Nearly 7,000 acres of community forests will be created or added "from Alaska to North Carolina," thanks to $5.5 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the agency announced recently.
The grants were awarded to conservation projects in 11 forests across the country, the USDA's National Forest Service (NFS) announced July 19. The Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program (CFOS) funds the grants to local and Tribal governments and conservation non-profits, which use the grants to purchase lands for community forests, according to the announcement.
"All of the grant projects respond to locally driven priorities," the USDA states in the report, "and support the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal to increase access and conservation of America’s lands and waters."
The USDA reports that the 11 CFOS-funded grant projects will establish thousands of acres of community forests, actively managed for long-term community benefits such as clean water, wildlife habitat, public recreation access, educational opportunities and more.
In California, the Potter Valley Tribe will use its grant to get 21 acres for traditional tribal ecological community uses including fishing, plant-gathering and ceremonies, the NFS reports. A grant project in Alaska will conserve over 300 acres of intact coastal forest "just minutes from downtown Anchorage," the report states.
"We listened to the needs of these communities," NFS Chief Randy Moore said in the announcement, "and are protecting threatened forests and conserving community values, including recreation access and cultural use of forests."
