Land Acknowledgement

SYRCL works throughout the Yuba River watershed on the Ancestral and Traditional homelands of the Nisenan Tribe, and includes shared boundaries with the Mountain Maidu, Konkow, and Washoe peoples. These tribes have lived here for millennia and live here still. We acknowledge and mourn the painful history of genocide and the devastation of lands and waters irreversibly altered.  We are grateful for opportunities to partner with the tribes to create a shared vision and rebalance our relationship to this place.

Upcoming Events

Nevada County RCD has two Prescribed Fire 101 workshops scheduled for 2024 so far. One will be January 13^th in Grass Valley at the Nevada County Fire Safe Council office, and another will be held February 3^rd location TBA. The Workshops will be from 9:00 am – 2:00 pm with a potential demonstration burn the following day.

The workshops include: Introduction to prescribed fire for residents and private landowners. Learn about what prescribed burning is and the role of fire historically vs now in shaping our forest and landscape vegetation and wildland fire. Gain knowledge of the use of prescribed fire as a tool to benefit fire safety, native plants and animal habitat, and forest health. Learn about the basics of planning and conducting a prescribed burn safely and responsibly, including permitting and smoke management. Display of native plants adaptations to fire. This workshop is paired with opportunities to participate in demonstration burns as weather and burning conditions allow.

Lead by Joaquin Pastrana, Nevada County RCD Prescribed Fire Program Manager and Jo Ann Fites-Kaufman, certified California Burn Boss, retired US Forest Service wildland and prescribed fire scientist and practitioner

Day 1: 5 hour classroom course at the Fire Safe Council of Nevada Co. (Jan 13 class only)

Day 2: 4-8 hour Field day if weather permits. Location TBA. email joaquin.pastrana@ncrcd.org if you would like to register!

The Nevada County Coalition of Firewise Communities is seeking a Chair for their Steering Committee, please contact Jeff Peach at jeff@nccoalitionfwc.com or any other committee member if you are interested.

CALFIRE: Draft Grant Guidelines are now available on our website for public review and comment. Please send all comments and recommendations by November 8, 2023. Please email ForestHealth@fire.ca.gov with the subject line “Grant Guidelines Public Comment” to ensure your comments are received and reviewed. The Forest Health program is excited to announce 2 grant types to apply for in the upcoming solicitation including Forest Health and Post-Fire Reforestation and Regeneration. CAL FIRE will open the FY 2023-2024 Forest Health grant solicitation on November 13, 2023. Final grant guidelines, applications, supporting documents, and a recorded workshop will be posted on the Forest Health Grantees Resources web page. Applications will be due by 3 p.m. onJanuary 15, 2024.

For questions or concerns, please email ForestHealth@fire.ca.gov

Links: DRAFT Grant Guidelines , Forest Health Grantees Resources

How Tahoe’s Future Climate Is Going to Change Its Many Watersheds – with Michael Dettinger on January 25, 2024: Climate change is already impacting the Lake Tahoe Basin and even more change will arrive in coming decades. In response, agencies and communities throughout the Basin are beginning to develop plans and actions to enhance their capacities to adapt to climate change. Our recently completed study has yielded detailed simulations of weather, snow, and streamflow responses in the 60 subbasins that comprise the Basin to a collection of 16 different global climate-change projections. The study provides an opportunity to think about future trends and transformations in the Basin, including identification of key climate-change hotspots and refuges (subbasins that will be most or least impacted) in ways not possible with previous projections. We’ll talk about all this and what it probably means for the future of the Basin. In-person event details: Doors open at 5:00 p.m. Presentation begins at 6:00 pm in the Mountainside Bar at Sunnyside Restaurant & Lodge, 1850 W Lake Blvd, Tahoe City, CA 96145. Tickets purchased in advance are $10 through EventBrite and free for students with a student ID. Tickets at the door are $15. For more information call 775-881-7560 or email tercinfo@ucdavis.edu.

