Category Archives: California

Fire Restrictions Lifted At Mojave National Preserve And Castle Mountains National Monument

After a period of heightened precautions, both units are reverting to their standard fire regulations because fire danger has decreased. For people heading into the preserve or monument, that means some activities tied to campfires are allowed again — but with clear, non-negotiable limits intended to keep public lands safe.
 
What’s Changed (And What Hasn’t)
The short version: fires are allowed again, but only in preexisting fire rings and approved containers. Officials are explicitly forbidding new fire rings. Collecting firewood or kindling inside the preserve remains prohibited — bring your own wood. When you leave camp, your fire must be cold to the touch. Do not leave any fire unattended.
 
Permitted fuel sources are limited. You may use charcoal briquettes or natural firewood — that is, fuels designed and commonly used for warmth or cooking. Lighting or maintaining fires with other materials is forbidden. That list includes, but is not limited to: flammable liquids, garbage, fireworks, plastics, aerosol canisters, batteries, and other manufactured or synthetic materials.

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Fireworks Are Banned on National Forest Land – Every Forest, Every Day

More than 90 percent of wildfires are human-caused, and the Fourth of July is the single most dangerous day of the year for starting one.
 
The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit is welcoming visitors for Independence Day, but fireworks and pyrotechnics stay prohibited on public lands – every forest, every campsite, every day, not just during fire season. California’s 18 national forests see a record number of visitors on the Fourth, and Pacific Southwest Region Director Jim Bacon put it plainly: leave the fireworks to the cities and local groups putting on official displays.

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Forest Service Opens Public Comment on National Old Growth Protections

Old growth forests took centuries to become what they are. The rules for protecting them are getting rewritten over the next 90 days, and the public gets a say.
 
The USDA Forest Service published a draft environmental impact statement for a proposed national old-growth forest plan amendment, advancing its commitment to conserve old growth across the National Forest System. The draft calls for consistent stewardship standards nationwide, with an emphasis on proactive management to reduce wildfire risk and adapt to climate-driven threats – drawing on both current science and Indigenous Knowledge.

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Burke Creek Gets Its Natural Course Back

Forest Service restoration work begins on Burke Creek and Rabe Meadow near South Lake Tahoe

 
The Forest Service has started restoration work on Burke Creek and Rabe Meadow near South Lake Tahoe. The Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, working with the Nevada Tahoe Conservation District, finalized the decision back in April – the project restores the creek’s natural function and improves water quality, meadow vegetation, and habitat for the wildlife that depends on it.

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Keeping Tahoe Blue Starts With the People Standing In It

Beach managers and volunteers gear up for another summer of protecting the lake

The League to Save Lake Tahoe is teaming up with the Forest Service’s Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, local nonprofits, and beach operators again this summer to keep the lake’s water clear for the crowds headed up for the season.
 

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