The Washington State Department of Natural Resources, hereafter called “DNR” or the “Agency”, is initiating this solicitation to solicit proposals from firms to solicit proposals from firms interested in conducting forest thinning and fuels reduction work on approximately 32 acres of private forest land located in the Crescent Beach Preserve, located on Orcas Island, WA. This proposed work is to reduce potential fire severity and risk within and surrounding the proposed treatment areas. This is accomplished through thinning and pruning of trees and shrubs to modify fuels arrangements and loading to keep future fires on the ground, as opposed to torching and active crown fires that are much more resistant to control. There are four treatment units to create a strategic shaded fuel break and to reduce hazardous fuel loadings in forested stands and provide better conditions for first responders when a wildfire does occur in the area. Additionally, these treatments will improve overall forest health in the treated areas by thinning overly dense tress and retaining the most resilient trees. The proposed work falls within the Islands Priority Landscape as identified in the 2020 Washington State Forest Action Plan. This project will improve forest health and resilience by improving drought vulnerability and fire resilience.
