2026 Preview: Lick ‘em Tomorrow

Entering 2026, I am reminded of a story. Indulge me for a minute. It’s spring 1862. The Union Army is on the march in Tennessee. Outside of a small church called Shiloh, Union troops bivouacked, waiting to combine with other forces for an offensive into Mississippi. The Confederate Army, knowing that they would soon be attacked, went on the offensive instead. The Union Army, caught off-guard, was hammered—falling back and back until they were nearly trapped on the banks of the Tennessee River. Night finally fell, and both sides retreated to their camps to get some sleep before fighting would begin anew in the morning. General Sherman went looking for General Grant, who wasn’t in his tent with other commanders. In driving rain, Sherman eventually found Grant, standing under the cover of a large tree, smoking a cigar. Sherman, not really knowing what to say, commented to Grant, "We've had the devil's day, haven't we?" Grant took a puff from his cigar and replied, "Yes. Lick 'em tomorrow, though." And Grant was right. The Union army regrouped and pushed the Confederates from the battlefield.

Why did I tell this story? I think that 2025 was like that first day at Shiloh. The environmental movement was caught offguard. President Trump came in and ran the Project 2025 playbook to great effect, from DOGEing federal employees at natural resource agencies to new rule-making to reinterpret long-settled questions of environmental law. But we are ready and able to retake ground in 2026.

We've had the devil's year. But we will lick 'em this year, though.

Organize

Our strength as a movement is that the vast majority of people support a clean, healthy environment. In 2026, we look to re-engage with grassroots organizing. Here’s the start: On January 18th at 10 am, EPIC, Humboldt Waterkeeper, and the Surfrider Foundation are hosting a rally at the Wharfinger in Eureka against Trump’s plans to open California’s coast to offshore oil drilling. Join special guests Rep. Jared Huffman and State Sen. Damon Connolly to learn about Trump’s plans and to take action to protect our coast. 

**Couldn't attend? Click here to send a comment in opposition to Trump’s plans to drill offshore

Resist in Court

Knowing that there will be many fights ahead, the EPIC Board of Directors has significantly increased our organization’s litigation budget for 2026. Litigation will be of two primary flavors: First, we are likely to see an uptick in destructive federal logging projects, a product of Trump’s directive to the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to increase timber production. Where projects skip NEPA, where they target large, old trees, and where they threaten endangered species, we will slap them with a lawsuit. Second, Trump is working to weaken the regulations that uphold our Nation’s environmental laws, like the Endangered Species Act. When he does, we will be there in court to stop him.

Keep California Green and Golden

While the federal government is in shambles, California continues to lead. We are thankful to be represented by environmental champions like Sen. McGuire, Sen. Connolly, and Asm. Rogers. EPIC is happy to announce that we are increasing our engagement in Sacramento and have hired a lobbyist to better represent environmental voters and the North Coast. We also have some exciting news that isn’t quite ready to release…so stay tuned!