Forest treatment completed to better protect Truckee from wildfire

The Glenshire-Brockway project, a 1,175-acre project to reduce hazardous fuels between Glenshire and Brockway summits has been completed. The project is a collaboration of the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Forest Foundation (NFF), and the Truckee Fire Protection District (TFPD).

The area is full of dense forest stands across both public and private lands. Crews thinned brush and small trees for wildfire mitigation while maintaining the more fire-resilient trees.

With the project now complete, this buffer could provide a critical advantage for firefighters trying to slow or stop an approaching wildfire as well as improve overall forest health and wildlife habitat across this important ecological area.

“Over the last five-plus years, we have witnessed a dramatic increase in catastrophic wildfires across our region. These fires, such as the Dixie and
Caldor fires in 2021 and the Mosquito fire in 2022, were able to burn faster and hotter in part because of a significant build-up of brush and small-diameter trees. Projects like Glenshire-Brockway are reducing dangerous surface and ladder fuels to rebuild a healthy forest that is more resilient to fire.” said Dan Alvey, NFF California Program Manager. This project adds to the growing list of completed forest restoration projects on the Truckee Ranger District of the Tahoe National Forest.

The final phase of the Glenshire-Brockway project was the burning of piles by the Tahoe Hotshots. The Hotshots ignited just over 200 acres of piles in a single day, consuming all the remaining wood and brush that were removed within the project area.

This project would not have been possible without the collaboration of The Tahoe National Forest, Truckee Fire Protection District, Vail Resorts (Northstar), Truckee Tahoe Airport District, Teichert Aggregates, Sierra Pacific Industries, McDonald, and the Truckee Donner Land Trust. NFF sends special thanks to Jeff Dowling, formerly with the TFPD, for his role in bringing private landowners together to get this important work completed.