The Sierra Nevada is a rich land of magnificent forests, lakes, rivers, wildlife, and wild places. But through people's use and enjoyment, it has become a threatened land. Roads, dams, and diversions have impacted water quality and quantity. The natural role of fire has been altered. Old-growth forests have been significantly reduced and fragmented, threatening the future viability of many wildlife species.

Today, we have an outstanding opportunity to begin reversing the environmental damage. The U.S. Forest Service recently established new management direction for 11.5 million acres of national forest lands in the Sierra Nevada and the Modoc Plateau. The agency's new plan signals a positive change in management direction for these forestlands. For example, under the new plan, about 40 percent of the Sierra landscape will be protected as "old forest emphasis areas."

Under FSEEE's sponsorship, a team of scientists and natural resource professionals recently prepared a peer-reviewed plan for the Forest Service to consider. This plan is included in its entirety in Restoring Our Forest Legacy: Blueprint for Sierra Nevada National Forests.

The FSEEE plan is centered on the restoration of natural processes such as fire, protection of water quality, and conservation of forests and wildlife through scientific management, rather than economic or political expedience. What distinguishes the FSEEE plan is its pragmatic approach to problem solving, based on analysis of local environmental conditions.

In January 2001, the U.S. Forest Service published its Record of Decision and Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the 11 national forests of the Sierra Nevada and Modoc Plateau.