California state officials expressed concerns that budget cuts and staff reductions by the federal government threaten environmental progress and climate change initiatives. They highlighted collaboration with federal agencies, noting that 48% of the state's land is federally managed. The U.S. Forest Service's staffing cuts, particularly in vital support roles, could compromise both firefighting efforts and preventative measures. Officials warned that essential knowledge and skills lost during this period of federal cutbacks will have detrimental effects on overall resource management and fire response in California.
We want federal agencies to succeed, and in fact we need them to succeed," said Wade Crowfoot, California's natural resources secretary, noting that 48% of the state's land is owned and managed by the federal government.
All that knowledge is going to be lost that is so critical when we're both fighting fires and trying to prevent fires, so the whole system is going to suffer."
State agencies such as the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force and the Energy Commission are among those struggling to keep up with the rapid pace of federal cutbacks.
The Trump administration has said its changes are geared toward reducing federal waste, saving taxpayers money and increasing American energy independence.
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