WASHINGTON, D.C.—On Dec. 20, 2023, a Notice of Intent was published in the Federal Register to prepare an environmental impact statement to amend all 128 forest and grassland management plans. The Chief also followed up in January with a message in Inside the Forest Service.

The public comment period for the Notice of Intent closes Feb. 2, 2024. The proposed amendment was informed by the Request for Information on Mature and Old Growth published in the federal register in July of 2022, and findings from the initial inventory and threat analysis for mature and old-growth forests.

The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management have completed an initial inventory and threat analysis for mature and old-growth forests and are drafting a report for publication in the coming months. In the interim, an Introductory Threat Assessment report was produced to provide a brief overview of findings.

Details related to this introductory report are also outlined in the mature and old growth section of the Forest Service’s online Climate Risk Viewer tool, which illustrates a variety of map layers and climate assessment resources.

Information on the mature and old-growth forests will continue to be updated.