Mattole-based watershed groups (Mattole Restoration Council, Mattole Salmon Group and Sanctuary Forest, Inc.) are offering landowners a way to deal with road problems, whether they be wet roads, bad culverts, road blowouts or deep rutting of your access road.

It’s called the Good Roads, Clear Creeks Program, and it’s a voluntary program for residents and landowners to work together on fixing roads. Here’s how it works:

• We seek landowners within a geographical area, such as a tributary to the Mattole, who would be willing to have their roads inventoried. We work with landowners within these neighborhoods to determine the extent of local interest in the program. We then apply for funding so that the roads can be inventoried at no cost to landowners.
• Each participating landowner will get a general report for their area, a customized map packet for their property showing possible treatment options, aerial photos back to the 1940s, and a map of landslide-prone zones on their property.
• At this time, landowners can decide whether they want to continue participating in the program through the treatment phase.
• When high priority sites are identified we will seek public funding to actually fix roads on the lands of participating landowners at no cost to the landowner.
• Work will happen during the next year or two after the inventory work is completed, leading to roads that need less maintenance and are less likely to blow out in a large winter storm. In addition, doing this type of work now may save headaches later with regulatory agencies.