The United States Department of Agriculture on Tuesday announced that the agency has invested $200 million in 58 wildfire reduction projects across the nation.
The programs span 22 states and two tribes, and include efforts like updating community wildfire protection plans and removing hazardous fuels and overgrown vegetation.
The funding comes from the Congressionally-created Community Wildfire Defense Grant Program. The program is slated to invest $1 billion over five years to assist at-risk communities in preventing wildfires. 2025 is the program’s third year.
“No single organization can address the severe wildfire threats we face today,” Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz said. “It is imperative that we work together to protect our forests and communities. For those communities that already have plans in place, these investments will enable immediate, collaborative action to reduce wildfire risk.”
The state with the most approved grants in round three of the program was Colorado, with eight projects funded. Two projects in the state each received just under $10 million in funding, including:
- “Protecting the Gateway to the Rockies” through the Larimer County Office of Emergency Management, which includes defensive space improvements on 900 parcels, wildfire mitigation treatments on 500 acres of open space, and wildfire preparedness education at 75 community events.
- Wildfire Risk Mitigation program through the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, which will expand the county’s Sustainable Lands and Safer Homes (SLASH) program, hire more staff specifically for wildfire risk education, and help purchase numerous kinds of field equipment and gear.
The project with the largest amount of funding approved was a $10 million program in New Mexico. The “Colfax Wildfire Risk Reduction Project” through the Cimarron Watershed Alliance will “implement high priority wildfire risk reduction treatments including fuels reduction, evacuation route clearing, restoration focused forest thinning, and defensible space work on private lands in and around communities.”
Click here to see the full list of funded proposals for each year of the program.
