The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has announced a public workshop to be held May 8th and 9th, in Reno, to present information and gather feedback from the public and stakeholders on the management of pinyon and juniper woodlands on public lands across the West.
The BLM and Forest Service are seeking information on the array of existing ecosystem science and knowledge, management trends, social and cultural values, existing and potential threats, and climate resilience of pinyon and juniper woodlands, particularly in mature and old-growth forests.
This effort is part of the agencies’ efforts to implement Executive Order 14072, Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, Communities, and Local Economies, signed April 22, 2022. The Executive Order sets forth the administration’s policy to conserve America’s mature and old-growth forests on federal lands and directs the BLM and Forest Service to define and inventory those forests, analyze threats to them, and develop policies to institutionalize climate-smart management and conservation strategies with robust opportunity for public comment.
The BLM and Forest Service completed the initial inventory of mature and old-growth forests in April 2023. The initial inventory identified 24 million acres of mature and old-growth pinyon and juniper woodlands on federal lands, making the pinyon-juniper group the most abundant old-growth forest type on public lands managed by the agencies.
The BLM manages pinyon and juniper woodlands for forest health, wildlife habitat, recreation, grazing and other multiple uses.
Outdoor recreation activities such as hunting, mountain biking and camping are popular in pinyon and juniper woodlands. Other common uses in pinyon and juniper woodlands include firewood collection, pinyon nut harvesting and Christmas tree harvesting.
The BLM actively manages pinyon and juniper to improve rangeland conditions and habitat for sagebrush dependent species such as the greater sage-grouse.
The public workshop will be held at the Nugget Casino Resort, 1100 Nugget Avenue, Sparks, NV 89431. The workshop will include scientific and informational presentations, while providing opportunities for public engagement and discussion.
The BLM will accept comments during a public comment period from March 28th, 2024, through May 20th, 2024. Please see the project website for specific information the BLM is requesting through this comment period.
Comments may be emailed to [email protected] or delivered to:
Debra Paul, Bureau of Land Management, Coeur d’Alene District Office, 3232 W. Nursery Road, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83815
