback Ridge Fuels Crew — Chipping Brush
County-wide Community Chipping Program
In June, CLERC, through its partnership with the Hogback Ridge Crew of the Northshore Fire Protection District, began piloting a county-wide community chipping program. The county-wide program is based on the successful program created by the South Lake Fire Safe Council, which has been funded by CLERC since 2021. The pilot phase helped us work out some of the logistics and coordination before going full scale in 2024. This program, even just in the pilot phase, has made a huge difference in motivating and encouraging average citizens to take responsibility for annual fuel reduction in their communities. Many hands make light work and every little bit helps the community as a whole.
Reforestation Strategy for the North Shore Restoration Project
Mendocino National Forest years after the River Fire
To address the urgent need for a comprehensive reforestation strategy in the Mendocino National Forest (MNF), CLERC partnered with Dr. Steven Greco from the University of California, Davis to examine the issue. The collaboration resulted in a study, titled Informing Reforestation Strategy for the Mendocino National Forest: Integrating Climate Change into Management Planning of the North Shore Restoration Project (NSRP), aimed to guide future land management decisions in the MNF. The study employed geographic information system (GIS) technology to analyze biophysical site conditions and develop a site capability model and map for the NSRP area, encompassing approximately 40,000 acres.
The information and insights gleaned from this study are critically important for the MNF and CLERC as we work towards restoring the forested landscape lost during the Ranch Fire in 2018. It’s a known fact that many of the forests that we’ve lost to wildfire in the last decade were established during cooler, wetter times. Due to the changing climate becoming hotter and drier, the species composition of restored forests will be different in the future. The Greco study helps inform replanting decisions regarding species selection, so that restoration efforts today can take into account likely future conditions and have a greater chance of success over the long term.
Check out the full study if you'd like to learn more.
Inaugural CA Wildfire Conference
In October, CLERC’s Executive Director, Will Evans, was invited to join a panel to discuss “Funding and Implementing your Wildfire Resiliency Plan” at the inaugural California Wildfire Conference. We’re grateful for the opportunity to share many of our lessons learned as we journey down the path toward wildfire resiliency for our community.
Looking Ahead to 2024
CLERC staff, US Forest Service staff, and contractors planning out a project
Expanded opportunities for environmental professionals - CLERC will be hiring 3-4 new employees, in order to better serve the community and environment.
New Lab Services - in order to better serve local water agencies, the CLERC Lab will be working to add new services, including analysis for Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD). The lab test accreditation process can take many months, but our goal is to begin offering new services by late spring or early summer 2024. These new lab services, while not only providing a higher level of service to the numerous water agencies in the County, also contribute to the retention of more utility ratepayer dollars to be reinvested in our economy at the local level.
New projects hitting the ground include:
Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG). This project is funded by the 2022 Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, this grant will provide funding for the County-wide Community Chipping Program for 4 years and complete 17 projects from the recently updated Lake County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). The project is being completed in partnership with the Hogback Ridge Crew from the Northshore Fire Protection District.
Forest Health Grant — Phase 2 will complete reforestation of 1,065 acres of the Mendocino National Forest with the North Shore Restoration Project.
Fire Prevention — Phase 2 will provide funding for equipment at two local Fire Protection Districts in addition to supporting several local wildfire resiliency programs. These local partners will be supported through this grant:
Northshore Fire Protection District
South Lake County Fire Protection District
South Lake County Fire Safe Council
Konocti Fire Safe Council
Hidden Valley Lake Association
2024 is CLERC’s 10 Year Anniversary! We look forward to celebrating with you— our friends, colleagues and partners.
