Tuesday, August 27, 2019

SITE STEWARDSHIP TRAINING – Sept. 28/29 in Clear Lake Area





Wildfires and other natural disasters can impact important cultural resources.   PWORA believes that OHV trail volunteers have an increasingly important non-fire related or post-wildfire recovery roles to play in assisting BLM and Forest Service Archeologists as site stewards to help protect/monitor cultural sites. 

Motorized trail volunteers have important skillsets as they are equipped to travel long distances and can access remote archeological sites under supervision by the BLM or Forest Archeologist. 

Chris Lloyd, the BLM Archaeologist at the Ukiah Field Office, has alerted PWORA that the BLM is hosting a 2-day heritage site stewardship class hosted within the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument (BSMNM).  This class will be provided for people who are interested in becoming archaeological site monitors within the BSMNM and on other lands managed by the BLM, Ukiah Field Office. 

This opportunity will take place on Saturday, September 28th and Sunday, September 29th.  The event is hosted by the California Archaeological Site Stewardship Program  - CASSP - http://www.cassp.org/ - - and will take place at the UC Davis McLaughlin Reserve from 9-am to 4:30-pm (26775 Morgan Valley Rd, Lower Lake).  The first day will include presentations and discussions regarding local archaeology, safety, the law and archaeology, environmental responsibility, confidentiality, discussions about encountering the public in various situations where safety, environmental ethics, and respect for private property are discussed.   The second day consists of a field trip to practice site visit procedures and recording observations.

Our maximum class size is 25.  For those that are interested in participating please supply your name, phone number, and email address to BLM Archaeologist Christopher Lloyd.  His contact information is listed below.  Please RSVP only if you can attend both days and are interested in helping monitor cultural sites on federal lands (w/ a commitment of roughly once per month).  There is a $25 fee for participation which includes a Society for California Archaeology membership - https://scahome.org/ - as well as helps pay for materials.  For those that are interested in lessening their commute time for the next day, the McLaughlin Reserve has an established campground at $10 night.  There are also several hotels in and around the town of Clear Lake. 

RSVP Contact Information:
Christopher Lloyd, M.A.
BLM Archaeologist   
Phone: (707)468.4075

As a site steward, I hope that some in the OHV community will take advantage of this opportunity for OHV to build our capacity to help federal agencies protect/monitor important cultural resources for future generations.

Don Amador, President/CEO
Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance

Friday, August 23, 2019

THANK YOU for Supporting Del Albright's Facebook Fundraiser for PWORA




THANK YOU - A big thanks to all of you who donated to Del Albright’s Birthday FB Fundraiser for PWORA!  PWORA received a $372.00 check from the Network for Good.  This is the organization that manages the charity fundraisers on FB.

PWORA Board Member and Volunteer Lead, Del Albright,


This is PWORA’s first FB fundraiser and it marks another milestone in our history as we continue to get agency agreements finalized and official training modules launched.

PWORA is also a registered charity at Amazon Smiles so feel free to list us as your charity of choice when you make Amazon purchases.

For those who want to make a tax-deductible online donation to help cover our ongoing start-up costs for insurance, communications, etc. you can donate at the PWORA website listed below:

PWORA Website

PWORA looks forward to working with our agency and non-agency partners and volunteers as we help recover and reopen recreation areas damaged by wildfires.

Sincerely,

Don Amador, President/CEO
Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance
Website: www.pwora.org



Friday, August 9, 2019

NEWS RELEASE - WILDFIRE RECOVERY ORGANIZATION SUBMITS MASTER AGREEMENT TO FOREST SERVICE




Post-Fire Trail Repair and Equipment Training

NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Don Amador, President
Phone: 925.783.1834
Date: August 9, 2019

WILDFIRE RECOVERY ORGANIZATION SUBMITS MASTER AGREEMENT TO FOREST SERVICE

     OAKLEY, CA (Aug. 9) – The Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance (PWORA) recently filed a draft Master Agreement application to the U. S. Forest Service Region 5 located in Vallejo, California.

     The final agreement will formalize a cooperative partnership between PWORA and the FS so that it can mobilize, train, and manage a workforce of specialists, consultants, volunteers, and youth conservation groups and deploy those resources to mitigate post-disaster impacts that occur on National Forest System roads, trails, and areas.

Dirt Bike-based Strike Teams to Clear Trails


     Recovery projects include but are not limited to, soil condition surveys, watershed trail management, BMP effectiveness storm monitoring, NEPA and CEQA draft environmental documents and specialists reports, Forest plan implementation, supplemental OHV fire recovery plans, cultural and heritage site protection implementation and monitoring, campground development or redevelopment, transportation analysis, trail maintenance, bridge and culvert design and installation,  travel management, multi-use designations, trail reroutes, trail design and layout, hazard tree abatement, fuel reduction or management of fuel loading, reforestation, grant writing, and project accomplishment reporting.


Installing Post Wildfire Travel Management Signs 


     PWORA will also offer certified training for both agency and non-agency personnel and volunteers in the following disciplines: MTDC Chainsaw Training Course, BASIC Training for the SUTTER 300/ 480/500 & SWECO 450/480 Trail Tractors, Excavators, Rubber Tracked Skid-Steer Loaders, Tracked Carriers, and Post Fire Trail Reconstruction for Wildland Fire Dozer Operators, ROHVA ROV/SxS Training, ASI ATV training, and MSF Dirt-Bike School instruction.

Use of No-Dig Trail Delineators and other Travel Management Prescriptions


    Don Amador, PWORA President, states, “Getting the Master Agreement finalized is our top priority so that PWORA can cooperate with the Forest Service on important post-wildfire recovery projects and to authorize us to provide critically important training opportunities for our contract trail crews, volunteers, and agency staff.”


     “PWORA looks forward to working with our civilian, agency, and industry partners as we grow both our professional and volunteer workforce to assist in recreation recovery efforts both during and after the wildfire or other natural disaster,” Amador concludes.

    Current members of the PWORA board are Del Albright, Don Amador, Jeff Blewett, Matson Breakey, Art Crofts, Cam Lockwood, and Eric Lueder.

# # #

Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance (PWORA) is a national 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization founded to protect and restore sustainable OHV recreation from the devastating effects of intense wildfires and other natural disasters. PWORA will collaborate with a diverse array of multi-interest strategic partners to mobilize volunteers and deploy resources to mitigate post-disaster impacts to recreation areas.  You may contact PWORA president, Don Amador via email at: damador@pwora.org – Web: www.pwora.org