Friday, July 7, 2023
Executive Summary:
- U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) establishes Federal Advisory Committee on landscape management.
- Committee to focus on climate-informed amendment of Northwest Forest Plan.
- Goals include sustainable management, climate adaptation, resilience to disturbances, community needs.
- Committee incorporates traditional ecological knowledge, latest science, climate resilience in recommendations.
- Committee aligns with President’s Executive Order 14072 and Secretary Vilsack’s Memorandum on Climate Resilience.
- Committee represents diverse groups including Tribes, local communities, environmental groups, industry, academia.
Unedited Press Release Text:
USDA Forest Service Forms Northwest Forest Plan Federal Advisory Committee
WASHINGTON, July 7, 2023 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has established and appointed members to a new Federal Advisory Committee to provide advice and recommendations on modernizing landscape management across national forests within the Northwest Forest Plan area in Washington, Oregon and Northern California.
The committee will make recommendations focused on a climate-informed amendment of the Northwest Forest Plan to update management direction so that national forests are managed sustainably, adapted to climate change, and resilient to wildfire, insects, disease, and other disturbances, while meeting the needs of local communities.
“Establishing this committee is another way for us to embrace climate-smart science, ensure we hear from diverse voices and get a range of perspectives on how to best confront the wildfire crisis and climate change,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “This committee will also be asked to help reshape ways we engage with communities and deepen our connections with tribes as we go through the Northwest Forest Plan amendment process.”
The committee’s recommendations will incorporate traditional ecological knowledge, the latest science, and climate resilience into its recommendations for the 17 national forests in the Northwest Forest Plan area. The committee will also advise how these planning efforts can complement the Wildfire Crisis Strategy and help the Forest Service take more proactive measures to reduce wildfire risk, restore fire resilience, and enable long-term ecological integrity for people, communities and natural resources.
Establishing this committee is in line with President Biden’s Executive Order 14072 and Secretary’s Vilsack’s Memorandum on Climate Resilience. The national forests in the Northwest Forest Plan area have significant ecologic values, including for water, wildlife, and carbon, and contain important old and mature forests. They are embedded in the people and communities of the area and are important for the social and economic sustainability of those communities. These lands are also culturally significant and the ancestral homelands for tribal nations. According to a recent inventory conducted by federal researchers as required by the Executive Order, the 17 national forests represented in the Northwest Forest Plan contain one quarter of the remaining old-growth forest on national forests and grasslands in the lower 48 states.
The committee represents a diverse group from Tribes, local communities, environmental groups, industry, and academia across Northern California, Oregon and Washington.
Members appointed to the committee are:
| Name | Title | Location | Committee Category |
| Jerry Franklin, PhD | Professor Emeritus, School of Environmental and Forest Science, University of Washington | Oregon | Science |
| James Johnston, PhD | Assistant Professor (Senior Research), College of Forestry, Oregon State University | Oregon | Science |
| Meg Krawchuk, PhD | Associate Professor of Landscape Fire, Ecology, and Conservation Science, College of Forestry, Oregon State University | Oregon | Science |
| Angela Sondenaa, PhD | Certified Senior Ecologist, Nez Perce Tribe | Idaho | Science |
| Elaine Harvey, PhD | Environmental Coordinator, Yakima Nation | Washington | Science |
| Ryan Haugo, PhD | Director of Conservation Science, The Nature Conservancy | Oregon | Science |
| Heidi Huber-Stearns, PhD | Associate Research Professor and Director, Ecosystem Workforce Program, Institute for a Sustainable Environment, University of Oregon | Oregon | Science |
| Daniel Reid Sarna-Wojcicki, PhD | Postdoctoral Researcher, UC Berkeley | California | Science |
| Robert “Bobby” Brunoe | Secretary Treasurer/CEO, Confederate Tribes of Warm Springs | Oregon | Science |
| Jarred Patton | Deputy Director, California Conservation Corps | California | Organization |
| Lindsay Warness | Western Regional Manager, Forest Resource Association | Oregon | Organization |
| Travis Joseph | President/CEO, American Forest Resource Council | Oregon | Organization |
| Elizabeth Robblee | Conservation and Advocacy Director, The Mountaineers | Washington | Organization |
| Jose Linares | District Manager (Retired), Bureau of Land Management, Northwest Oregon District and Board Member, Straub Outdoors | Oregon | Organization |
| Susan Jane Brown, JD | Principal, Silvix Resources | Oregon | Organization |
| Mike Anderson | Senior Policy Analyst, The Wilderness Society | Washington | Organization |
| Nicholas Goulette | Executive Director, Watershed Research and Training Center | California | Organization |
| Ryan Reed | Co-founder and Executive Director, Fire Generation Collaborative and Wildland Firefighter | California | Public |
| Karen Hans | Good Neighbor Authority Program Coordinator, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife | Oregon | Government |
| Lauren Osiadacz | Kittitas County Commissioner | Washington | Government |
| Ann House, JD | Staff Attorney, Snoqualmie Indian Tribe Environmental and Natural Resources Department | Washington | Government |
The Forest Service will be working with committee members to plan and conduct its first meeting later this year.
The Northwest Forest Plan was first implemented in 1994 and is a comprehensive plan for administering parts of federally managed lands in Oregon, Washington and California. The plan was designed to protect old-growth forests and critical habitat for the northern spotted owl, while also providing for forest products, water quality, recreation and other uses.
For more information on the Northwest Forest Plan visit: Northwest Forest Plan
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, ensuring access to healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate-smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean-energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
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