Header:
CALIFORNIA CODE OF REGULATIONS
TITLE 14. NATURAL RESOURCES
DIVISION 1.5. DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY AND FIRE PROTECTION
CHAPTER 4. FOREST PRACTICES
SUBCHAPTER 7. ADMINISTRATION
ARTICLE 2. TIMBER HARVESTING PLAN
Date:
08/31/2009
Document:
§ 1052.5. Emergency Notice for Outbreaks of Sudden Oak Death Disease
(a) The RPF preparing the Emergency Notice shall do all of the following:
(1) provide as part of the Emergency Notice the certified lab testing results validating that trees or vegetation in, the infestation area are infected with SOD;
(2) seek to encompass the entire infestation area and landownership(s) necessary to undertake effective control and eradication in the area covered by the Emergency Notice, however, the Emergency Notice is not required to encompass these areas;
(3) evaluate and incorporate habitat requirements for fish, wildlife, and plant species to ensure compliance with State and Federal Endangered Species Act using the California Natural Diversity database maintained by the DFG, local knowledge of the planning watershed, and consultation with CAL FIRE regarding other plans in the Emergency Notice area;
(4) obtain written concurrence from the Department Forest Pest Specialist or Department designee regarding tree and vegetation treatments or removal and strategies to control or suppress the SOD infestation pursuant to 14 CCR 1052.5 (c);
(5) designate for treatment or removal the host hardwood species in the infested areas and within 330 feet of the infestation area to control the spread of SOD consistent with Forest Pest Specialist concurrence in (4) above;
(6) avoid designation of conifer trees for treatment or removal except as necessary to facilitate the removal of host hardwood species, the salvage of conifer trees accidentally damaged during operations, or as specified by the Department Forest Pest Specialist for purposes of controlling the spread of SOD.
(b) Timber operations conducted in accordance with 14 CCR § 1052.5(a) above shall comply with all rules and regulations of the Board. A person conducting timber operations under an Emergency Notice for Outbreaks of Sudden Oak Death Disease shall comply with all operational provisions of the Forest Practice Act applicable to "Timber Harvest Plan, "THP" and "plan" with the following exceptions or additional requirements:
(1) The RPF shall provide written proof of notification regarding the proposed submission of an Emergency Notice for SOD eradication to the NMFS, DFG, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the applicable regional water quality control board. Written notification shall be received by NMFS,DFG, USFWS, and the applicable regional water quality control board at least 10 working days prior to submission of the Emergency Notice.
(2) Tree and vegetation removal or treatment within WLPZ areas shall be permitted and limited to symptomatic hardwood trees and shrubs that are infested with SOD or host hardwood trees that will continue to contribute to the spread of SOD. Conifer trees shall not be removed in WLPZs.
(3) Timing of operations shall avoid impacts to federal or state listed species.
(4) No timber operations shall be conducted on saturated soil conditions.
(5) No tree felling operations from July 15 to September 30 that reduce overstory canopy cover in WLPZs.
(6) No mechanical site preparation, broadcast burning, or pile burning in the WLPZ.
(7) 14 CCR § 916.3, 936.3, and 956.3, subsection (f) does not apply.
(8) Where present prior to the start of timber operations, post harvest stocking standards specified in 14 CCR § 912.7, 932.7, and 952.7, subsection (b)(2) shall be met with group A species. Where stocking of Group A species is not sufficient to meet the stocking standards of14 CCR § 912.7, 932.7, and 952.7, subsection (b)(2), post treatment stocking shall meet those stated in 14 CCR § 913.4, 933.4, and 953.4, subsection (b), Rehabilitation of Understocked Area Prescription. The percentage of stocking requirements met with Group A species on a point count basis shall be no less than the percentage of the basal area they comprised before harvesting.
(9) Operations shall be conducted in accordance with conditions stated in 14 CCR 1038 (b)(1),(2),(3),(4),(5),(7), (8), and (10).
(10) Tractors or other heavy equipment shall not be used within the WLPZ, except on existing roads.
(11) The Department shall track the number of Emergency Notices for outbreaks of SOD, the acreage treated under the notices, and the WLPZ acreage treated under the notices, and report the results to the Board by December 1, 2011.
(c) The RPF shall describe the strategies employed which will be utilized to control or suppress the SOD infestation on the harvest area along with those measures to be used to minimize the risk of spreading Phytophthora ramorum from the logging area by way of infected soil and infected host material. In developing such strategies, the RPF shall draw from the list of Mitigation and Management Recommendations in the California Oak Mortality Task Force publication Sudden Oak Death for Forestry, August 2010 at:www.suddenoakdeath.org/diagnosis-and-management/best-management-practices/, incorporated by reference herein.
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