USFS terminates successful volunteer program

Sequoia Kern River District Ranger Al Watson just cancelled Stewards of the Sequoia volunteer trail maintenance agreement of 15 years, prohibiting Stewards from doing 300 miles of needed Sequoia trail maintenance this year and forever.

The real losers here are the trails and the public. I hope you will sign the petition to reinstate the Stewards of the Sequoia Volunteer Agreement now and urge everyone you know to sign it also.

We need thousands of signatures showing overwhelming support for Stewards volunteerism, and objecting to this unjustified termination. We need your help to get Stewards volunteers back working on Sequoia trails.

Per his termination letter Ranger Watson has no issue with any of Stewards trail work and thanks Stewards for their service, but he feels we are not good partners because Stewards object to the PCT Corridor and question the validity of the 2010 Piute Motor Vehicle Use Map (MVUM). These are freedom of speech issues, totally unrelated to volunteer trail maintenance. Ranger Watson should not be allowed to terminate our volunteer trail maintenance program based on anything other than our trail work. Stewards have not violated any law or regulation, we just do tons of hard trail work.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN PETITION TO REINSTATE STEWARDS VOLUNTEER AGREEMENT

Please ask everyone you know to sign the petition. Feel free to forward this email to your friends and family.

Stewards Volunteers are no longer allowed to maintain Sequoia Trails in Sequoia National Forest

As a Forest partner since 2004, Stewards of the Sequoia volunteers have performed so much valuable work to prevent erosion and keep trails enjoyable for everyone including clearing over 10,000 downed trees, maintaining over 5000 water bars and brushing hundreds of miles of trails. Without Stewards work, many trails would be impassable which would harm tourism and concentrate use. The Forest Service is unable to perform this work. The Forest Service needs to renew the partnership to allow Stewards to continue maintaining Sequoia trails.

The Forest Service is supposed to encourage volunteerism, not turn away willing and able partners like Stewards of the Sequoia with a proven track record of maintaining over 300 miles of trails each year.

You can read our letter to Supervisor Benson asking to be reinstated HERE, as well as Ranger Al's termination letter HERE

Be sure to sign the petition NOW

Thanks for standing up for volunteerism and for the right to free speech.

Together we can keep our trails open

You can learn more about Stewards of the Sequoia HERE

Chris Horgan
Executive Director
Stewards of the Sequoia