In the United States , national forest is a classification of protected and managed federal lands that are largely forest and woodland areas. They are owned collectively by the American people through the federal government and managed by the United States Forest Service , a division of the United States Department of Agriculture . The U.S. Forest Service is also a forestry research organization which provides financial assistance to state and local forestry industry. There are 154 national forests in the United States.
36-626: Los Padres National Forest is a United States national forest in southern and central California . Administered by the United States Forest Service , Los Padres includes most of the mountainous land along the California coast from Ventura to Monterey , extending inland. Elevations range from sea level to 8,847 feet (2,697 m). The forest is approximately 1,950,000 acres (7,890 km) in area, of which 1,762,400 acres (7,130 km) or about 88% are public lands;
72-576: A federal judge. Due to the fire risk, there are seasonal restrictions on building fires. Some portions of the forest are closed entirely to public entry during the peak fire season, which usually extends from around June 1 to mid-November. A National Forest Adventure Pass is required for parking in most locations of the Los Padres National Forest, as well as other National Forests in Southern California . The pass
108-762: A floor vote in the Senate. Lagomarsino worked closely with both of California's senators at the time, Democratic Senator Alan Cranston and Republican Senator John F. Seymour , in developing the final bill that would be eventually signed into law. The bill introduced to and eventually passed by both houses of the 102nd U.S. Congress changed from the previous version by also establishing the Chumash and Silver Peak Wilderness Areas, containing no provisions allowing for new directional oil drilling leases under wilderness, and modified language regarding water rights and management of wilderness areas. President George H.W. Bush signed
144-508: A map of old growth redwoods in and around Big Sur as a result of his transect of the entire redwood range. The U.S. Forest Service decided in May 2020 to thin 755 acres (306 ha) of land to reduce wildfire risk most of which is within the national forest. The decision memo states the project aims to “to improve forest health by reducing mortality risk, provide safe and effective locations from which to perform fire suppression operations, to slow
180-403: A problem for a long time in the forest. The practice continues under legalization as the crops are produced for the unregulated market without testing for the illegal pesticides they may be contaminated with . These operations often use pesticides and leave piles of trash such as drip irrigation tubing. United States national forest The Land Revision Act of 1891 , enacted during
216-832: A small extension into Los Angeles County in the Pyramid Lake area, between Castaic and Gorman . The Santa Ynez Mountains , which are within the Los Padres, rise above the Gaviota Coast , a series of alluvial plains along the last undeveloped stretch of the Southern California coastline. Other mountain ranges within the Los Padres include the Santa Lucia Mountains , La Panza Range , Caliente Range (a small part), Sierra Madre Mountains , San Rafael Mountains , Topatopa Mountains , and
252-1154: A tiny section of the Sierra Pelona Mountains ; the highest parts of the forest are not within named mountain ranges, but are adjacent to the western San Emigdio Mountains and include Mount Pinos , Cerro Noroeste , and Reyes Peak . The forest is also adjacent to the Angeles National Forest , which is in Los Angeles County in Southern California and is nearby Carrizo Plain National Monument in eastern San Luis Obispo County. Forest headquarters are located in Goleta, California . There are local ranger district offices in Frazier Park , King City , Ojai , Santa Barbara, and Santa Maria . Many rivers in Southern and Central California have their points of origin within
288-628: Is a Federal law that established five new designated Wilderness Areas and three new designated Wild and Scenic Rivers in the Los Padres National Forest and Angeles National Forest in California . The law was sponsored by California Republican and Ventura County native Robert J. Lagomarsino while he represented California's 19th District in the United States House of Representatives . The legislation
324-657: Is not required in the Monterey Ranger District including Ventana Wilderness and Silver Peak Wilderness . Restrictions were put in place at times during the COVID-19 pandemic due to crowded conditions in which people were unable to social distance and also the resulting litter and human waste that was left behind. Los Padres means "the Fathers ", referring to the Catholic missionary priests of
360-495: The National Park Service , extraction of natural resources from national forests is permitted, and in many cases encouraged. Forest products are the resources removed and harvested from national forests. They may be for commercial or personal use such as “lumber, paper, and firewood as well as 'special forest products' such as medicinal herbs, fungi, edible fruits and nuts, and other natural products”. However,
396-465: The Spanish missions who proselytized in and around the area in the 18th and 19th centuries. Los Padres was named Santa Barbara National Forest until December 3, 1936, and was assembled from a number of smaller National Forests, including: After the consolidation of the forests, the name Santa Barbara Forest was resented by residents of the other counties for being too closely identified with just
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#1732794528218432-759: The Ventana Wilderness and other portions of the Los Padres Forest. In June and July, 2008, the Basin Complex Fire torched 162,818 acres (658.90 km) in the same region. The Thomas Fire was a massive wildfire that traversed the forest within Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. It was one of multiple wildfires that ignited in southern California in December 2017. The unusually strong and persistent Santa Ana winds were
