Dry January reduced snowpack
And the news stream has dried up, too
Volume 3, Number 45 - Monday, Feb. 3, 2025
Published every Monday and Thursday
Perspective
AS YOU CAN READ in the weather update section below, a dry January reduced the Sierra Nevada snowpack.
That’s not good news, nor do I have any good news this morning as a cloud of uncertainty hangs over giant sequoia country.
I say that because my efforts to connect with Sequoia National Forest, the Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition and Save The Redwoods League about the impact of the Trump Administration’s actions on giant sequoias have not been completely successful.
To be fair, these are difficult times for anyone associated with the federal government, and most giant sequoia land is under federal jurisdiction.
I did hear back from these organizations, but they haven’t responded to my questions yet.
Note: Please see the Extra edition of the newsletter published shortly after this one, HERE, for Forest Service response.
As I reported last Thursday (HERE) matters related to giant sequoia land management were thrust into turmoil by actions of the new presidential administration, specifically because of the federal hiring freeze, and the effort to reduce federal employees with fire season right around the corner.
I’m hoping I will have something more to report on Thursday.
In the meantime, efforts to confirm President Donald Trump’s cabinet continue in Washington, D.C. The new Interior Secretary, Doug Burgum, has been confirmed. Interior, as you probably know, is over the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management and National Park Service, among other agencies.
The president’s nominee for Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins, is continuing through the confirmation process. The USDA is over the Forest Service, and during Rollin’s opening remarks on Jan. 23, she said:
Before we begin, I want to take a moment to relay my prayers to those in California facing devastating loss from the ongoing wildfires. I cannot fathom what those families and first responders are going through. Please know, if confirmed, I will continue to deploy the tools and resources of the Forest Service to help in any way appropriate.
Snarky comment (I can’t help myself): The devil is in the details, can anyone agree on what “appropriate” means.
Déjà vu, all over again?
All things environmental are also under scrutiny by the new administration.
You may recall that in his first term, President Trump “purged nearly all mention of climate change programs from the White House and State Department websites and ordered a freeze on federal grant spending at the Environmental Protection Agency and other government agencies,” as The New York Times reported HERE (gift link) in January 2017.
Then, President Joe Biden reversed course on environmental matters when he took office (as reported HERE by The Harvard Gazette).
Four years later, Trump is in charge again.
We’re barely two weeks into his new term, and it’s no longer possible to access a SOPA on Forest Service websites. The SOPA (Schedule of Proposed Actions) is a document that allows the public to follow projects through environmental review.
Last week, as reported HERE by Politico, the USDA was ordered to “delete landing pages discussing climate change.”
No news releases can be accessed on the Forest Service’s national website this morning. The only news release on the Department of Interior’s website since the inauguration is one reflecting name changes for the Gulf of Mexico (now Gulf of America) and Denali (again named Mt. McKinley) HERE.
With all of this, I try to remind myself, “Patience, Grasshopper.”
I noted last Thursday that some people are cheering the new administration, while others are not. After all, Trump did win the presidency.
Still, my concern remains with the federal government’s ability to take care of the 47% of California land it controls — particularly in areas of the Sierra Nevada where giant sequoias grow.
Of all the issues we’re facing as a country now, this might not be on everyone’s list of concerns.
But we already know these lands are compromised and are now in drought again.
So I will keep asking questions, and eventually, we’ll have answers. Hopefully, not in the form of raging wildfires that kill more monarch trees.
In January 2021, the Trump White House published a 15-page document detailing “The Trump Administration’s Environmental Accomplishments.” You can read it HERE, and there are many references to his former administration’s actions related to forestlands.
The first page included this quote:
“Every day of my presidency, we will fight for a cleaner environment and a better quality of life for every one of our great citizens.” – President Donald J. Trump
Stay tuned!
Wildfire, water & weather update
The San Francisco Chronicle reported (gift link HERE) this morning that “the Sierra Nevada is bracing for what could be its snowiest week so far this winter,” with a long-duration atmospheric river on the way. However, the Chronicle’s rainfall map showed nothing going on in the Sierra this morning, and whether this week’s storms will bring snow to the Southern Sierra Nevada is uncertain.
The California Department of Water Resources on Jan. 31 reported (HERE) that extremely dry conditions in January put a dent in the early season snowpack, with big regional differences remaining. As noted:
On Jan. 1, the statewide snowpack was 108% of average after a series of large storms in November and December boosted snow totals in the Northern Sierra, but significant regional differences kept the Central Sierra just below average and the Southern Sierra well below average. An excessively dry January has pushed the Northern Sierra back to near average, the Central Sierra to 58% of average, and has led the Southern Sierra Nevada to fall to under 50% of average.
All of that is probably why the California Drought Map (HERE) has updated to show the Sierra Nevada from Mariposa County south in “moderate drought.” That’s not good.
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