CAL FIRE's mission is to protect the people and property of California from the effects of devastating wildfires, promote ecosystem resilience, and enhance forest health through sustainable management practices that address threats like climate change, forest overcrowding, and pest infestations. This mission extends to safeguarding watersheds, promoting carbon storage, and supporting land management strategies that mitigate the impact of extreme disturbance events on forests.
The Forest Legacy Program provides funding for the acquisition of conservation easements or fee title purchases of forest lands with the goal of encouraging long-term conservation. These funded projects support the objectives of the California Forest Legacy Program Act of 2007 by conserving forested landscapes that have at least 10% canopy cover by conifer or hardwood species and 75% forest cover of the project area. The program is interested in forested landscapes that provide significant environmental benefits, including ecological importance and species protection. To be eligible, projects must involve willing landowners interested in selling or donating lands. In the case of conservation easements, an eligible entity must be found to hold and monitor the easement. For fee title purchases, specific measures are taken to ensure conservation values are maintained, including recording a Notice of Unrecorded Grant Agreement and the establishment of a conservation easement held by an entity other than the landowner. The program allows for both commercial and non-commercial forest management and public access to these conserved areas.