(RFFCP2022) Tribal Capacity Building Program – Berry Creek Rancheria (#1742-RFFCP)

The Sierra Nevada Conservancy is providing funding to the Berry Creek Rancheria of the Maidu Indians of California through the Tribal Capacity Building Program to implement indigenous land stewardship and fire resilience initiatives in Butte County. The project focuses on three specific locations: the Bald Rock Trail Head in Plumas National Forest, 338 Raccoon Road, and the Berry Creek Rancheria Cemetery. Key activities include hazardous fuel reduction, vegetation management, invasive species removal, ecological restoration, and the establishment of native plants. The scope of work encompasses hazard tree removal, manual and mechanical thinning, the construction of control lines, and various biomass management techniques such as chipping, mastication, and piling. Additionally, the project will utilize broadcast cultural and prescribed burning and include the installation of a prefabricated native seed storage shed. The primary objective of this initiative is to enhance ecosystem health and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires by fostering a fire-adapted landscape within the Berry Creek Tribal Cultural Landscape. By increasing the capacity of the Grantee to lead prescribed fire efforts and post-fire recovery, the project supports long-term cultural resource stewardship. This effort is supported by a Notice of Exemption under the California Environmental Quality Act, justifying the project's goals of ecological restoration and fuel reduction. Coordination for the project involves the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and the Berry Creek Restoration Workforce to ensure the successful integration of traditional indigenous practices with modern land management.