WASHINGTON (CN) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday granted nearly $324 million toward local projects helping communities protect against wildfires and promote sustainable methods for sourcing wood.
The majority of the money — $250 million — will help 31 states, two territories and 11 tribes develop community wildfire protection plans and remove overgrown vegetation that can fuel fires.
The wildfire money comes through the Community Wildfire Defense Grant program and will fund 158 projects. The program, funded under the bipartisan infrastructure law, will invest $1 billion over five years for such projects.
“Last year, over two million Americans across the country were displaced by extreme weather and climate-fueled disasters, including wildfires,” said Ali Zaidi, President Joe Biden’s national climate adviser. “Under President Biden, we are making the largest-ever investment to tackle the climate crisis, while reducing the risks of catastrophic fires and making communities safer, stronger and more resilient.”
U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore said the wildfire plans are “roadmaps for addressing local wildfire risks.”
“We recognize the difference this program is already having on reducing wildfire risk,” he said in a statement.
The largest grants are $10 million each for projects in New Mexico and Washington state.
In New Mexico, Cimarron Watershed Alliance will clear overgrown vegetation and restore forests on private lands around Angel Fire, New Mexico. The area, which is in the Rocky Mountains north of Santa Fe, has frequent wildfires and the project seeks to mitigate their impact.
Ferry County in Washington, along the Canadian border northwest of Spokane, will use its money to mitigate fire fuel along emergency evacuation routes and make other improvements in rural areas to enhance emergency responses.
Also receiving a large grant is the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma, which will get more than $9.9 million to purchase equipment for removing woody vegetation and conducting fire response training.
The rest of the money, nearly $74 million, supports projects to promote sustainable methods for sourcing wood, create new markets for wood products and increase capacity for wood processing facilities.
The grants will support 171 projects in 41 states and American Samoa.
All but three of the projects received less than $400,000. Those three proposals — in Vermont, New York and New Hampshire — received $1 million each.
Sustainable methods for sourcing wood, like removing dead trees and overgrown vegetation, supports forest health and reduces wildfire risks.
“These investments will support good paying jobs for families and communities,” Deputy Agriculture Secretary Xochitl Torres Small said in a statement. “It will increase the economy’s capacity to manufacture wood products. In turn, sustainably sourcing the wood used to manufacture these products will make our forests healthier and reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfires.”