New Plumas National Forest Beckwourth Ranger promises Lassen County to rebuild trust after three years of devastating wildfires crossing county lines. Mike Ray has recently left the Bureau of Land Management and joined the Forest Service. He was invited to the Lassen County board of supervisors for a discussion of his goals and plans for the district. He began by establishing a goal to rebuild trust and create better communications with Lassen County by stating the forest service is shifting gears to fight fires rather than manage them. Ray said following the recent wildfires only 25-30% of the district’s forests are left green; the rest is black. He said the paradigm needs to shift. Ray’s other goals were to streamline grazing, as 19 allotments remain vacated due to grazers walking away while others are taking voluntary rests, he also made a commitment to attend a Lassen County board of supervisors meeting monthly to continue to build a relationship. Currently, the district is working on securing bids for burned timber removal, as the clock is ticking for viable use of the logs as well. As the supervisors closed they stated Ray was “a breath of fresh air”, following past relationships with the Plumas Forest Service.