468-503: The grasslands , shrublands , and forest understory are grazed by sheep , cattle, and more recently, rising numbers of elk and mule deer due to loss of predators . Many ski resorts and summer resorts operate on leased land in national forests. National forests include 14 national monuments where resource extraction is restricted. Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-301)
504-670: The 1970s was the Ventana Wilderness in the Santa Lucia Mountains. The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act of 1992 expanded existing wilderness by 84,400 acres (34,200 ha) and designated 316,050 acres (127,900 ha) of new wilderness that provides habitat for the condor. A total of 48% of the total area within the forest has a wilderness designation. Parts of the National Forest are designated as recreation areas. There are three recreation areas, Many threatened and endangered species live within
540-592: The Forest Service to identify, investigate, and protect cultural resources on lands it manages. The U.S. Forest Service also manages all of the United States national grasslands and nearly 50% of the United States national recreation areas . Land management of these areas focuses on conservation , timber harvesting , livestock grazing , watershed protection, wildlife , and recreation . Unlike national parks and other federal lands managed by
576-599: The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act into law in 1992, lauding the legislation for protecting habitat critical to the recovery of the nearly extinct California condor, increasing the amount of national forest lands in California protected under the Wilderness Act of 1964 by 10%, and permanently protecting nearly half of the Los Padres National Forest as wilderness. Five new wilderness areas totaling 316,050 acres were designated within
612-639: The Los Padres National Forest (although the Sespe Wilderness includes a small portion of the Angeles National Forest ): These wilderness areas span Kern, Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties as well as the Los Padres National Forest's Santa Lucia, Monterey, Mount Pinos, and Ojai Ranger Districts Two existing wilderness areas within the Los Padres National Forest were expanded by 84,400 acres: These wilderness areas span Monterey and Santa Barbara Counties and
648-555: The Los Padres National Forest, including the Carmel , Salinas , Cuyama , Sisquoc , Santa Ynez , Coyote Creek , Sespe , Ventura , and Piru . Several wilderness areas have been set aside within the Los Padres National Forest, including the San Rafael Wilderness , the first primitive area to be included in the U.S. wilderness system after the passage of the Wilderness Act in 1964. Another large wilderness created in
684-747: The Los Padres, including chaparral , the common ground cover of most coastal ranges in California below about 5,000 feet (1,500 m), and coniferous forests, which can be found in abundance in the Ventana Wilderness as well as the region around Mount Pinos in northern Ventura County. Researchers estimate the extent of old growth in the forest is 18,900 acres (76 km). It consists largely of Jeffrey pine ( Pinus jeffreyi ) forests, although old-growth coast redwood ( Sequoia Sempervirens ), coast Douglas-fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii ), and white fir ( Abies concolor ) are also found there. In 2008, scientist J. Michael Fay published
720-572: The Los Padrs National Forest's Santa Barbara, Santa Lucia, and Monterey Ranger Districts. The legislation amended the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 to establish 84 miles of three streams within the Los Padres National Forest as new Wild and Scenic Rivers: In designating the Sespe Wilderness, the Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act also recognized an existing 18-mile trail between Reyes Creek and Lion Campgrounds as
756-737: The United States One Trillion Trees Interagency Council" in order to further the Federal Government's participation in this effort and repeal the current $ 30 million annual funding cap for the Reforestation Trust Fund. The United States national forest comprises about 132 million acres. There are 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands containing 193 million acres (297,000 mi /769 000 km ) of land. These lands comprise 8.5 percent of
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#1732794528218792-615: The bill in 1989 as H.R. 1473 ( 101st U.S. Congress ), which was altered from the previous version to also designate the Garcia and San Emigdio Mesa Wilderness Areas while expanding the Ventana Wilderness . This version of the legislation would have also designated portions of Sespe Creek , Sisquoc River , and Big Sur River as Wild and Scenic Rivers. The bill passed the House of Representatives with amendments in October 1989, but never received
828-502: The effort. There have been multiple legislative acts to expand the scope of the national forest system, as well as shrinking it. In 2020, the Trump administration encouraged more forest products to be harvested in order to support a struggling economy. There was a plan to develop around 190 million acres of protected National Forests in order to increase logging, grazing, and energy resources. This would be facilitated through shrinking
864-634: The first-designated wilderness areas , and some of the largest, are on national forest lands. There are management decision conflicts between conservationists and environmentalists and natural resource extraction companies and lobbies (e.g. logging & mining) over the protection and/or use of national forest lands. These conflicts center on endangered species protection, logging of old-growth forests , intensive clear cut logging , undervalued stumpage fees, mining operations and mining claim laws, and logging/mining access roadbuilding within national forests. Additional conflicts arise from concerns that
