The United States Forest Service is in jeopardy.

On March 30th, the Trump administration announced that it would be completely restructuring the agency, with plans to move the agency’s headquarters from Washington, D.C. to Salt Lake City, transition from a regional to state leadership model, and shut down over 50 place-based research facilities in favor of a centralized research center in Fort Collins.

What they’re proposing isn’t just a simple reorganization. It’s a massive upheaval tantamount to dismantlement—a completely misguided move that puts 193 million acres of our public forests in jeopardy, threatens one of our most vital carbon sinks, and risks irreversible damage to the breathtaking sights so many of us treasure.

Here’s why these changes matter.

Currently, the Forest Service takes a multi-pronged approach to public forest management. Staffers at headquarters develop a national strategy, while regional coordinators work with local land managers and partners to effectively steward the forests in their areas. Dispersed research facilities support these efforts by conducting in-depth, sometimes decades-long studies, providing critical insights on localized climate impacts and ensuring stewardship is rooted in the best available science.

Thanks to this multifaceted approach, we’ve been able to build a national forest system that serves the American people. But by relocating headquarters, shifting to a state leadership model, and centralizing research, we risk losing it all—our national strategy, science, place-based decision-making, and our ability to keep state and industry interests largely out of Forest Service operations.

And that’s not the only thing at risk.

When the first Trump administration relocated the Bureau of Land Management’s headquarters, it cost the agency some of its most experienced staffers and critical institutional knowledge. Now, with nearly 300 employees from headquarters forced to move to Salt Lake City, and many more expected to relocate from shuttered regional offices and research facilities, we’re all but guaranteed to see the pattern repeat.

To quote The Wilderness Society, this reorganization is a “solution in search of a problem.” It will reduce the Forest Service to a shell of its current capabilities, give states and private industry a stronger say in public forest management, and jeopardize the coordination, vision, and alignment needed to effectively manage and preserve our national forests.

Join us in taking a stand against this nonsensical reorganization!