Tracking forest policy rollbacks in a sentinel forest

This project will track the ways in which recent federal policy changes are reshaping the management of public lands — especially around logging, road construction, and environmental oversight. By building a prototype system that flags new forest projects as they are proposed, the research will help identify where key safeguards like public input and scientific review are being bypassed or weakened. At the same time, the project will create detailed ecological “before and after” snapshots to assess how these new policies affect forest health on the ground. By making both agency actions and ecological outcomes visible, these tools will support public oversight and enable long-term accountability.

Image: Cimarron Ridge, Uncompahgre National Forest, Gunnison county, Colorado (credit: Donyanedomam / iStock)