CHESTER NEWS | PLUMAS COUNTY | OCTOBER 18, 2026. Chester-area residents interested in collecting their own firewood have a federal program worth checking before making a trip. The Bureau of Land Management announced a low-cost $1-per-cord firewood permit in a designated area of BLM public land near Chester Airport, where downed trees remain from the 2021 Dixie Fire.
BLM’s official June 29, 2026 release says the permits allow collectors to remove eligible dead timber while helping clean up fire-damaged land. The agency did not publish a guaranteed October inventory: permits were to remain available until all downed trees had been collected. Verify that the program is still open and that timber remains before paying or traveling.
What the $1 price covers
The federal price quoted in the announcement is $1 per cord, not a one-dollar flat charge for an unlimited volume. A cord is a standard stacked firewood volume of 128 cubic feet. This is a self-collection arrangement, not a delivery service, and it is confined to the designated BLM Chester Airport Parcel Fuelwood Collection Area.
The agency’s announcement links a map identifying the parcel. Collectors should study it before departure, carry the correct permit, and avoid assuming that timber along any nearby road is available for taking.
How to request a permit
The BLM directs buyers to its official forest-products permit portal. Because programs can close when supplies are exhausted, check the particular Chester listing, eligibility, permitted quantities, collection terms, and any posted route access before purchase. If the listing is absent, that is not evidence that collection is authorized without a permit.
For questions, the BLM Eagle Lake Field Office lists 530-257-0456. It is the appropriate office to ask about remaining eligible logs, access conditions and seasonal restrictions.
Rules that can prevent an expensive mistake
- Stay on existing roads. BLM expressly asks collectors to keep vehicles on existing roads to reduce damage while gathering firewood.
- Stay within the mapped collection area. Do not remove timber from private parcels, forest-service lands or other public land under an unrelated permit.
- Review fire and weather restrictions. Collection equipment and vehicles still operate in fire-prone terrain.
- Plan for safe loading. Fallen fire-damaged trees can remain unstable, and wood collection involves equipment and transportation risks.
- Confirm present availability. The original announcement is from June, and stock may be exhausted by October.
How this fits with Chester’s recovery
The agency describes the operation as both a local opportunity to collect wood and a way to remove downed trees left by the Dixie Fire. It should not be confused with the distinct 60.5-acre wildfire fuel-reduction proposal around Chester and Lake Almanor previously covered by Chester News. These are separate activities with different land-management details.
Official sources: BLM Chester firewood announcement, BLM forest-products permit portal, and Eagle Lake Field Office.
Editorial note: Published October 18, 2026, based on BLM’s June 29 announcement. Current permit inventory and availability were not independently confirmed; a past offer must not be represented as guaranteed inventory today.
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