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| ARF- 3764 |
Regular Agenda Item 4. B.
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| Regular BOS Meeting |
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| Information |
| Request/Subject |
| Intergovernmental Agreement No. 030916 with Tonto Natural Resource Conservation District. |
| Background Information |
On March 24, 2009, the Board of Supervisors approved the entering into a Challenge Cost Share Agreement between the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Tonto National Forest and Gila County. The purpose of the agreement was to allow the Forest Service and Gila County to work together on projects for improved fire management activities on Forest Service and public lands. The agreement was intended to facilitate direct funding and implementation (purchase and installation) of three fire management projects. One of the three projects was to provide for maintenance/upkeep of five brush pits across the Tonto Natural Resource Conservation District (Tonto NRCD). The Forest Service paid for the first year of brush pit operations at a cost of $25,000, without any Gila County in-kind services match. The brush pits are places where the public can dispose of natural or green material originating from their properties. This is a free service to the public; however, there is a cost to the Regional Payson Area Project group to maintain the pits. The services that were performed at the time, included but were not limited to:
- Opening and staffing the brush pits.
- Inspecting loads coming into the pits to ensure they only contain acceptable natural or green material waste.
- Coordinating with Forest Service and local fire departments when green waste is to be burned.
- Coordinating with vendor when natural or green waste needs to be chipped, hauled away and recycled. (Chipping and hauling by the vendor was to be done on a no cost/no revenue basis).
Upon the expiration of the Agreement term on April 3, 2009, Modification No. 1 was executed by all parties to extend the agreement through September 30, 2010. Upon the expiration of the extension on September 30, 2010, Modification No. 2 was executed to extend the agreement through September 30, 2011. After the grant funding provided by the Federal Government was exhausted, Gila County continued to partner with the U.S. Forest Service and Regional Payson Area Project to offer brush pit services to the residents of northern Gila County.
At the Board of Supervisors' regular meeting on April 7, 2015, the Board approved Intergovernmental Agreement No. 021814 in the amount of $30,000 for the Tonto NRCD to administer the burn pit operations in Payson and Pine. That agreement expired on March 17, 2016. |
| Evaluation |
The U.S. Forest Service owns the pit areas; one outside of Payson and one outside of Pine, Arizona. The Regional Payson Area Project provides administrative services, and the Tonto NRCD provides oversight of the pits.
Intergovernmental Agreement No. 030916 between Gila County and the Tonto NRCD of which Gila County will contribute $30,000 in the form of an Economic Development Grant to the Tonto NRCD for the benefit of the public will ensure that the brush pits will continue to be available for disposal of natural or green materials from properties owned by residents of northern Gila County.
The Tonto NRCD will provide to the County a quarterly deliverables reports with an accounting of how the economic development grant has been spent. The report will include invoices and receipts that were paid during that quarter. |
| Conclusion |
| As many residents in northern Gila County live in forested areas, it is important the brush pits remain operational to enable the residents of northern Gila County to clear land in and around their properties of combustible natural or green materials in a combined effort to minimize damage and mitigate the opportunity of forest fires. An economic development grant in an amount of $30,000 for the term of June 7, 2016, to June 6, 2017, will benefit northern Gila County by ensuring funds are in place for the operational costs incurred by brush pit operations for the residents to dispose of natural or green materials. |
| Recommendation |
| Staff recommends approval of Intergovernmental Agreement No. 030916 with the Tonto NRCD to provide an economic development grant of $30,000 for the term of June 7, 2016, to June 8, 2017, in order to keep the brush pits in northern Gila County open and operational and at no cost to the residents for the disposal of natural or green materials in and around their properties. |
| Suggested Motion |
| Information/Discussion/Action to approve Intergovernmental Agreement No. 030916 (Economic Development Grant) between Gila County and the Tonto Natural Resource Conservation District (Tonto NRCD) whereby the County will disburse $30,000 to the Tonto NRCD to oversee the administration of the Regional Payson Area Project operations of two brush pits in northern Gila County so that residents may take and dispose of natural or green materials surrounding their properties, thereby minimizing the effect of potential forest fires near their properties. (Jeff Hessenius) |
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