Billions of federal dollars headed to Western forests to manage fires
Less than a year after Washington state committed $328 million toward reducing the impacts of climate-charged catastrophic wildfire and improving forest health, the U.S. Forest Service announced a plan liable to supercharge that effort.
A U.S. Department of Agriculture announcement on Jan. 18 adds nearly $3 billion more to the nation's forest restoration efforts and fire reduction, especially on federal forest lands in the heart of Washington’s fire country and in 10 other Western states. Just as significant, the accompanying plan incorporates the newest science and reflects Indigenous stewardship practices. The money draws from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act proposed by the Biden administration and passed by Congress, with potential for more funding from the Build Back Better bill, now stalled in the Senate.
Sources in Washington-area forest management say the plan complements the state’s current management strategy and recognizes tribal leadership while underscoring the importance of equitable community engagement.
Darcy Batura, forest partnerships manager at The Nature Conservancy in Washington state, calls the plan a “substantial shift.”
https://crosscut.com/environment/2022/02/billions-federal-dollars-headed-western-forests-manage-fires
