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Springerville, AZ (September 15, 2009)…The Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests (ASNFs) have received over $20 million as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) to fund projects for hazardous fuel treatments and the improvement and maintenance of forest facilities, trails, and roads.

Chief of the U.S. Forest Service, Tom Tidwell, recently announced, "the purpose of the economic recovery legislation is to create as many jobs as quickly as possible." Tidwell added, "As we implement this legislation we will not increase the federal workforce; we will spend all funds on targeted ready projects; and we will begin our work promptly and complete it within 1 to 2 years for most activities."

The ASNFs will use this stimulus money to fund 36 "targeted ready" projects—or those ready to begin ground work—through the employment of several local contractors. Some of these projects began earlier this year—including two at Hoyer Campground; while the remaining projects are scheduled to begin later this fall or early next spring.

These projects will be located in various locations across the forests; these preliminary project locations may be altered due to changing conditions or priorities:

Alpine
$556,000 to surface and stabilize the soil on National Forest System Roads 26, 405, and 275 and to obliterate a user-created crossing on one of the tributaries of the East Fork of Black River (4 projects total)
$350,000 to reconstruct the Luna Lake water system
$250,000 to replace the vault restrooms and associated sidewalks at Luna Lake
$130,000 to replace the vault restrooms and associated sidewalks at Buffalo Crossing and Raccoon Campgrounds

Big Lake
$900,000 to patch asphalt, seal, and stripe roads in the Big Lake area
$760,000 to surface and stabilize the soil on National Forest System Roads 249, 249E and 24 (3 projects total)
$750,000 to replace restroom facilities and associated sidewalks in the Big Lake area
$375,000 to repair the Big Lake waste water collection system
$100,000to place aggregate surfacing on the roads in Grayling and Cutthroat Campgrounds

Eagar
$722,000 to install potable water lines from the Water Canyon administrative site to the town of Eagar
$416,000 to place aggregate surfacing on the Saffel Canyon OHV trail and install signage, cattle guards, and structures to protect watershed

Greer
$948,000 to treat 1,450 acres near Greer for hazardous fuels
$800,000 to reconstruct the water system and other improvements to meet accessibility guidelines at Hoyer Campground
$750,000 to repair the roads and spurs at Hoyer Campground
$480,000 to replace the restroom facilities at Hoyer Campground

Heber-Overgaard
$1,400,000 to treat 3,000 acres in the Brookbank area for hazardous fuels

Pinetop-Lakeside
$2,272,000 to treat 2,800 acres for hazardous fuels near the Los Burros Campground (3 projects total)
$1,000,000 to treat 1,000 acres and prepare another 3,000 acres east of Pinetop-Lakeside, near the White Mountain Apache Reservation and ASNFs boundary, for hazardous fuels reduction

Nutrioso
$3,403,000 to treat 6,100 acres for hazardous fuels reduction (2 projects total)

Rim Lakes
$1,370,000 to treat 2,422 acres for hazardous fuels reduction near Chevelon Canyon Lake (3 projects total)
$150,000 to pave the Rim Vista trail to meet accessibility guidelines

Multiple Areas
$1,170,000 to improve wildlife habitat by thinning pinon-juniper forested areas
$525,000 to prepare 4,000 acres in the Rodeo-Chediski burn area for reforestation by removing hazardous fuels
$401,000 to demolish five buildings which pose health and safety risks and contribute to unnecessary maintenance costs
$132,000 to remove hazardous trees from recreation areas on the Alpine and Springerville Ranger Districts
$100,000 to improve and maintain several trails across the ASNFs

In all, the national forests in Arizona received approximately $40 million in ARRA funding. The distribution of this funding was based on local economic conditions and the availability of targeted ready projects on the national forests. The ASNFs received a large portion of this funding because it is situated within two of the most economically depressed counties in the state—Apache and Navajo—and it had several projects ready to begin ground work.

jhodlof wrote:I love how in this day and age hiking is not needed by the public, but campgrounds, ATV trails, and all other motorized uses are absolutely necessary.

big_load wrote:

Jeff MacE wrote:I think it goes without saying that I am going to make a "Spiritual connection" with the forest when I'm there.

