This Montana planting project shows that people and trees are equally resilient after the catastrophic wildfires of 2000.

By Karen Fedor

Look, here's a ponderosa pine seedling growing on its own, Steve Kamps says. Here's another one, calls Jon Hayes. Both are foresters for the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC).

We were four adults acting like children on a scavenger hunt, searching for signs of renewal on lands burned by the wildfires of 2000 in Sula State Forest, part of Montana's Bitterroot Valley.

The prize we were searching for was a sign that, two years after the conflagration, the native ponderosa was coming back. Although we found a few, we saw vastly more Douglas- and grand firs. Although disappointing, the results were not surprising. The prized ponderosa is slower to regenerate than other species.

That's why American Forests gave the Montana DNRC a Global ReLeaf grant to plant more than 25,000 of the seedlings on state lands burned by the Blodgett Canyon and Bear fires. And that's why Deborah Gangloff, American Forests executive director, and I were out combing the forest. We wanted to see how our Wildfire ReLeaf money was helping revive the Bitterroot.

The 2000 fire season was a benchmark year for wildfires across the West, and much of the publicity centered on the Bitterroot Valley, where more than 356,000 acres burned on private, state, and federal land-307,000 acres on the Bitterroot National Forest alone. More than 500 homes were evacuated and a total of 75 homes lost to the fires. State Efforts

Wildfire alters its surroundings-environmentally, socially, and economically. "Loss of homes, wildlife habitat, grazing lands, commercial timber, and other resources are devastating and costly to everyone in Montana," says Paula Rosenthal, who coordinates the National Fire Plan for Montana DNRC. (The federal National Fire Plan gave funding to the DNRC to help with recovery efforts.)

That's true everywhere, but especially in Montana, where the Enabling Act of 1889 gave the state ownership of two specified parcels of land in each township. Earnings and interest from management of those "trust lands" are deposited into a statewide school fund.

That means wildfire can threaten educational funds, veterans' services, and other state government functions. "When trust lands burn, there are issues beyond simply putting out the flames," Rosenthal says.

With wildfires threatening the management activities that put money in the trust-activities like timber harvesting, agricultural use fees, recreational fees, and cabin site leases-the DNRC launched what was likely its most aggressive post-fire timber salvage operation ever. As land managers on the Sula worked to recoup that lost income they faced challenges ranging from the rapid loss of post-fire timber value and completing environmental analyses to bugs, disease, and public participation.

Their performance under pressure earned them admiring comments from local environmental groups and state officials alike, as well as a Governor's Award for Exemplary Service to the State for DNRC trust land management division personnel.

In her State of the State address in January 2001, Governor Judy Martz noted, "As chairman of the State Land Board, our vigilant stewardship of the state's 5.2 million acres of school trust lands continues. . . . The way we are addressing the Sula State Forest Timber salvage operation is the perfect example. Before the smoke even cleared, the department initiated the public involvement process, developed a plan of action, analyzed the impacts, and completed a MEPA review and quickly awarded contracts for the salvage of nearly 25 million board-feet of fire-scorched timber."

Federal Efforts

On federal lands, the challenges-and the mandates-are somewhat different. After a wildfire, land managers must immediately address potential hazards to people and the land and deal with mudslides, debris-choked streams, weed infestations, and falling trees. Temporary measures to stabilize the soil usually include straw bales, grass seed, and crisscrossed trees, but these were not enough in the Bitterroot Valley.

Heavy spring rains in 2001 created landslides, washed out gullies, and flooded homes with mud. Some houses ravaged by the fire and rebuilt were hit again, this time by landslides. After immediate needs are met, land managers have to complete regeneration surveys, straw bale replacement, bark beetle surveys, and land prep, to name just some.

"At times, it's completely overwhelming, knowing that there are thousands and thousands of acres that need to be restored," says Sue Macmeeken, silviculturist for the Bitterroot National Forest. "I take it one tree at a time."

Two-thirds of the 307,000 acres of burned Bitterroot lands will be left to reforest on their own. Fifty thousand acres targeted by the U.S. Forest Service for plantings include places where the fires left few living trees and where the seed source for natural regeneration is scarce; hotter, drier sites where desirable trees will have a hard time returning on their own; and places needing soil stability. Another 50,000 acres still need to be surveyed.

Adding to the difficulties facing land managers on the Bitterroot is the extremely narrow window of opportunity for replanting. According to Macmeeken, that's about 30 days between when the snow melts and the glacier lily blooms. This past May, 40 contracted workers planted some 852,000 seedlings on 2,900 blackened acres in the Bitterroot National Forest. But much more work lies ahead.

Chief among those tasks is finding a source for high-elevation ponderosa pine seeds and seedlings. The species generates a seed crop only every 10 to 15 years, the last being about 10 years ago. The seeds planted in May were obtained from surrounding national forests, and the state nursery is growing some seedlings, but more are needed for planting projects here and on other parts of the Bitterroot Valley. Local Efforts

Enter Darby High School. Science teacher Nate Olson's property was among the thousands of acres burned during the fires of 2000. The tiny town of 710 essentially shut down as fires closed schools and forced the evacuation of residents. The high school was used as an evacuation center. But Olson saw a way to turn the catastrophe into a learning experience that would benefit the community.

His idea: to expand his science curriculum of fire, soil, and ecology by developing a greenhouse to grow native trees for planting on private and public property. His enthusiasm spread to computer teacher Nathan Mentzer, who offered to have his computer-aided design class develop blueprints for the greenhouse.

Students took part in all phases, from presenting the project to both the school board and the town council to excavating the site and pouring concrete. When the community heard about the idea, the plans snowballed.

Bitterroot Resource Conservation and Development, which received a U.S. Forest Service grant to create a team to coordinate private lands recovery and rehabilitation, helped the two teachers write grant applications to Toyota Tapestry grant program, the Forest Service Rural Community Assistance Program, the Rapp Foundation, and to American Forests' Wildfire ReLeaf. (The Bitterroot RC&D's Bitterroot Interagency/Community Recovery Team (BIRT) coordinated efforts by some 30 local agencies and organizations.)

Area businesses donated building materials while parents and volunteers came after school or during the weekend to build the greenhouse, Mentzer says.

And the students' work is becoming better known. They have received an inquiry from the Flathead-Kootenshi tribe to help them grow out some seedlings. Olson hopes the school's greenhouse project will be used as a model for other school districts across the state.

As the Bitterroot Valley begins the arduous journey back after the wildfires of 2000, it could serve as a model of community ingenuity and cooperation. Although restoration on the national forest alone is expected to cost almost $30 million-14 million trees are needed-and take nearly a decade, it's clear the healing is well under way. American Forests is starting to work with the Upper South Platte River Watershed Association in Colorado and with Reforest Colorado to help with restoration of the Hayman Fire that occurred earlier this year.

At press time an estimated 6.1 million acres had burned this year and the fire season had not yet ended. American Forests continues to reach out to individuals and businesses to encourage their support of Wildfire ReLeaf's massive undertaking. It's a daunting task, but through the continued support of donations we can help restore these areas, one tree at a time. AF

Karen Fedor is vice president of American Forests' Global ReLeaf Center. [TOP]