Protecting Forests for the Other California Gold: Lumber

The lumber industry has a long history in California. Sutter’s Mill, where the discovery that started the Gold Rush was made, wasn’t a flour mill or sugar mill; it was a sawmill.  Lumber’s Unfortunate Legacy Vast forests helped build and heat homes for the miners, the merchants, and the rest that followed, helping to turn…

CGS Geologists Assess Multiple Fire Burn Areas for Landslide Potential: 10-1-20 Update

Wildfires are a disaster that can spawn yet another disaster. Fire eliminates ground covering on slopes, exposing the soil underneath and making it more susceptible to debris flows. Such events can be catastrophic, as was the case in Montecito (Santa Barbara County) in 2018. David Longstreth, senior engineering geologist in California Geological Survey’s (CGS) Forest and Watershed Geology program, is one…