900-584: The forest. Among them is the California condor ( Gymnogyps californianus ), for whom the United States Forest Service manages the Sespe Condor Sanctuary and the Sisquoc Condor Sanctuary. Also present is the California mountain kingsnake , a California species of special concern. The American peregrine falcon is also entirely dependent on the forest for its survival. The mountain lion and California mule deer may be
936-645: The largest factor in the spread of the fire. The region experienced an on-and-off Santa Ana wind event for a little over two weeks, which contributed to the Thomas Fire's persistent growths in size. At its height, the wildfire was powerful enough to generate its own weather, qualifying it as a firestorm . The Forest Service conducts prescribed burns when favorable weather conditions are present; temperatures must be below 80 degrees, winds lower than 15 miles per hour and relative humidity needs to be above 20 percent. Illegal farming of cannabis in secluded areas has been
972-509: The law provide habitat for the California condor , a species that was extant only in captivity as of 1987 when all 27 condors left in the world were being kept in California breeding facilities and for which the legislation was named. Six months before the bill was signed into law in 1992, two of the captive California condors were reintroduced into the Sespe Condor Sanctuary, a protected area that would go on to become part of
1008-613: The most common large mammals. Bighorn sheep inhabit the Sespe Creek region of the forest. American black bears browse on grasses, berries , and carrion. Coyotes thrive everywhere in this forest. Bobcats can occasionally be seen in the more remote mountainous areas of the forest. Other animals found in this forest are raccoons , bluebirds , barn owls , red-tailed hawks , cottontail rabbits , bald eagles , jack rabbits , California quail , California scrub jays , and great horned owls . Many vegetation types are represented in
1044-538: The new Sespe Wilderness in Ventura County, California. The Los Padres Condor Range and River Protection Act was first introduced to Congress as H.R. 4747 ( 100th U.S. Congress ) by Representative Robert J. Lagomarsino in 1988. This first version of the legislation sought only to establish the Sespe and Matilija Wilderness Areas in addition to expanding the San Rafael Wilderness . Lagomarsino then reintroduced
1080-509: The one county. Amidst public pressure, administrators therefore changed the name to Los Padres to be more representative of the regional history. Due to the very dry summers, forest fires in Los Padres National Forest are always a risk. In 1965, a truck driven by country singer Johnny Cash caught fire, and burned several hundred acres in Ventura County. In August 1977, the Marble Cone Fire burned 178,000 acres (720 km) within
1116-613: The presidency of Benjamin Harrison , allowed the president to set aside forest reserves on public lands. Harrison established 15 forest reserves containing more than 13 million acres of land. The bill was the result of concerted action by Los Angeles -area businessmen and property owners who were concerned by the harm being done to the watershed of the San Gabriel Mountains by ranchers and miners. Abbot Kinney and forester Theodore Lukens were key spokesmen for
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1152-808: The rest are privately owned inholdings . The forest is divided into two non-contiguous areas separated approximately 40 to 50 miles (64 to 80 km) from one another. The northern division lies within Monterey County and includes the Big Sur Coast and its scenic interior areas. This is a very popular area for hiking, with 323 miles (520 km) of hiking trails and 11 campgrounds (ranging from very rugged to suitable for recreational vehicles ). The larger, so called main section of Los Padres lies further south, within San Luis Obispo , Santa Barbara , Ventura and Kern Counties, with
1188-535: The rules and regulations required to get permits to conduct such business. In October 2020, the Trump administration proclaimed its goal of "strengthening markets for wood products and incentivizing innovative manufacturing techniques" and reported "The Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service sold 3.3 billion board feet of timber from national forests in fiscal year 2019 — the highest output since 1997". Furthermore, President Trump signed an executive order to "establish
1224-534: The spread of a wildland fire”. The Reyes Peak Forest Health and Fuels Reduction Project is roughly 30 miles (48 km) north of Ojai in the Reyes Peak area on Pine Mountain in Ventura County. Seven environmental groups, the city of Ojai and Ventura County filed three lawsuits in federal court in April 2022 to stop the brush clearance and logging operation. The suit was dismissed with prejudice on July 19, 2023 by
1260-644: The total land area of the United States, an area about the size of Texas . About 87 percent of national forest land lies in the Western United States , mostly in mountain ranges. Alaska has 12 percent of all national forest lands. Within the national forest system, there are 1,200 sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places and 23 are National Historic Landmarks . The National Historic Preservation Act requires
1296-412: Was cosponsored by Democratic and Republican representatives from districts representing the entirety of the Los Padres National Forest. Signed by President George H.W. Bush , the law designated 316,050 acres (127,900 ha) of new wilderness, expanded existing wilderness by 84,400 acres (34,200 ha), and designated 84 miles (135 km) of new Wild and Scenic Rivers. Most of the areas protected by
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