Thinning crews are working in Pajarito Acres area

Contact: James E. Rickman, jamesr@lanl.gov, (505) 665-9203

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LOS ALAMOS, N.M., March 25, 2003 -- Forest-thinning work associated with the Laboratory's Cerro Grande Rehabilitation Project begins this week in the White Rock area south of the Pajarito Acres subdivision and east of N.M. 4.

For the next several weeks, crews with the CGRP will be working to reduce fire danger in technical areas 70 and 71. As a result, area residents and recreational users are advised to use caution in the TA-70 and -71 areas because of excessive noise and potentially dangerous heavy machinery. In the interests of safety, members of the public should avoid areas where active thinning work is being conducted.

In addition, Laboratory cultural- and ecological-preservation specialists have isolated areas that are ecologically sensitive with white twine and pink flagging. These areas could be habitat for threatened and endangered species, specialized plant or animal life or other sensitive resources. The flagging is intended to prevent thinning crews from conducting operations in ecologically-sensitive areas to reduce potential harm to them. Residents and recreational users are strongly urged not to damage, remove or modify the flagging, and not to enter areas where flagging is present.

The TA-70 and -71 thinning work is scheduled to be completed by the end of May.

Since forest thinning operations began in December 2001, the CGRP has reduced fire danger on more than 7,000 acres of Laboratory property, has distributed more than 3,500 loads of firewood to Northern New Mexico residents and has sold more than 395,000 board feet of timber to small Northern New Mexico saw mills.

Los Alamos National Laboratory is operated by the University of California for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) of the U.S. Department of Energy and works in partnership with NNSA's Sandia and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories to support NNSA in its mission.

Los Alamos enhances global security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health and national security concerns.

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