The State of the Sierra Nevada’s Forests

There is a growing understanding that many Sierra Nevada forests are not healthy and that overgrown forests are susceptible to disease and intense wildfire. There is likewise broad consensus that science-based ecological restoration of our Sierra Nevada forests must be dramatically increased in order stem the tide of large, uncharacteristic wildfires. These wildfires threaten the very lifeblood of California — the forested watersheds of the Sierra Nevada.

The State of Sierra Nevada’s Forests Report identifies the wide range of benefits provided by our Sierra Nevada forests and watersheds that are at risk:

• The Region is the origin of 60% of California’s developed water supply.
• These watersheds are the primary source of fresh water flowing into the Sacramento-SanJoaquin Delta, California’s water “hub.”
• The forests of the Sierra Nevada store massive amounts of carbon, assisting in the state’sefforts to combat climate change.
• The forests and watersheds provide crucial habitat to hundreds of species.
• The area provides world-class recreational opportunities enjoyed by millions from around the world.
• The Region is a major producer of wood products and hydro-electric power.

Key findings of this report include the following:

• The United States Forest Service Region 5 (USFS) estimates that between six and nine million acres of lands for which they have management responsibility are in need of restoration. In order to return these lands to ecological health, a two to three times increase in the pace and scale of ecological restoration must occur.
• The amount of area consumed by fire in the Sierra Nevada continues to increase. More land has burned in the first four-and-a-half-years of this decade than seven entire decades in the past.
• Between 1984 and 2010, there was a significant increase in the number of acres within a forest fire burning at high-intensity, from an average of 20% in mid-1980s to over 30% by 2010.
• High-intensity burn areas can experience runoff and erosion rates five to ten times greater than low- or moderate-intensity burn areas. The sediment that is carried in the runoff not only degrades water quality and damages infrastructure, it fills reservoirs, reducing storage capacity.
• The 2013 Rim Fire, the largest fire in the recorded history of the Sierra Nevada, burned 257,000 acres, almost 40% of which was at high intensity. Estimates are that that fire produced the same amount of greenhouse gas emissions that 2.3 million vehicles produce in a year.