News Release

 

 

For Immediate Release:  November 20, 2002

Contact:  Jeff Fontana (530) 252-5332 or Lynda Roush (707) 825-2300

CA-N-03-13

 

 

AVERILL NAMED MANAGER FOR HEADWATERS FOREST RESERVE

 

Dan Averill, a natural resource specialist with more than 20 years experience in Northern California, has been named manager of the Headwaters Forest Reserve on the North Coast.

 

Most recently the assistant field manager in the Bureau of Land Management's Arcata Field Office, Averill will now direct the day-to-day activities in the 7,500-acre reserve containing old growth redwoods and critical wildlife habitat.

 

"Dan brings a wealth of natural resource management experience to the position," said Lynda Roush, manager of the BLM Arcata Field Office.  "He has a keen knowledge of the North Coast, knows the Headwaters stakeholders, and has detailed on-the-ground knowledge of the Headwaters Forest Reserve."

 

Averill's first task will be to oversee completion of the management plan for the reserve.  He will then direct implementation of conservation actions outlined in the document.  The BLM and the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) are now preparing the final management plan and the associated environmental impact statement/environmental impact report (EIS/EIR).  It is scheduled for public release early next summer.

 

"I have been directly involved with development of the draft management plan and environmental reviews, and I look forward to working with everyone who has been involved to begin putting the plan into place," Averill said.  "We will focus attention on restoration needs, and providing recreation and research opportunities that are compatible with our primary goal of protecting the habitats and the unique ecosystems within the Headwaters Forest Reserve."

 

Averill holds a bachelor's degree in forestry and conservation from the University of California, Berkeley.  He worked in the forestry programs for the Shasta Trinity National Forest and for the BLM in Redding and Ukiah before moving to Arcata.  For the past 13 years, he has supervised natural resource programs in the BLM's Arcata office.

 

The reserve was purchased for public ownership in 1999, and is managed jointly by the BLM and the California Department of Fish and Game.  BLM has the responsibility for day-to-day management and consults closely with the DFG.  The reserve contains about 3,000 acres of old growth redwoods.  It provides habitat for threatened chinook and coho salmon and the marbled murrelet, a small seabird that nests in the redwoods.

 

Since public acquisition, BLM and DFG have managing the reserve under an interim management plan.  The interim plan has allowed for public daytime hiking access into the northern area, guided hikes into the southern area, and guided tours to the site of the historic mill town of Falk.

 

 

-BLM-

 

Arcata Field Office -  1695 Heindon Road -  Arcata, CA  95520