Doesn't this belong in the Naturist thread?

Jeff MacE wrote:To further illustrate my point: I got laughed at years back when I suggested to a group of fellow OHV enthusiasts that we go out and do trail maintenance or clean-ups. One guy said: "Why?"

dysfunction wrote:

Jeff MacE wrote:To further illustrate my point: I got laughed at years back when I suggested to a group of fellow OHV enthusiasts that we go out and do trail maintenance or clean-ups. One guy said: "Why?"

my club is heavily involved with trail work, stewardship, planning, access issues etc.. and yea.. dealing with these issues in the OHV community was enough to pretty much make me quit. While people would complain ad nauseum about losing access, they wouldn't even spend an afternoon to do some trash pickup.

azbackpackr wrote:If there are structures that legitimately need dismantling, any local volunteer fire dept. will burn them for free, for practice. Everyone knows this, so why do they need hundreds of thousands of dollars to dismantle structures in the various districts, and why don't they tell us which structures?

Building Demolition Contract
Date of Announcement: July 21, 2009
Estimated Funding: $ 401,000 for Capital Improvement and Maintenance
Counties: Apache and Navajo
The purpose of this project is to demolish five buildings on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest. Three of the buildings are on the Black Mesa Ranger Station administrative site, located in Overgaard, AZ, the forth is at the Chevelon Work Center, on the Black Mesa District, located 42 miles south of Winslow, AZ, and the fifth is on the Springerville District located, in Springerville, AZ. Each of the buildings pose significant health and safety risks: mold and Hantavirus. In all cases, the respective District Ranger has terminated all use of these buildings. In all cases we have determined the remediation costs combined with renovation costs exceeds the values of the buildings. Additionally, the results of the remediation projects may not completely remove the health and safety risks. The removal of these buildings decreases the forests deferred maintenance on Fire, Administrative and Other (FA&O) buildings as well as reducing the square footage of FA&0 buildings on the forests thereby reducing annual maintenance.

Hull and Spring Valley Cabin Rental Renovations - Historic North Kaibab Ranger District Cabins
Date of Announcement: July 21, 2009
Estimated Funding: $ 300,000 for Capital Improvement and Maintenance
Partners: John Azar - historic restoration volunteer
County: Coconino
Spring Valley Cabin, a historic rental cabin on the Kaibab National Forest, is in need of hanta virus mitigation. The cabin and bunkhouse are in need of foundation stabilization along with attic crawl space cleaning. A retaining wall upslope from the cabin is also necessary to remove a silting problem from the slope above. Fencing around the cabin and bunkhouse also needs replacing. Hull Cabin, another historic cabin, requires several items to prepare it for rental operations. The water cistern and waterline need replacing, and hanta virus mitigation is needed for the attic (professional cleaning, insulation, and encapsulation). The northern end of the forest (North Kaibab Ranger District) has several historic cabins that need stabilization and preservation improvements to keep them functional. Dry Park, Big Springs, and Jump Up Cabins require removal of the non-historic interior walls and restoration of the historic interior walls. The cabins need stone foundation repair, exterior staining, roof repair, wood stove replacement, and stain/repair of nearby associated sheds.

Coronado National Forest Historic Structures Deferred Maintenance and Accessibility Projects
Date of Announcement: August 18, 2009
Estimated Funding: $ 2,000,000 for Capital Improvement and Maintenance
Counties: Cochise, Graham, Pima and Santa Cruz
This project is located on the Coronado National Forest in Cochise, Santa Cruz, Graham, and Pima Counties. The project will focus on rehabilitation, restoration, and repair of existing fire, administrative and historic buildings across the forest in order to address deferred maintenance and accessibility issues. Priority will be given to health/safety items and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), thus having a direct benefit to employees and the public. Energy efficient improvements will be made where possible. All work on historic facilities will be made in compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act. The projects will involve various trades such as carpenters, plumbers, electricians, roofers, masons, general laborers, equipment operators, and contractors. Because the project will involve facilities located throughout southeastern Arizona, it should provide many direct benefits to many small, local communities by employing the local labor force. Additionally, there will be indirect benefit to these communities who provide supplies, fuel, food, and other incidentals.