They’ve stepped up as govt. steps down

On March 31st, the Trump administration announced that it will close 57 of its 77 environmental research facilities as part of its “restructuring” (read: decimation) of the USDA Forest Service. The administration claims it has no intention to “reduce our national research footprint.” But with the stated plan to consolidate hundreds of employees and site-dependent projects into a single institution in Fort Collins, Colorado, we know how this will play out. The relocation of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) headquarters during Trump I caused an exodus of 87% of career staffers. Additionally, the current dearth of data coming out of compromised agencies like the CDC, indicates that the Forest Service’s research products will be devastated, along with its institutional knowledge.

The immediate danger is diminishment of crisis-management systems. These systems were informed by the work of the 57 research facilities, and any replacement systems would need to replicate this foundational information to respond to an environmental catastrophe. The affected facilities run the gamut from experimental forests and wildfire research laboratories to urban-forestry field stations.

There are other consequences: this is a network of research and services built around local ecosystems and longitudinal field studies. The clear intention is to destroy capacity for science and the resulting benefits to society.

Here are a few organizations that have the potential to step up as the Forest Service ceases to serve its purpose. Check them out, see what you can use, and help them grow a new network for environmental info.

More Than Just Parks—reports on the Forest Service under Trump

• independent news outlet dedicated to “documenting and defending America's public lands”

• comprehensive breakdown (with map) of Forest Service facilities facing closure

• covers and tracks threats to public lands as the Trump administration invites logging, mining, and energy interests to push in, while recommending ways to resist

The Nature Record—brand new report

• team of mostly ex-federal scientists working to release their Biden-commissioned National Nature Assessment (canceled by Trump)

• a draft of their assessment of the health of US ecosystems and natural resources, the first of its kind, is available for comment. Scheduled to be reviewed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

• plans to release the data and metadata used in the report, as well as share tools, products, and opportunities to “help communities and individuals put knowledge to work”

• looking to connect with groups who are monitoring and recording environmental changes (The Nature Record has no plans to continue data collection itself)

American Forests—restoration and urban forestry research

• nonprofit conservation organization founded in 1875, it claims to have “Originated the ideas for a national forest system and the US Forest Service”

• conducts original Research & Reports on topics such as the latest forest restoration techniques and Integrated Post-Fire Resilience Strategy

• hosts tools like the Reforestation Hub, a map that shows land that could be reforested, how the land is currently being used and who owns it, how many trees are needed to reclaim it, and how much carbon would be kept out of the atmosphere

• co-created the Vibrant Cities Lab, which hosts a Resource Library including research, case studies, and toolkits geared toward developing urban forestry efforts

The International Association of Wildland Fire (IAWF)—wildfire science

• global, nonprofit, professional association for wildfire-related fields

• the International Journal of Wildland Fire—IAWF’s scientific journal dedicated to research around wildfires’ physical processes, ecological impacts, and management—is open-access, and hosts free downloadable PDF files of its articles

• publishes Wildfire Magazine which includes sections on fire science, forest management, and wildfire patterns around the world

Center for Resilient Conservation Science (CRCS)—conservation data and tools

• produces data and reports that inform conservation efforts

• Conservation Data Catalog, open-access with downloadable datasets

• hosts Interactive Tools for exploring resilient habitats across the US

• Note: CRCS is a branch of The Nature Conservancy, a global environmental nonprofit that has been criticized for relying on funding from fossil fuel companies

Honorable mention

• UL (Underwriters Laboratories) Fire Safety Research Institute—Research on Fire Data, Suppression, Wildland Urban Interface, etc.

• The International Union of Forest Research Organizations—Call for Papers - Impacts of Climate Change on Forest and Water Management

• Forest History Society—Research Portal

Help a data-dealer: seeking input on nature assessment

The Nature Record is looking for feedback on its draft reporting on nature in America. Comment on the entire assessment, or on specific chapters, which include topics like environmental justice, climate change, nature’s relationship with the economy, nature’s relationship with culture, and its impacts on public health.

“You don’t need to read the entire assessment or be a technical expert to contribute. Every perspective adds value,” the group states on its Comment page, which provides additional instructions and guidance.

(Do you have an announcement, question, or call to action for our Prairie Fire community? Send your Help a Data-Dealer requests to morgan@newsjunkie.net)

I’ll leave it here

In my search for forest allies, I found an impressive array of community-based environmental management efforts that show potential to save lives in the absence of federal protection. But many of these initiatives were built on Forest Service research and resources. Protecting those left out in the cold requires independent researchers, too.

We can take inspiration from these efforts. If we band together we succeed. Let’s remember: these are our forests.

Until next time, data-dealers.

—Morgan