BOISE -The Department of the Interior has announced a second year of funding for the Wildland Fire Resilient Landscapes Program. The National Park Service is either the lead agency or a collaborator on projects that total nearly $2 million in funding of the $10 million allocated for the program. National Park Service units within the program include Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, Saguaro National Park, Valles Caldera National Preserve, Cumberland Island National Seashore, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, and Curecanti National Recreation Area.
The Resilient Landscapes Program uses a different approach to achieve fire resiliency goals across landscapes. By planning across jurisdictions, the projects aim to restore and maintain broad landscapes, so they are resilient to fire-related disturbances in accordance with management objectives."The successes we saw in the first year of the Resilient Landscapes Program have been encouraging. We're grateful for the continued funding so we can carry on the work that was started, as long-term efforts are needed to truly reach the goal of fire resilience in these ecosystems," stated Nate Benson, NPS National Fire Science and Ecology Program Lead.The 2015 annual reports backed up Benson's perspective. Noted in one of the reports, "the project stimulated deliberate planning between organizations that share a common vision but had not had much communication previously… the [Resilient Landscapes] program provided the catalyst."
A summary of 2015 accomplishments for projects that include the National Park Service may be found on the following pages. More information about the program, including amounts awarded for each project may be found on the Department of the Interior's website.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
