A plan to use landscape-scale fire to revitalize Tucson’s closest mountain ranges will be the subject of three public meetings in the coming week, the U.S. Forest Service reports.
The Santa Catalina Ranger District will hold meetings in Summerhaven, Oracle and Tucson on its FireScape plan for the Rincon and Santa Catalina mountains.
The first meeting is Saturday in Summerhaven, the mountain enclave on the slopes of Mount Lemmon that was mostly destroyed in the Aspen Fire of 2003.
The Coronado National Forest is seeking comment on a draft Environmental Assessment, prepared in collaboration with the National Park Service and other government land managers, the University of Arizona, the Nature Conservancy, private groups and affected individuals.
The plan outlines actions proposed to thin vegetation and allow fire to return to its natural role in the ecosystem. The open-house meetings will also be held in Oracle and Tucson.
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The public is invited to comment on the draft document, which will is available on the Coronado National Forest website, the Joel D. Valdez Main Library, Kirk-Bear Canyon Library, and the Santa Catalina Ranger District Office.
