SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service is seeking comments on the draft environmental assessment for the Caldor Fire Restoration Project on the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. Public comments will be accepted for 30 days after the legal notice is published in the Tahoe Daily Tribune on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025.
This environmental document will guide restoration activities on approximately 11,700 acres of national forest lands in and around the Caldor Fire area. Proposed actions are intended to improve watershed health, forest resilience and wildlife habitat.
“Without assistance, the Caldor Fire area could take decades to recover,” said Forest Supervisor, Erick Walker. “The activities we are proposing will help re-establish forested areas, reduce hazardous fuels near neighborhoods, improve wildlife habitat and restore ecological function of streams and meadows impacted by the Caldor Fire.”
Proposed restoration activities include:
- Removing fire-killed and damaged trees
- Removing live trees with active insect and/or disease infestations
- Preparing areas to plant native seedlings
- Thinning surviving tree stands and nearby unburned trees
- Potential use of approved herbicides to support reforestation
- Implementing prescribed fire
- Restoring stream channels, aquatic habitat, and meadows
- Improving wildlife habitat, including Protected Activity Centers
- Restoring aspen tree habitat
Due to the critical and time-sensitive nature of the proposed action and the continued deterioration of the forest stand condition in the Caldor Fire area, an Emergency Action Determination under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will be used to expedite implementation and site preparation actions starting January 2026. Under this emergency authority, the decision notice is not subject to pre-decisional administrative review (Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2012, Pub. L. 112-74; 36 CFR Part 218, Subparts A and B).
The draft environmental assessment can be reviewed on the project webpage or on Pinyon Public. All comments must be submitted through the comment form on the project webpage or through the U.S. Postal Service.
For more information, contact Brian Garrett at brian.garrett@usda.gov or Rob Lorens at robert.lorens@usda.gov.
