Prescribed Fire Promotes Buffalo Clover Recovery

Prescribed Fire Promotes Buffalo Clover Recovery

Buffalo clover (Trifolium reflexum) is listed as endangered by the State of Indiana, but this rare plant was discovered on the Hoosier National Forest following a prescribed burn. This patch of buffalo clover lives in an open canopy of dry oak forest adjacent to a...
What can we Learn About Wildfire From Australia?

What can we Learn About Wildfire From Australia?

Five years ago, the Black Summer Bushfires burned more than 60 million acres in Australia. Between June 2019 and May 2020, hundreds of fires burned, mainly in southeastern Australia. Like the recent fires in Los Angeles, Australian bushfires are driven by high winds....
Report Reveals ‘Catastrophic’ Decline in Wildlife Numbers

Report Reveals ‘Catastrophic’ Decline in Wildlife Numbers

Released in October 2024, the World Wildlife Federation’s (WWF’s) latest Living Planet Report cites a “catastrophic 73% decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations” from 1970 to 2020.” The Zoological Society of London maintains the Living Planet...
EXPLORE Act Enjoys Broad Support

EXPLORE Act Enjoys Broad Support

On Jan. 6, President Biden signed into law the “Expanding Public Lands Outdoor Recreation Experiences Act” (H.R. 6492). With bipartisan sponsorship, the new legislation passed the House by voice vote in April. In December, the bill passed the Senate by unanimous...
Northwest Forest Plan Amendment

Northwest Forest Plan Amendment

The Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP), adopted in 1994 during Bill Clinton’s administration, covers 24.5 million acres in Washington, Oregon, and northern California. The NWFP was created in response to logging practices that decimated old-growth forests, created expansive...
Biden Administration Drops Plan to Protect Old Growth

Biden Administration Drops Plan to Protect Old Growth

Citing pushback from Republicans and the timber industry, the Biden administration has pulled its proposed old-growth forest plan. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore announced the decision in a Jan. 7 letter to forest supervisors. As previously reported, the Forest...
Lockheed Martin Employs Goats to Reduce Fire Risk

Lockheed Martin Employs Goats to Reduce Fire Risk

Lockheed Martin’s Waterton Canyon campus sits on 98 acres of rugged foothills near Denver. In August 2024, a 500-acre wildfire came within a mile of the aerospace facility, serving as a wake-up call for corporate decision-makers. Professional staff members were tasked...
Bridger-Teton National Forest

Bridger-Teton National Forest

The Bridger-Teton National Forest encompasses a significant portion of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest intact ecosystem in the contiguous United States. The Forest is home to scenic views and abundant wildlife, including grizzly bears, black bears,...
USC Analysis: Retardant is Laden With Toxic Metals

USC Analysis: Retardant is Laden With Toxic Metals

On Oct. 30, 2024, just as the previous issue of Forest News was going to print, researchers at the University of Southern California’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering published a report titled “Metals in Wildfire Suppressants.” The report provides...
Forest Service Continues Allowing Old-Growth Logging

Forest Service Continues Allowing Old-Growth Logging

The Forest Service continues to approve old-growth logging projects in spite of the Biden administration’s executive orders promoting old growth protections. One of the more egregious examples is the Black Ram Project, a plan to cut 95,000 acres in the Yaak River...