Members will also receive updates on North Feather River Headwaters Investment and Tribal Capacity Building pilots
The Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC), a California state agency focused on improving the environmental, economic, and social well-being of the Sierra-Cascade region, will host its quarterly meeting and field tour in Chico, Ca., March 4 and 5. At its March 5 Board meeting, A total of just under $9 million in wildfire and forest resilience grants to 10 projects in the Sierra-Cascade will be considered for award in an effort to help protect natural landscapes and communities from major disturbances, such as wildfire.
On Wednesday, March 4, SNC staff and Board members will host a field tour of wildfire and forest resilience project areas near the town of Chico in Butte County. Members of the public are invited to attend the field tour, but must provide their own food, drink, and transportation. The field tour will be from 12:30 – 4:30 p.m. and start at the Courtyard by Marriott located on 2481 Carmichael Drive.
View detailed meeting information, including the full agenda for the March 5 Board meeting, which begins at 9 a.m. at Manzanita Place located at 1705 Manzanita Avenue, on SNC’s website. The meeting is open to the public, and the public is encouraged to review potential meeting information and submit any comments by 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. To submit public comment related to this meeting, email public-comments@sierranevada.ca.gov
Wildfire and forest resilience grants from Climate Bond
At the meeting, Board members may approve $8,649,243 in 10 Wildfire and Forest Resilience Directed Grants that will create more resilient forested landscapes and watersheds, while also helping to reduce wildfire risk to people and communities. The grants are funded by the Climate Bond, which voters passed in November of 2024 and allocates a total of $1.5 billion for wildfire- and forest-resilience programs across the state.
Of this amount, the Climate Bond includes $33.5 million to SNC for wildfire-resilience projects. Thanks to early action by Governor Newsom and the legislature, $30.9 million of SNC’s wildfire resilience funds were made available in April 2025. The SNC’s Governing Board approved making $10 million available in June 2024 and, at the December 2025 Board meeting, added an additional $5 million to make a total of $15 million available for SNC’s current Wildfire and Forest Resilience Directed Grant Program.
Projects spread across Sierra-Cascade region
The proposed grants fund a variety of projects that will improve forest resilience and protect Sierra-Cascade communities from wildfires through treatments that reduce overly dense fuels, utilize prescribed fire, improve ingress/egress routes, and construct strategic fuelbreaks. If approved by the Board, the SNC-funded projects will take place in nine different Sierra-Cascade counties, including Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Fresno, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Tehama, and Tuolumne.
North Feather River Headwaters Investment, Tribal Capacity Updates
At the meeting, the Board will also get informational updates on both the North Feather River Headwaters Investment and Tribal Capacity Building Pilot Program. The SNC, California Department of Water Resources, and Blue Forest Conservation launched a partnership to fund the protection and restoration of the Upper Feather River Watershed, a critical water source for the State Water Project. Staff will discuss the progress made since the partnership was formed in the summer of 2025.
Members will also be presented highlights from the Regional Forest and Fire Capacity Program’s Tribal Capacity Building Pilot Program, which was launched under a block grant from the Department of Conservation in the spring of 2024. The program was designed in response to needs tribes have expressed to the SNC and includes group trainings and workshops, peer learning, one-on-one support, and technical assistance that help tribes fund, plan, and eventually implement projects.