Two proposals for reducing wildfire danger in the Ashland watershed would thin the forest rather than clearcut areas to stop the spread of wildfire.

The plans by the U.S. Forest Service and the city of Ashland, called the Ashland Forest Resiliency project, are up for public comment beginning Saturday and ending Aug. 8.

They are the latest attempts in a string of proposals rejected over the last decade for protecting an area that provides drinking water to about 20,500 residents in Ashland and attracts hikers and mountain bikers.

The project includes more than 8,000 acres of old-growth forest reserve in the Rogue-River-Siskiyou National Forest, some of which is near expensive homes at risk for wildfire in the outskirts of Ashland.

Both proposals call for removing brush and small trees that interlace with the branches of larger trees, creating a ladder for fire to climb to treetops and spread more rapidly. They would leave enough large trees to keep the forest canopy intact, reducing the growth of brush and loss of soil moisture from sunlight.

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One of the main differences between the plans is the Forest Service calls for targeting forests in higher elevations first, while the city’s proposal prioritizes forests at lower elevations, where there are typically more homes. The city plan was developed by a committee of community members.

The approach is an improvement to the old method of wildfire prevention, which involved clearing large trees to create gaps in the tree canopy, called shaded fuel breaks, said Joseph Vaile of the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Project.

But the concern among conservation groups is that the plans give no limit for the size of trees that could be cut, Vaile said. He said trees over 17 inches in diameter should be saved.

"There really is no rationale for logging large-diameter trees," Vaile said. "Large trees are the most resilient to fire, so they are the first type of trees that should be protected."

Linda Duffy, Ashland district ranger, said there was no estimate on how much timber would be sold.

Thinning would be done under a stewardship contract, rather than traditional auction. The logging contractor gets to keep the commercial timber harvested until it covers the cost of the work. Then, the revenue goes to the Rogue River-Siskiyou forest rather than the federal treasury.

Dave Schott, executive vice president of Southern Oregon Timber Industries Association, said he expects the contract to be attractive to timber companies, which rarely get to harvest new wood in the Rogue River-Siskiyou forest.

"The mills would rather have new timber versus burned because there is a certain amount of deterioration that can discolor the wood," Schott said.

The profitability of the project, however, will depend on the tree species, size and quality, he said.

Fire has been kept out of the watershed for more than 100 years, allowing a buildup of fuel for wildfire, Duffy said.

But cutting down trees is not enough to stop wildfire, said Dennis Odion, a vegetation ecology consultant in Ashland.

"People shouldn’t get the impression that this changes fire risk," Odion said. "It’s going to depend on how the surface fuel is maintained, how the slash is treated and the regrowth is managed."

Public comments

Comments can be sent to Linda Duffy, Ashland District Ranger, 645 Washington St., Ashland, OR 97520-1402; e-mailed to comments-pacificnorthwest-rogueriver-ashland@fs.fed.us; or by phone, call 541-552-2900.

The Associated Press contributed to this story