Ground Truth Blog
Climatologist: Fuel-Reduction Logging is a Trojan Horse
Dr. James Hansen, Adjunct Professor at Columbia University’s Earth Institute and former Director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, doesn’t like the Fix Our Forests Act. A Boston Globe op-ed coauthored by Hansen and attorney Dan Galpern questions basic...
Study Reveals ‘Substantial, Persistent Fire Deficit’
Government agencies and corporate media consistently emphasize the expansion of wildfire acreage caused by a warming climate. Studies that examine only two or three decades of North American fire history support these claims. “Considering these studies, forest...
Debunking Early-Successional Habitat Myths
“ A campaign is underway to clear established forests and expand early-successional habitats ... with the intention of benefiting specific species.” So begins a 2023 report published in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change. The authors of that report analyze this...
FS Reorganization Will Close Leading Research Lab in Minnesota
The unfolding Forest Service reorganization targets important scientific facilities along with ongoing research projects. Current nationwide Forest Service research stations will be consolidated down to the Rocky Mountain Research Station in Colorado, and 75% of...
Halverson Article Investigates Use of Roundup in Forests
Excerpts from 'We are Bombarding America's Forests With Roundup' by Nate Halverson, Mother Jones ... I steer my old Toyota Tacoma down a bumpy dirt road to where the Lassen National Forest gives way to private timberland. Lilly rides shotgun. We’d come to this exact...
Beavers Benefit Bats and Butterflies
Beavers are a true keystone species, so it should come as no surprise that two new studies broaden our understanding of beavers’ beneficial role, not only for aquatic life, but also for airborne creatures like bats and butterflies. Both studies were published by the...
Nantahala National Forest
Prior to the 1700s, the land encompassed by the Nantahala National Forest was inhabited by the Cherokee people. Nantahala is a Cherokee word meaning “Land of the Noonday Sun,” a reference to the steep landscape where sunlight only reaches the valley floor at midday....
Sacrificing national forest land for artificial intelligence
In June, Republican Rep. Cliff Bentz of Oregon introduced H.R. 655, the Dalles Watershed Development Act, which would transfer ownership of approximately 150 acres of Mount Hood National Forest from the citizens of the United States to the City of The Dalles, Oregon....
Forest Service Reorganization: Remodel or Demolition?
The current administration has embraced the tech-bro mantra: “Move fast and break things.” Here’s a quick overview: The Forest Service is currently working on new rules to reduce public engagement in environmental reviews and rescind protection for 45 million acres of...
Republicans Weaponize CRA to Resurrect Boundary Waters Mining Threat
April 28 Update: The Senate voted 50-49 to overturn the 20-year mining ban protecting Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from mining, and President Trump signed the resolution to overturn the ban. Republicans, guided by the Project 2025 blueprint, may have dealt a...
Ag Department Makes Billion-Dollar Deal for Fire Retardant
In spite of a lack of scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness of aerial fire retardant, in spite of revelations that show toxic heavy metals in fire retardant, and in spite of setbacks in federal court, Agriculture Department Secretary Brooke Rollins signed a...
‘High Country News’ Article Highlights FSEEE Concerns About FS Reorganization
An article by Christine Peterson in High Country News cites FSEEE Executive Director Kevin Hood's concerns about the Forest Service reorganization that will move the agency's headquarters from Washington, D.C., to Salt Lake City, Utah, the state that is currently...