Building on OAEC’s three decades of land stewardship and watershed restoration work, we are excited to formally launch our Fuels to Flows Campaign! The term “Fuels to Flows,” coined by the WATER Institute, asserts that our fire fears are connected to our water woes — drought, water quality issues, flooding, and the growing uncertainty about our water future. More than that, Fuels to Flows advocates for the reintegration of fire and “fuel” load management with the “flows” of the carbon, water and life cycles.
Check out our new web pages with videos, how-to guides, case studies, and more!
From the devastating wildfires here in Sonoma County in 2017-2020 to the recent tragedy in Los Angeles, our communities are confronting the reality of catastrophic wildfire. In response, large-scale fuel load reduction projects like forest thinning are underway across the state. While preparing for fire is crucial, it is equally important that these vegetation management practices consider a holistic understanding of our watersheds. Our Fuels to Flows Campaign promotes the integration of often siloed techniques, practitioners and agencies toward a whole-systems, whole-watershed approach to land management.
A key focus of our Fuels to Flows Campaign is addressing the millions of tons of woody “slash” generated by vegetation management and defensible space work. Currently, the standard practice is to burn this material, haul it away to processing facilities, or dispose of it through other fossil fuel-intensive means. While appropriate in certain situations, our campaign advocates a broader suite of practices that retain and recycle this material on-site for other restoration goals.
One of our favorite tools in the toolbox is gully stuffing, a technique that can address multiple restoration goals, while putting large quantities of slash to good use. This low-tech, process-based restoration technique has the potential to filter sediment, reduce erosion, enhance habitat, and improve the carbon- and water-sequestering soil sponge of upland landscapes. After decades of advocacy, practice and demonstration, we’re excited to share these new resources with the world!
Fuels to Flows Resources
- Fuels to Flows Campaign
- What is Process-Based Restoration? – Process Based Restoration From Ridgeline to Reef
- Gully Stuffing Technique
- OAEC’s step-by-step video on How To Stuff a Gully
- OAEC’s animated video Introduction to Gully Stuffing: A Nature-based Solution for Fire & Water
- Sonoma County Regional Parks Collaboration
- Tending the Land for Fire Resilience in Sonoma County website resource
- NBC Bay Area news clip on Fuels to Flows
- Why we can’t have fire resiliency without worker justice?
- CalPBR Network – a hub for restoration practitioners and professionals
