Climate Connections: Collective impact can save our forests

What does it take to keep our forests healthy? After a century of fire suppression, Tahoe forests are immensely overgrown. The 800,000 piles of biomass (dead trees and dry brush) on the forest floor surrounding our community are a growing problem, but restoration projects are costly and the Forest Service only has so much bandwidth to execute. Last year was the worst fire season on record and, unfortunately, we are in worse shape this year with our fire season beginning 60 days earlier due to drought conditions. However, with increased awareness, new commitments and greater funding from the federal and state level to protect our forests, there is momentum for positive change.