Protecting Highway 108’s Communities, Economies, and Watersheds (SNC1837)
Summary
SCH Number
2026030288
Public Agency
Sierra Nevada Conservancy
Document Title
Protecting Highway 108’s Communities, Economies, and Watersheds (SNC1837)
Document Type
NOE - Notice of Exemption
Received
Posted
3/6/2026
Document Description
Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC) is providing funding to Tuolumne County to partner with the Stanislaus National Forest to implement between 280 and 406 acres of fuel breaks in eastern Tuolumne County to protect nearby communities and infrastructure from wildfire. Treatments will consist of roadside thinning reducing ground and ladder fuels up to 12 inches in diameter. Treatments will be a combination of mechanical mastication, hand-thinning, and pruning. The fuel breaks installed with this project will allow access for fire-suppression activities and reduce the spread of catastrophic wildfire events, but will also act as key anchor points for future forest-management activities. The project is part of the larger Social and Ecological Resilience Across the Landscape (SERAL) 2.0 landscape-level plan developed by the Stanislaus National Forest in partnership with the local collaborative, Yosemite Stanislaus Solutions.
Contact Information
Name
Mary Akens
Agency Name
Sierra Nevada Conservancy
Job Title
General Counsel
Contact Types
Lead/Public Agency
Phone
Name
Caitlin Henry
Agency Name
Tuolumne County
Job Title
Senior Management Analyst
Contact Types
Project Applicant / Parties Undertaking Project
Phone
Email
Location
Cities
near Pinecrest and Arastraville
Counties
Tuolumne
Regions
Northern California
Other Location Info
Two locations in Stanislaus National Forest. 1) Adjacent to the north and west sides of the community of Pinecrest, along Highway 108 and Crabtree Road. Treatment center at approximately -120.018, 38.179 degrees. 2) On the southeast side of Highway 108, between the communities of Me-Wuk Village and Arastraville. Treatment center at approximately -120.633, 38.037 degrees.
Notice of Exemption
Exempt Status
Statutory Exemption
Type, Section or Code
Pub. Resources Code, section 4799.05, subd. (d)(1)
Reasons for Exemption
Public Resources Code, section 4799.05 statutorily exempts from CEQA projects for prescribed fire, reforestation, habitat restoration, thinning, or fuel-reduction projects, or to related activities included in the project description, undertaken, in whole or in part, on federal lands to reduce the risk of high-severity wildfire that have been reviewed under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) if the primary role of a state or local agency is providing funding or staffing for those projects. The SNC has authorized/approved the use of the funding for Tuolumne County to work in partnership with the Stanislaus National Forest to conduct fuels-reduction treatments on national forest lands. The project was reviewed in its entirety under NEPA by the Stanislaus National Forest in the Social and Ecological Resilience Across the Landscape 2.0 Final Environmental Impact Statement and Another Step in Collaboratively Moving Toward Resilience in the Stanislaus Landscape - Record of Decision (ROD-1) signed on July 31, 2024, and Forest Thinning in California Spotted Owl Protected Activity Centers (ROD-2) signed on January 15, 2025.
County Clerk
Tuolumne
Attachments
Notice of Exemption
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