Sierra National Forest
Credit: Forest Service

March 25, 2017 - Earlier this week, the USDA Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Region (Region 5) announced that it will delay the release of any final decisions on the “early adopter” forest plan revisions for the Inyo, Sierra, and Sequoia National Forests until at least late Fall 2017.  While RCRC has been hearing talk of the delay for weeks due to directives from the new Administration, the USFS officially stated that the delay is designed to allow staff more time to respond to comments and consider changed conditions in two of the forests due to drought-induced tree mortality.  

Forest plan revisions are typically contentious due to the land management and recreational use implications implicit in the updates.  The “early adopter” revisions have been no exception, as they are the among the first forest plan updates in the nation to be implemented under the often-divisive 2012 National Land Management Planning Rule, which RCRC and many counties felt weakened the ability for local governments to provide meaningful input in the planning process.  Many stakeholders, including RCRC, requested drastic revisions to the initial Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the three forests, which were being done in a single revision process, particularly since the Sierra and Sequoia National Forests have been heavily impacted by the state’s tree mortality epidemic since the plan revision process began.  Region 5 is now planning to release a separate final EIS for the Inyo National Forest in late Fall, followed by a draft EIS for the Sierra and Sequoia National Forests in early 2018 to account for the changes in conditions due to tree mortality.

Detailed information on the early adopter forest plan revisions can be accessed here. 
Source: RCRC

Click here for earlier information