Planning and Conservation League’s 2024 California Environmental Assembly: On January 27th, 2024, from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm, with a social gathering from 5:00 to 7:00 pm at UC Davis School of Law, King Hall the California Environmental Law & Policy Center will be hosting the Assembly for a in-person event. Our keynote speaker for 2024 is Liane Randolph, Chair of the California Air Resources Board. The theme for the assembly is Life Beyond 1.5 Degrees: Hard Truths and Solutions. The sessions will focus on the topics of water law modernization, wildfire, transportation, CEQA, groundwater, and land use. The 2024 PCL Assembly will have three tracks with 2-3 sessions in each and will be held at UC Davis’s School of Law in King Hall. To learn how you, your firm, or your organization can become sponsors of the 2024 Assembly – please download the assembly Sponsorship Packet, and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

If you are a student, a recent graduate, have a limited income, are a member of an environmental justice group or environmental organization, or are in public service and are interested in attending the Assembly at no cost, please get in touch with events@pcl.org.

REGISTER NOW

Sierra Institute for Community and Environment: This is a reminder to RSVP for the winter SCALE meetings on Zoom on January 31st from 9 am to noon and February 29th from 1 pm to 4 pm. On January 31st, the meeting will focus on landscape-scale planning and implementation, and on February 29th, the meeting will focus on workforce development and employment. Topics of the meetings will include best practices for implementing large landscape projects, effective tribal engagement in collaborative landscape work, workforce development and creating sustainable employment opportunities, an overview of emergency authorities and use in landscape-scale work, and implications of the new carbon economy for collaboratives

Project on the Preserve Day On Saturday, February 10, from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm at the Wildflower Ridge Preserve BYLT is holding the first Project on the Preserve day of 2024. BYLT hosts Project on the Preserve days throughout the year for all you busy folks who can’t get out during the week so you too can help make local lands and trails more beautiful. This first Project on the Preserve day (formerly known as Community Work Day) will take place on BYLT’s newly acquired Wildflower Ridge Preserve, located just outside downtown Grass Valley on Ridge Road between Twin Cities Church and A to Z Hardware. Join us for a day of invasive species removal, brush-pile burning, trash clean up, and communing with your fellow nature lover. Oh, and there will be donuts and coffee to keep you caffeinated and energized throughout the day! What better way to give back to your community than getting your hands dirty while beautifying this Preserve for our community.

Want to join the South Yuba River Citizens League’s Wild & Scenic Film Festival for their upcoming event? The 22nd annual Wild and Scenic Film Festival will be happening February 15-19, 2024. Don’t miss this chance to come get inspired! Not going to be in the area for the fest? No problem. We have a virtual option for all of our friends and family who want to tune in from afar. Get your tickets now

UCANR: Register now for a California Forest Stewardship Workshop, held online March 20, 2024 – May 15, 2024 and in-person Saturday, April 6th in Fresno County (Tahoe Basin workshop TBA). Join the workshop to better understand and protect your forests by developing a Forest Management Plan. Participants will utilize online resources on their own time to complete learning modules and short activities. Zoom meetings with all participants and presenters will take place once a week on Wednesdays, 6:00pm-7:30pm. The in-person field day will cover silviculture, forest inventory and mapping activities. Participants who complete the workshop will be eligible for a free site visit with a California Registered Professional Forester, California Certified Burn Boss, or California Certified Range Manager.

All forest landowners across California are welcome to join!

Registration is available at: http://ucanr.edu/forestryworskhopregistration

Registration fee is $60.00. Scholarship funding for registration fee is available. For questions, contact Kim Ingram, kcingram@ucanr.edu.

Save the date for 30×30 Advocacy Day! April 9 – 10, 2024. Please fill out this form if you’re interested in participating.

General News and Press Releases

The Forest Business Alliance provides technical assistance, workshops, and a peer-learning network to increase local and regional capacity for forest-sector organizations and businesses. Our technical assistance offerings focus on applicants to CAL FIRE’s Business and Workforce Development Program and Tribal Wildfire Resilience Program, USFS’s Wood Innovations Grant, and other grant programs. For more information, please visit https://www.forestbusinessalliance.org/.

San Francisco State University Sierra Nevada Field Campus: Darrow Feldstein, the Director of the San Francisco State University Sierra Nevada Field Campus located up Hwy 49 near Bassetts, is looking to expand their land stewardship class offerings. They offer over 30 classes each summer, open to the general public, on natural history, land management, art, music, and more. Darrow is hoping to bring in a whole lot more fire training to the campus and ideally get some people certified to become FFT2’s or higher. Is anyone involved with planning large trainings that would want to meet with him about this? Lots of potential for getting creative with courses. They are located on leased Forest Service land so burning might be a bit tough in the near term but training programs could easily happen this summer with all the infrastructure we have. You can contact Darrow at darrow@sfsu.edu for more information.

