H.R. 2709: Save Our Sequoias Act

H.R. 2709, the Save Our Sequoias Act, sets up a special framework for giant sequoia lands across Sequoia, Sierra, and Tahoe National Forests, Giant Sequoia National Monument, the Case Mountain area, and Kings Canyon, Sequoia, and Yosemite National Parks. It runs for 7 years and is aimed at speeding up fuel reduction, post-fire repair, replanting, and insect monitoring.

The bill puts the agencies on a clock. A shared management agreement between the Interior and Agriculture departments, California, and the Tule River Indian Tribe has to move within 90 days. A grove-by-grove health assessment is due in 6 months, a replanting strategy in 6 months, and an insect-monitoring strategy within a year. Agencies also have to thin hazardous fuels in at least 3 groves each year, or file a written explanation and a plan to catch up.

The biggest change is how the work gets approved. During the 7-year emergency, certain protection, replanting, and rehabilitation projects can skip the full environmental review that normally applies, as long as they stay under 2,000 acres inside a grove and 3,000 acres on at-risk land next door.

The bill also creates a cross-agency coalition that has to hold at least one public meeting a year, allows 10-person strike teams to carry out the work, and reserves at least 15% of the new fund for Tribal management and conservation. The core question senators face: does moving faster actually save vulnerable groves, or does trimming the review process cut too much oversight?