Redwoods need more legislation to protect and fund the beautiful and ancient state parks

According to the Save the Redwoods League – a 90 year proponent and protector organization for Northern California’s ancient redwood forests, the parks are still in dire need of a dedicated and stable funding source.

In 1850, there were nearly 2 million acres of ancient coast redwood forests in California. Today, less than 5 percent remains and faces threats from logging, development and global climate change.

Since its meager beginnings in 1918, the League has completed the purchase of more than 181,000 acres of land.

According to Ruskin Hartley, executive director of Save the Redwoods League, the group is urging Californians as well as citizens across the nation to press the Legislature and Governor Schwarzenegger to find a solution to save state parks. Today, both houses of the Legislature approved a bill that spares the majority of state parks from closure, but leaves an $8 million budget gap for the Department of Parks ‘s38; Recreation. This funding cut means that about 30 to 50 California state parks may have to close.

The budget deal indicates that Governor Schwarzenegger and the Legislature recognized that closing 80 percent of parks would be devastating to Californians and to the state’s economy.

The outcome for state parks is much more favorable than the shocking cuts proposed just 8 weeks ago, yet Californians remain in jeopardy of losing access to parks and the state’ss iconic redwood forests. In addition to park closures, park employees are already furloughed three Fridays out of the month, hours and days of operations will need to be shortened, and visiting fees will most likely increase.

At this point, no one knows which state parks may have to close. With only 5 percent of the world’ss ancient redwoods left standing, it will be vital to ensure that Californians and visitors to our state can enjoy these majestic forests. We cannot afford to lose the opportunity to visit redwood state parks, which create irreplaceable opportunities for people of all ages to experience forests that are found nowhere else on the planet.

The state parks funding in the 2009-10 Fiscal Year State Budget is merely a one-year compromise. Without a stable, dedicated funding source for state parks, Californians will likely face this same threat to park access and to the state park legacy next year.

Save the Redwoods League stands ready to work with all Californians and legislators to develop creative solutions to ensure that state parks are fully funded. The group is encouraging park visitors and supporters to visit redwood parks this summer and stay informed by visiting http://savetheredwoods.org/voice.