Northwest Forest Plan Amendment: On December 18, 2023, the Pacific Northwest and Pacific Southwest Regions of the USDA Forest Service published in the Federal Register a Notice of Intent to amend the 1994 Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP) and prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). This launches a public comment period, comments concerning the scope of the analysis are most valuable to the Forest Service if received by January 29, 2024. The Forest Service is proposing to amend the direction for the NWFP to address changed conditions and new information. The agency seeks to improve resistance and resilience to fire where needed across the NWFP landscape, support adaptation to and mitigation of climate change in the NWFP landscape, ensure tribal inclusion in developing and implementing plan direction in the NWFP, protect mature and old-growth forests, and support sustainable communities affected by forest management in the NWFP landscape. (originally posted on the RVCC December newsletter)

Beaver Reintroduction Conducted in Cooperation with Local Tribes: The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has launched the initial phase of its beaver translocation activities, recently conducting the first beaver conservation release in nearly 75 years. Working with the Maidu Summit Consortium, CDFW released a family of seven beavers into Plumas County, in a location that is known to the tribal community as Tásmam Koyóm. Read more here on the SYRCL website.

Call for Comments: Proposed National Forest Plan Amendment to Conserve and Steward Old Growth Forests. In December, the Biden-Harris administration announced a proposal to amend all 128 national forest land management plans to conserve and steward old-growth forest conditions on national forests and grasslands nationwide. This action is a next step in the Forest Service’s work under President Biden’s Executive Order on Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, Communities, and Local Economies. Scoping on this proposal was initiated as a Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement in the Federal Register. The proposed national plan amendment will direct place-based strategies for old-growth forest conservation and management, developed in partnership with Tribal communities and in collaboration with local stakeholders. These strategies are intended to be adaptive and factor in unique opportunities and challenges of particular areas, and will allow for flexibility in responding to rapid changes in wildfire behavior, drought, insects and disease. Comments are most valuable if received by February 2, 2024. (originally posted on the RVCC December newsletter)

Free Chipping: The Fire Safe Council of Nevada County will chip brush that is cleared from defensible space of any permanent structure, and/or 30’ from any roadside or driveway used for evacuation purposes. Our chipping service is limited to 4 hours per customer per application. Your partnership is greatly appreciated in making Nevada County safer from wildfire!

Reforesting California: Landowners, we need your help! Due to wildfires, drought, and pests and pathogens, the state has witnessed large-scale tree mortality across its forests. CAL FIRE is looking for private landowners who can grant access to their properties for cone collections to achieve statewide reforestation goals.

Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) owns a vast portfolio of hydroelectric assets, including the Drum Spaulding project on the Yuba and Bear Rivers, which comprises 24 dams and reservoirs and 7 powerhouses. The South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) has been actively involved in the relicensing of this project, advocating for balanced consideration of energy conservation, power generation, water supply, wildlife protection, public benefit, recreational opportunities, and watershed health. Now, PG&E proposes to transfer all its hydroelectric assets to a new company, Pacific Generation (PacGen), a move that SYRCL believes would favor PG&E shareholders at the expense of California ratepayers, the Yuba River, dam safety, and the public interest. This transfer would be the largest of its kind in California’s history and would include 62 powerhouses, 97 reservoirs, 72 diversions, 167 dams, and 400 miles of pipes and canals. PG&E stands to gain $1.1 to $2.5 billion from this deal while transferring the responsibility and liability for these assets to PacGen. The proposal is now before the California Public Utility Commission.

CAL FIRE: Draft Grant Guidelines are now available on the CAL FIRE website for public review and comment. The Forest Health program is excited to announce 2 grant types to apply for in the upcoming solicitation including Forest Health and Post-Fire Reforestation and Regeneration. CAL FIRE will open the FY 2023-2024 Forest Health grant solicitation on November 13, 2023. Final grant guidelines, applications, supporting documents, and a recorded workshop will be posted on the Forest Health Grantees Resources web page. Applications will be due by 3 p.m. on January 15, 2024.

