Corte Madera Ridge Fuel Break and Forest Health Project

The Marin County Open Space District (MCOSD) is proposing to implement a fire fuel reduction project within Blithedale Summit Open Space Preserve, the purpose of which is to maintain and improve an historic fuelbreak area to control rampant invasive broom growth and prevent the succession of oak woodlands into high-density conifer forest. Funding is through the Measure A Wildfire Fuel Reduction funds. The proposed project area is the vicinity of an existing fire road following a spur ridge between Larkspur and Mill Valley within Blithedale Summit Open Space Preserve, which is owned and maintained by the MCOSD. The fire road is used as an emergency access road and recreation trail, and is maintained as a fuelbreak. Most of the project area is Coast Live Oak Woodland and Forest, with a mix of Madrone Forest, Shrubland, California Bay Woodland, and Redwood Forest comprising the rest of the project area. The project area is mapped within the very high fire hazard severity zone and a Wildland Urban Interface area. The project area would have an average width of 200 feet and would be approximately one mile in length, totally approximately 18 acres. The proposed project includes the following elements throughout the project area: • Remove dead plant material • Remove broom andother non-native invasive vegetation with no restriction on diameter • Remove young conifers including Monterey pine and Douglas fir up to a maximum of 9-inches diameter measured at breast-heithg (dbh) • Potential pile burning • Potential broadcast of chipped plant material • Potential herbicide treatment Project implementation is expected to begin in Spring 2026 continuing through the end of 2029 confirm 3-year project. Equipment would include manual tools, including power tools, such as weed wrenches, chainsaws, weed whips, a wood chipper, and a masticator. All tools, equipment, and clothing would be clean and free of dirt and vegetative material and treated with a 10 percent bleach solution after working to reduce the spread of sudden oak death. Equipment would access primarily from Summit Drive, with Glen Drive and Crown Road as secondary access points. Staging would be along Corte Madera Ridge Fire Road. Follow-up treatments would include hand-pulling in certain sections and may include chemical herbicide treatments. Should chemical treatments be applied as part of follow-up treatment, herbicide application would be implemented according to all applicable regulations and only under the recommendation of a certified Pest Control Advisor and according to CA Department of Pesticide Regulations including: no application within 24 hours of a known rain event, all applicators would be supervised directly or individually hold a Qualified Applicators Certificate or license, a “Notice of Herbicide Application” and accompanying map would be posted four days in advance of the application at all main entry points and would remain posted on-site for four days following application. There are no surface waters or records of special status plant or wildlife in the project area, though northern spotted owl nesting does occur in the vicinity of the project area. Nesting bird surveys would be completed March through July. All mechanical work would be conducted outside of nesting season, between February and July, to avoid noise disturbance to nesting birds. Work buffers would be implemented around nests for dusky-footed woodrats identified in pre-project implementation surveys. Targeted vegetation removal would be non-native species forming understory brush, and no native trees larger than 8-inches breast-high diameter would be removed.