Auburn,CA…The Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC) is pleased to announce the release of our Fiscal Year (FY) 2015-16 Annual Report. This report highlights a number of the activities undertaken by the SNC over the last year to restore the forests and watersheds of the Sierra Nevada Region.

The Sierra Nevada Region is the state’s principal watershed and provides a variety of benefits that serve all Californians. However, many of these benefits are at risk. Wildfires are getting bigger and more intense. A changing climate with record-low snowpack is compromising the Region’s ability to filter and store water. Greenhouse gases are being released at a higher rate than previously expected due to drought, insect-related tree mortality, and high-severity fire.

There is broad consensus that science-based ecological restoration of Sierra Nevada watersheds must be dramatically increased in order to protect the range of benefits they provide. Since our inception, the SNC has been working to preserve, protect, and improve that range of Sierra benefits for all of California. To learn more about these projects and other efforts the SNC is undertaking, I encourage you to view our 2015-16 Annual Report and visit our website http://www.snc.ca.gov/about-us/annual-report.

More than 60 percent of California’s developed water supply originates in the Sierra Nevada, and over three-quarters of the water that flows into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta comes from the rivers of the Sierra Nevada Region. In addition, the Sierra Nevada provides critical carbon storage, world class recreational opportunities, wood products, and important wildlife habitat.