A project in the Benton area north of Bishop designed to reduce hazardous fire fuels has been announced by the Bureau of Land Management's Bishop Field Office. The 58 acres of public lands managed by BLM adjoin or are near lands owned by the Benton Tribe.
After consultation with community and tribal parties, BLM Bishop Field Manager Bill Dunkelberger recently signed the decision to approve the project, which is designed to help decrease the intensity of future wildland fires in the treated areas near the community of Benton. The action is intended to create defensible space to increase safety of residents, their homes and firefighters working to protect the community and suppress fires, Dunkelberger explained.
To reduce hazardous fuels, the BLM will mow brush within an 80 to 120-foot wide strip immediately adjacent to private and tribally-held lands with a Bobcat-sized mower. Work is expected to begin in late October or early November, 2007.
For more information on this project, contact Dale Johnson, fuels planner for the BLM Bishop Field Office, at (760) 872-5055.
