CCC Takes to the Earth and Sky, Reforesting the Tahoe Basin

Rooted in Resilience

CCC Corpsmembers partner with UC Davis to help Tahoe forests recover from wildfires, bring sugar pine back to the scene, and gain invaluable forestry experience.

Young adults in the California Conservation Corps (CCC) are helping forests in the Tahoe Basin heal from the ground up. Blending tradition with technology, Corpsmembers are planting seedlings and piloting drones in partnership with experts from UC Davis.

“All the researchers from UC Davis are knowledgeable in different fields,” said Corpsmember Nassem Al Mehairi. “It’s interesting to talk to all of them and get different perspectives on their specialties, so we can really understand the deeper meaning behind the projects we’re doing.”

A major goal of this CCC project is to revive the local sugar pine population – a native tree species that was once abundant in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Historically, sugar pine comprised approximately 25% of trees in the area, but has since been reduced to 5% or less according to Patricia Maloney, an ecologist from UC Davis. Challenges to survival include drought, beetle-kill, logging, and most recently the catastrophic 2021 Caldor Fire, which burned more than 200,000 acres near South Lake Tahoe.

A bundle of sugar pine saplings with burnt forest in the background

New Growth

CCC Tahoe Corpsmembers plant bundles of sugar pine in the Caldor Fire burn scar, kickstarting the reforestration process.

Digging Deep

Corpsmembers use specialized planting tools, called dibble bars, to dig into the earth and create a hole that's the perfect size for planting trees.

In the Green

Project sponsors use a GIS mapping system to identify prime locations for planting.

Planting Roots

A bright green sapling gets planted in the forest, bringing hope to the charred landscape.

Staff from UC Davis plant trees with CCC Corpsmembers

Teaming Up

CCC Corpsmembers plant trees alongside UC Davis staff. Completing activities in tandem with ecologists and forestry experts provides added opportunities for growth.

“We’re helping regenerate an area that has obviously been very broken down from the fire ripping through,” said Corpsmember Sophia Flores-Workman. “Today we’re planting about 700 trees… knowing that for future years to come it’s just going to get better – it’s really cool.”

Equipped with dibble bars – a specialized planting tool – and hundreds of sugar pines, the CCC Tahoe Center forestry crew is bringing life back to the landscape. The saplings they’re planting are climate adapted, grown using locally sourced seeds gathered from drought-resistant parent trees back in 2014. With the help of CCC Corpsmembers, researchers hope to rebuild a healthier, more resilient forest that will last well into the future. Getting these new trees established will be a multi-year project spanning several sites across the region.

“We’ll come back for the next three years to water them, while also continuing to water the plots that we’ve already planted in previous years,” said Nassem. “Then the aspiration is to fly drones up and lay down water in more remote locations so we can get these trees planted further back.”

CCC Corpsmembers prepare to launch dones in a park.

Ready To Fly

CCC Corpsmembers unpack and prepare drones for flight.

Not A Bird

A small orange drone, the size of a large bird, flies over the forest near Lake Tahoe.

A CCC Corpsmember holds the drone controls while her crew keeps their eyes on the sky.

At the Controls

CCC Corpsmember Tiffany Delgado takes control of a drone as members of her forestry crew keep an eye toward the sky.

Getting Airborne

Under the supervision of UC Davis staff, a CCC Corpsmember pilots a drone for the first time.

Corpsmembers in a lecture at the UC Davis field station.

Ground School

Back in the classroom, Corpsmembers learn the basics of drone flight.

Corpsmembers are starting with the basics of drone operations, for now. The crew is learning how this new technology can be leveraged to make reforestation more efficient. It’s an emerging career pathway that has many applications including aerial monitoring, GIS mapping, and photogrammetry.

“I thought forestry would mainly be chainsaw stuff. It’s cool to know that drones can be used for forestry,” said Corpsmember Tiffany Delgado. “Having technology is really helpful – there’s lots of uses for it.”

A two-day course provided by UC Davis enabled young adults in the CCC to engage hands-on with the drones and understand the steps needed to take-off in a new career trajectory as an FAA Certified Drone Pilot. It is one of several ways Tahoe Corpsmembers are getting paid to train and find their path.

“When I applied to the CCC, I thought, ‘I don’t know what I want to do’,” said Corpsmember Eric Magana. “The classes I’ve taken so far have given more background and helped push me where I think I want to go. As of right now, it’s getting my associate degree in environmental science.”

Only in its second year, this innovative partnership between UC Davis and the CCC is already transforming the landscape on-the-ground and helping young adults reach new heights. And it’s only up from here. Looking ahead, the future is full of hope – both the sugar pines and the Corpsmembers who planted them will keep growing, improving the health of California’s forests for years to come.