The Sierra Spotlight
The Sierra Spotlight, our digital newsroom, draws upon the regional knowledge and expertise of Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC) staff to highlight the most important restoration, scientific, and policy events in California’s Sierra Nevada-Cascade region.
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Paths to environmental and economic resilience highlighted at 2023 WIP Summit
At SNC’s Watershed Improvement Program (WIP) Summit, regional leaders discussed their work addressing critical issues in California’s Sierra-Cascade.
SNC approves $27 million in Watershed Improvement Program grants
SNC’s Governing Board approved over $27 million in grants to wildfire recovery and forest resilience, recreation, and land conservation projects.
2022 Letter from the Executive Officer
As climate change and wildfire risks pose ongoing threats, SNC’s accomplishments reinforce my belief in our collective ability to solve big problems.
2022 fire season: a break from fire & smoke, but not from risk
Even after a mild 2022 fire season, fire specialists and resource managers still see a concerning trend toward larger and more destructive fires.
How SNC advances California’s 30×30 conservation goal in the Sierra-Cascade
30×30 is an exciting statewide commitment to one of our core goals: strategic land conservation. Learn about three projects we’ve funded over the years.
Historic state budget investments protect communities, watersheds, and hospital
Less than 1.5 years after we received historic wildfire resilience funding from the 2021 state budget, two of the projects we funded are already finished.
Bootsole project using Dixie Fire to build resilience in Plumas National Forest
The Dixie Fire burned at mixed severity through part of the Bootsole project area, allowing organizers to use its impacts to continue with the project.
SNC awards $10 million in grants—projects include a return of tribal lands, a Sierra Valley trails plan
Our Governing Board funded 20 projects using the state’s historic $15 billion investment to protect Californians from the effects of climate change.
Fuel-reduction treatments protected Markleeville during Tamarack Fire
A network of fuel reduction projects, including the SNC-funded Markleevillage Fuels Reduction Project, protected Markleeville from the 2021 Tamarack Fire.
Signs of a new tree mortality event showing up in the Sierra Nevada
After a third consecutive dry year, dead and dying fir trees are increasing across high-elevation forests in northern and central California.