For questions or concerns, please email ForestHealth@fire.ca.gov Links: DRAFT Grant Guidelines , Forest Health Grantees Resources

CalWild is seeking an Executive Director to lead the organization into a new era of environmental conservation in California, and represent California interests in Washington D.C. The position is a full-time, salaried CalWild employee based in California. The position will require travel to visit our program areas, meet with staff and attend events. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the Executive Director (ED) will provide strategic guidance, clear leadership, and vision for CalWild. Priorities include staff management, program oversight, day-to-day management, ensuring financial compliance, meeting income targets, and engaging and growing the board. The ED will develop deep knowledge of CalWild’s areas of expertise and operations, and be responsible for developing its next strategic plan in late 2024.

How to Apply: Please send a cover letter explaining your interest in CalWild and summarizing key experiences, resume and a short writing sample to admin@calwild.org.

The Sierra Fund is now hiring a Program Director! Please help pass on the word to your colleagues and friends who might be interested in applying for our open Program Director position. The Program Director is a vital member of the senior leadership team, developing and maintaining partnerships to increase the pace and scale of conservation in the Sierra, providing program staff with guidance and oversight, leading integrated ecosystem restoration efforts, advocating for key policy reforms, and helping raise funds, partners, and resources to advance program goals.

For more on the full duties, qualifications, and how to apply – visit here.

Recurring Meetings and Events

Yuba Forest Network Quarterly Meeting: An in-person event at the SYRCL Office in Nevada City. Email Anne Marie Holt at annemarie@yubariver.org for more details or if you have any updates or would like to present. February 2nd 10:00 am –12:00 pm.

Sierra Nevada 30×30 Meeting: Contact Lis Olearts at liesbet@sierranevadaalliance.org for more information. Meetings occur monthly on the second Wednesday from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm, with the next meeting on January 10 on Zoom.

Forest Business Alliance: The FBA provides technical assistance, workshops, and a peer-learning network to increase local and regional capacity for applicants to CAL FIRE’s Business and Workforce Development Program. Peer Learning Network sessions on Zoom at noon. Register here. 2024 sessions: January 16, February 20, March 19, April 16, May 21.

Forests Lab: A monthly meet up on recent literature on forest health, the next one is scheduled for 6:00 pm on February 21 at Gold Vibe Kombuchary. Email Erin Andrew at erin@sierrastreamsinstitute.org for more information.

CA Wildfire & Forest Resilience Task Force: Southern CA Regional: April 4-5. Sacramento: June 20, 1:00-4:00pm, Sierra Regional: September 26-27. Sacramento: December 13, 9:30-12:00 pm.

Nevada County Coalition of Firewise Communities Meeting: Contact Jeff Peach at jeff@nccoalitionfwc.com for more information. Meetings are held on the first Tuesday in February, May, August, and November with the first 2024 meeting on February 6 at 5:30 pm.

Webinars

Fire Lab Seminar Series January 11 @ 11-12 pm MST: Join RMRS research ecologist Karen Short for her presentation on developing a next-generation wildland fire intelligence platform. This seminar is part of the ongoing fire lab seminar series hosted by the Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory. Learn more here.

Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program Peer Learning Session: Adaptive Management On Friday, January 12, 2024, from 4:00-6:30 pm PST NFF is hosting a Peer Learning Session with the objectives to explore adaptive management examples and concepts, focusing in particular on how monitoring informs decision-making and to hear experiences and perspectives from managers, adaptive management experts, and others.

Natural Areas Association: Webinar Nature Out of Place? Brainstorming Best Practices for Communicating About Invasive Plants, on Tuesday, January 16, 2024 Mason Heberling, Ph.D., Associate Curator of Botany at Carnegie Museum of Natural History, will discuss an ongoing project on invasive plants and facilitate a discussion to seek participant feedback regarding ways to inclusively communicate about invasive plants to diverse audiences.

esri conservation webinar series: The Actionable Conservation Science for the Global Biodiversity Framework webinar series began in June and will continue through the fall. The last webinar will be on January 20, 2024 from 7:00 am – 8:00 am on Regionalization and Optimization. Webinars are free.

USFS Rocky Mountain Research Station: Wildfire and Fire Workshop Series On January 23 from 2:00-5:00 pm PST, and on January 24 from 10:00 am -1:00 pm PST. Hosted by the Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center, USDA Forest Service, and many more, this two- part virtual workshop will focus on advancing wildlife management relating to fire in the Southwest. It will be the first in a yearlong series of webinars and workshops.

