FOREST FLASH October 2022
In Pacific Forest Trust’s e-newsletter, Forest Flash, we send you the most recent PFT news and updates on forests, clean water, climate, and wildlife. Subscribe here.
Pacific Forest Trust is delighted to announce the appointment of new Board Member Chris Smith. With 20 years of experience in the technology sector, Chris has a passion for addressing climate change, protecting the environment and education. As a partner at PwC in Silicon Valley, Chris brings a strong business acumen as well as financial management and management consulting expertise. We are excited to work with Chris as we ramp up our efforts to stem the impacts of climate change through leveraging the power of forests as a natural climate solution. Please join us in welcoming Chris to PFT!
Chris lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, three children, and their dog, along with a few tortoises and chickens.
Pacific Forest Trust is delighted to announce the appointment of new Board Member Chris Smith. With 20 years of experience in the technology sector, Chris has a passion for addressing climate change, protecting the environment and education. As a partner at PwC in Silicon Valley, Chris brings a strong business acumen as well as financial management and management consulting expertise. We are excited to work with Chris as we ramp up our efforts to stem the impacts of climate change through leveraging the power of forests as a natural climate solution. Please join us in welcoming Chris to PFT!
Chris lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, three children, and their dog, along with a few tortoises and chickens.
Pacific Forest Trust is delighted to announce the appointment of new Board Member Chris Smith. With 20 years of experience in the technology sector, Chris has a passion for addressing climate change, protecting the environment and education. As a partner at PwC in Silicon Valley, Chris brings a strong business acumen as well as financial management and management consulting expertise. We are excited to work with Chris as we ramp up our efforts to stem the impacts of climate change through leveraging the power of forests as a natural climate solution. Please join us in welcoming Chris to PFT!
Chris lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, three children, and their dog, along with a few tortoises and chickens.
Henness Ridge Forest shortly after the 2018 fires
PFT’s Henness Ridge forest, roughly 1,000 acres adjacent to Yosemite National Park, was heavily impacted by the 2018 Ferguson Fire (read about it in our 2020 edition of Forest Life). Impacts ranged from moderate and potentially beneficial to severe in several areas. After analyzing the fire’s impacts, we identified a series of areas for reforestation to bring back the native forest. With help from state and federal funding, as well as One Tree Planted, we began work in 2019 reducing brush, removing hazard trees, and planting new seedlings to restore the native conifer forest.
Taking our cue from the natural makeup of tree species in the region, we planted 125,000 seedlings with a mix of ponderosa pine, sugar pine, Douglas fir, and then added a little giant sequoia to promote adaptation as this species is migrating under climate change. We are delighted to report that the plantings have had terrific success with at least 90% of the seedlings thriving two years after planting.
Last month, our staff in the field visited Henness Ridge to check on the progress of this new growth. They reported that the saplings were taking beautifully to their environment. Take a look at some of the photos our team shared from their visit and see the progress for yourself!
Ponderosa Pine
Sugar Pine
From a landscape blackened by severe fire, to small seedlings diligently planted by our team, to healthy young trees across the landscape and ready to rise to the sky – we are thrilled at the progress Henness Ridge has made in just a few short years. Donate to help us conserve and restore more vital forests just like this one!
For over 25 years, Pacific Forest Trust has been committed to conserving the globally important biodiversity of the Cascade-Siskiyou region working both within and around the Cascade Siskiyou National Monument (CSNM). A key approach we use is to work with landowners to conserve and link their property with existing public-owned lands. This creates protected corridors for wildlife and helps achieve the goals of the CSMN by expanding biodiversity conservation. We are excited to continue expanding those protected lands by partnering with Suzanne Willow and Lanita Witt, the owners of Willow-Witt Ranch in Jackson County, Oregon.
In 1984, Suzanne and Lanita purchased 440 acres of land in what is now the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument after falling in love with the locale’s natural beauty. Over the next few decades, they worked with Marty Main, a well-known ecological forester in the region, to actively manage the forest to improve its condition and restore natural wet meadows. Willow-Witt Ranch has an abundance of natural springs and streams, feeding multiple creeks and watersheds. Their tireless efforts to restore the property also included planting thousands of trees and promoting wildlife health and biodiversity, including the region’s 200+ bird species.
“We have stewarded this land for 38 years with deep love and reverence, and we’re excited to work with PFT to preserve its legacy.” – Suzanne Willow
Suzanne and Lanita’s labor of love has greatly enhanced this unique property’s value for conservation and education. We are honored to work with them to conserve Willow-Witt’s legacy. With your support, we will continue developing a network of connected, protected lands across public and private ownerships in this extraordinarily diverse and productive landscape.
Give with confidence. Charity Navigator awarded Pacific Forest Trust a perfect score in finance and accountability.