Conifer Encroachment Education Project

Why Is Conifer Encroachment in Sagebrush a Problem?

FORAGE & BROWSE Healthy sagebrush grasslands provide critical food for grazing livestock and wildlife. Conifer encroachment reduces the productivity of perennial grasses and eliminates shrubs essential to sustaining grazing animals like mule deer and pronghorn. CARBON & NUTRIENT CYCLING Sagebrush grasslands are like upside-down forests, storing most of their carbon and nutrients deep in the soil.

What Can We Do About Conifer Encroachment?

Science shows removing trees early in the encroachment process is one of the few actions proven to be effective at protecting and improving sagebrush ecosystems. The best way to conserve sagebrush is to "defend the core" by working together to prevent the spread of trees in and around core sagebrush areas. Core sagebrush areas represent the best of the best, our last remaining intact sagebrush landscapes.

How Can We Balance Sagebrush and Woodlands?

Careful planning is needed to ensure conifer removal is done in a holistic manner that considers a broader suite of other ecological and societal values. Targeted conifer removal and healthy woodlands are not incompatible resource management goals but can, and should, be intentionally balanced across the landscape.