Mariposa, California   Sierra Sun Times file photo

If approved by the Board, funds will restore forest health, boost recreation. New programs will continue critical resilience work.

May 22, 2026 - The Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC), a California state agency focused on improving the environmental, economic, and social well-being of the Sierra-Cascade region, will host its quarterly meeting and field tour in Weaverville, Calif., June 3 and 4. At the June 4 Board meeting, nearly $1.5 million may be awarded to new wildfire-resilience projects and just over $3 million to new projects to help boost recreation and tourism in the Sierra-Cascade. The Board may also approve new Wildfire and Forest Resilience Grant guidelines and guidelines for the new Landscape Grant Program to help increase the pace and scale of forest health.

The day before the Board meeting, SNC staff will host a field tour on Wednesday, June 3, to the Trinity River watershed and a nearby fuelbreak project to discuss activities related to advancing healthy forests and community protection in the region. The public is invited to attend, but are responsible for their own transportation and lunch.

View detailed meeting information, including the full agenda for the Board meeting, which begins at 9 a.m. at the Veteran’s Memorial Hall at 51 Memorial Drive in Weaverville. The meeting is open to the public, and the public is encouraged to review meeting information and submit any comments by 5 p.m. Friday, May 29. To submit public comment related to this meeting, email public-comments@sierranevada.ca.gov.

The SNC Board meeting will include a full agenda as members may approve new grants funded by the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Directed Grant Program and the Sustainable Recreation, Tourism, and Equitable Outdoor Access Directed Grant Program, as well as approve new guidelines that will open up the remaining wildfire and forest resilience funds from the Climate Bond and the agency’s inaugural Landscape Grant Program (also with funding from the Climate Bond).

New wildfire resilience, recreation investments

The Board will consider just over $1.45 million for two projects that will reduce overly dense fuels and reinforce fuelbreaks in Mariposa and Nevada counties from the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Directed grant program, funded by the Climate Bond and made available through early action from Governor Newsom and the legislature.

The Board may also consider just under $3.2 million to seven projects that will help plan and implement improvements to recreational sites and opportunities in Butte, Kern, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Tehama, and Trinity counties. These funds were made available through Proposition 68, which voters passed in June 2018.

New Landscape Grant Program may be approved

In 2021, California’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force was established and set a vision for an integrated, statewide approach to increase the pace and scale of forest resilience and prevent catastrophic wildfires. In response, the SNC developed the Landscape Investment Strategy in 2022 to improve our ability to deploy funds effectively at scale, and awarded a pilot landscape grant. This spring, the SNC developed draft guidelines for a Landscape Grant Program, which included a public comment period, to effectively advance landscape-scale forest and watershed-health projects.

The SNC Board will consider approving the new Landscape Grant Program Guidelines, which will make $45 million from the Climate Bond for regional priority projects available. If the new Landscape Grant Program Guidelines are approved by the Board, SNC staff will begin evaluating high-capacity collaborative groups working across landscapes with a portfolio of shovel-ready projects, and begin preparing to make Landscape Grant Program award recommendations as early as the SNC’s December Board meeting.

Board may approve new SNC Action Plan

The SNC’s Strategic Plan identifies specific activities that the organization will focus on over a five-year period. The current 2024-2029 Strategic Plan includes implementing and advancing the Regional goals of Healthy Forests and Watersheds; Resilient Sierra-Cascade Communities; Sustainable Recreation, Tourism, and Equitable Outdoor Access; and Conservation and Stewardship of Natural and Working Lands.

To help the SNC stay in alignment with its Strategic Plan, it also develops an annual Action Plan that identifies specific activities and focus areas for each year. At this meeting, staff will provide a final report to the Board on its 2025-2026 actions and bring forward the 2026-2027 Action Plan for Board approval.

Source: Sierra Nevada Conservancy