On April 3, 2025, Secretary Brooke Rollins released Memorandum 1078-006, “Increasing Timber Production and Designating an Emergency Situation on National Forest System Lands” declaring an Emergency Situation Determination (ESD) encompassing 66,940,000 acres of National Forest Lands as very high or high wildfire risk. https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/sm-1078-006.pdf
This determination authorizes the Forest Service to carry out emergency actions to reduce threats to public health and safety, critical infrastructure, and/or mitigation of threats to natural resources. Actions authorized include the salvage of dead or dying trees; harvest of trees damaged by wind or ice; commercial and noncommercial sanitation harvest of trees to control insects or disease, reforestation or replanting of fire impacted areas through planting, control of competing vegetation, or other activities that enhance natural regeneration and restore forest species; removal of hazardous trees in close proximity to roads and trails; removal of hazardous fuels; restoration of water sources or infrastructure; reconstruction of existing utility lines; and replacement of underground cables. The emergency authority streamlines the permitting of these actions, which has raised concerns about the impact of these projects on the environment and the public’s enjoyment of federal lands.