Forest protection must be part of U.S. climate strategy

Mature and old-growth trees and forests are some of our most powerful climate solutions. Unfortunately, they are still being chopped down on America’s public lands when they should be set aside for carbon storage, wildlife habitat, and clean water.

Please join us in calling on the Biden administration to incorporate permanent protections for mature and old-growth trees and forests on public lands as part of our nation’s strategy to confront the climate crisis.

Photo Credit: Bob Wick

Recipients

The President Joseph 'Joe' R. Biden
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack

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Dear Decision Makers,

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Please ensure that permanent protections for mature and old-growth forests on federal public lands are a central component of our nation's strategy to address the joint climate and extinction crises. Older forests are still being logged at an alarming rate, which directly undermines the Biden administration's efforts to address climate change and protect at least 30 percent of America's lands and waters by 2030.

Taking administrative action to conserve older forests and big trees on America's federal lands will help mitigate the current and future impacts of climate change, protect fish and wildlife habitat to counter the biodiversity crisis, and secure a wide range of benefits for both people and the environment.

Unfortunately, the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have not produced credible proposals for combating climate change nationwide, or for conserving carbon-rich older forests and trees on the public lands they manage. The administration should correct that error by protecting older forests and trees on public lands from logging.

In 2021, the Biden administration announced that it would halt large-scale old-growth logging in the Tongass National Forest, one of the largest intact temperate rainforests in the world. While a critical step, additional action is urgently needed to expand older forest and tree protections on federal public lands across the United States.

I strongly urge you to take administrative action to protect older forests and trees on federal public lands from logging, and to ensure federal agencies work to recover these carbon-rich landscapes for their climate, biodiversity, and watershed benefits to the United States.

Sincerely,
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[Your Address]
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[Your Email]