Wildlife and Fire in the Southwest – Joint Webinar: The Southwest Climate Adaptation Science Center, USDA Forest Service, and many other organizations are hosting a yearlong series of workshops and webinars to advance wildlife management relating to fire in the Southwest. This series will kick off with a two-part virtual workshop that will highlight case studies, emerging research, and more. The webinar will be held on January 23 from 12:00 – 3:00 pm PST.

Grants

CALFIRE Wildfire Prevention Grants: Funds for projects in and near fire threatened communities to improve public health and safety while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Applications are due January 10, 2024.

The USFS Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program: supports the establishment of community forests through fee simple acquisition of private forest land to protect it from conversion to non-forest uses and provide community benefits. Due January 12, 2024.

CALFIRE Forest Health Grants: CAL FIRE will open the FY 2023-2024 Forest Health grant solicitation on November 13, 2023. Final grant guidelines, applications, supporting documents, and a recorded workshop will be posted on the Forest Health Grantees Resources web page. Applications will be due by 3:00 pm on January 15, 2024.

NFWF California Forests: Large Watershed Planning Grants 2024 Request for Proposals: Partnering with the Pacific Southwest Region of the U.S. Forest Service, NFWF is managing over $50 million for landscape-scale grants—encompassing up to 250,000 acres—to address comprehensive efforts to restore forest ecosystems. Learn more Pre-Proposal Due Date: January 18, 2024

The North American Partnership for Environmental Community Action (NAPECA) grant program is seeking proposals from organizations supporting environmental initiatives that will involve and empower Indigenous Peoples and communities and enhance climate adaptation by respectfully applying and protecting Indigenous knowledge systems. Due: January 18, 2024

DOI Wildlife Program: To support maintaining functioning wildlife habitats, developing, and implementing restoration projects, and the inventory and monitoring of priority habitats and species to track trends and use on public lands. Due: January 19, 2024

DOI Aquatic Resource Management: To protect and restore riparian and wetland areas, aquatic habitats, and water resources to provide functioning ecosystems for a combination of balanced and diverse uses including fish and wildlife, and for the long-term needs of future generations. Due: January 19, 2024

NFWF Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant Program 2024 Request for Proposals: NFWF is soliciting proposals through the Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant Program. This program seeks to develop nationwide community stewardship of local natural resources. Projects should seek to address water quality issues in priority watersheds, such as erosion due to unstable streambanks, pollution from stormwater runoff, and degraded shorelines caused by development. Approximately $2 million is available. Learn more. Due: January 31, 2024

DOI National Conservation Lands-Management Studies Support Program: To manage these special areas to maintain and enhance their conservation values with the goal to conserve, protect, and restore these important landscapes and their outstanding cultural, ecological, and scientific values. Due: February 1, 2024

Department of Conservation’s Climate Smart Land Management Grant Program: Capacity funding to implement projects or develop plans that increase climate action on California’s natural and working lands. Projects must be consistent with the State’s Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart and Pathways to 30×30 strategies. Due: February 19, 2024, or March 18, 2024, for tribal applicants.

DOE Environmental System Science: To advance an integrated, robust, and scale-aware predictive understanding of terrestrial systems and their interdependent microbial, biogeochemical, ecological, hydrological, and physical processes. Due: February 29, 2024

USDA WaterSMART Cooperative Watershed Management Program Phase I: to develop a watershed group, complete watershed restoration planning activities, and design watershed management projects. Due September 3, 2024.

The Headwater Economics Community Planning and Assistance for Wildfires (CPAW) Program: provides interdisciplinary teams that collaborate with communities to develop site-specific planning recommendations regarding wildfire risks. Rolling applications.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Landowner Support: Supporting Underserved and Small-Acreage Forest Landowner Participation in Emerging Private Markets Grant Program – Track B: supports the participation of underserved and/or small-acreage landowners in emerging private markets for climate mitigation or forest resilience. Track B is for projects with budgets up to $2 million. Rolling applications.

The Hind Foundation Standard Grants Program: supports community-based projects proposed by nonprofit organizations in several areas, including plant and wildlife protection, historic landmark restoration, and ecosystem conservation. Rolling applications.

30×30 Funding Resources: link to an excel Google Document for 30×30 related funding opportunities.