Look West: Public lands and energy news from the Center for Western Priorities


** Forest Service unveils plan to save giant sequoias
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Monday, July 25, 2022
Sequoia National Park, Matthew Dillon ([link removed]) , Flickr ([link removed])

As wildfires in California become larger and hotter due to climate change, the U.S. Forest Service is making plans to aggressively thin forests in order to protect giant sequoia trees ([link removed]) . The trees are the world's tallest organism and are found nowhere but California. One-fifth of all giant sequoias have been destroyed over the past two years, according to the Forest Service ([link removed]) .

The agency's "emergency fuel reduction" plan will bypass regular environmental review ([link removed]) and involve the removal of small trees and underbrush through hand cutting, mechanical removal, and prescribed burning on approximately 13,377 acres ([link removed]) . The plan will cost about $15 million ([link removed]) , which will come from the recently enacted infrastructure law.

“Without urgent action, wildfires could eliminate countless more iconic giant sequoias,” Forest Service Chief Randy Moore said ([link removed]) .

But some environmental groups oppose the plan. Ara Marderosian, executive director of the Sequoia ForestKeeper group, called the announcement a "well-orchestrated PR campaign" ([link removed]) for the logging industry and said the plan could end up making wildfires worse.
Quick hits


** Green energy push prompts lawsuits against BLM in Nevada
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Associated Press ([link removed])


** Alaska senators push for Willow approval as Biden weighs climate costs
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Anchorage Daily News ([link removed]) [AK senators] | The Hill ([link removed]) [opinion]


** DOI begins final steps to remove derogatory name from federal lands
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The Hill ([link removed])


** Opinion: Don't let Sen. Daines get rid of Montana wilderness study areas
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Bozeman Daily Chronicle ([link removed])


** Evacuations ordered for wildfire near Yosemite, Newsom declares emergency
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Associated Press ([link removed]) [evacuations] | Associated Press ([link removed]) [emergency]


** As Colorado conservation package stalls in Congress, supporters maintain hope
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Colorado Public Radio ([link removed])


** Editorial board: Climate change is not negotiable
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New York Times ([link removed])


** What record-low water levels at the Hoover Dam reservoir look like from space
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The Verge ([link removed])
Quote of the day
” A successful co-management model is all about transparency, and having a consensus in sharing of ideas and ways of knowing. We are taught to take care of the land. It’s more of an act of love, not an act of a job.”
—Women of Bears Ears co-founder Cynthia Wilson ([link removed]) (Diné), on tribal co-management of Bears Ears National Monument
Picture this


** @USFWS ([link removed])
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Getting our glam shots taken in nature like 🤓

While they can't actually shoot quills at you, there are other reasons to keep your distance. Porcupines have a strong body odor to help deter predators!

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