Protecting our Natural Resources
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides $5.5 billion in federal funding to improve land, forest, and natural resources management nationwide. These funds will support the 10-year strategy to reduce wildfire risk and restore healthy, resilient forests.
Forest and Wildland Management
The Infrastructure Law provides $1.5 billion to the U.S. Department of Interior and $3.5 million to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to improve wildland fire management programs to address wildfire risk reduction. These funds will help reduce wildfire risk, support wildfire recovery, and increase recruitment and training of the NPS wildland firefighter workforce.
The 2020 SQF Complex and 2021 KNP Complex fires, resulted in the destruction of 19% of the giant sequoias. Through the Burned Area Rehabilitation Program, we helped secure$2.6 million to begin habitat restoration in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (SEKI). These funds will help the National Park Service (NPS) and the U.S. Forest Service work together through an interagency agreement to pursue reforestation efforts.
In addition, the U.S. Department of Interior awarded nearly $500,000 to help with habitat restoration and reforestation efforts after the Washburn fire burned parts of Yosemite National Park near the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias.
Revitalizing Contaminated Properties
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is revitalizing communities across the state by cleaning up contaminated and blighted properties and redeveloping them for productive reuse. Communities across the Central Valley have been awarded EPA Brownfields Assessment and Cleanup grants to clean up contaminated areas, spur economic revitalization, and create jobs by cleaning up so-called “brownfield” properties contaminated, polluted, or hazardous sites slated for revitalization through specialized EPA programs.
The Fresno Metropolitan Ministry was awarded $500,000 to focus on the Blackstone Avenue Corridor, the city’s primary commercial corridor. Priority properties are in the southernmost portion of the corridor, an area that has experienced substantial disinvestment resulting in many vacant, abandoned, and underused properties. This project supports a mix of housing, retail, office, and active public spaces in a pedestrian “complete street” ‐ oriented environment.
In addition, the City of Fresno was awarded $1 million to focus on the cleanup of downtown properties contaminated with hazardous building materials.
Federal Funding Opportunities
For more information about federal grants and funding opportunities available, click on the following: