The Biden administration will provide more than $1 billion in grants for 385 environmentally focused projects, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Thursday.
Projects from tribal communities, community organizations, nonprofits, universities and state and local governments were eligible for funding.
The funded initiatives are located in all 50 states, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Palau, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia.
The main thrust of the funded projects is expanding the amount of tree cover nationwide to reach more communities and provide a number of benefits to residents.
Of the 385 grant-funded projects, 90% will involve the planting and maintenance of trees — 60% of the projects will support planting trees and other vegetation to make communities more resilient against storms, floods and the like, while 43% will focus on tree planting as a way to counterbalance extreme heat in cities and surrounding areas, according to a fact sheet from the U.S. Forest Service, a subsidiary of USDA.
Trees “mitigate extreme heat, conserve energy, provide shade, absorb stormwater, create wildlife habitat, and filter air and water. An urban tree canopy leads to better health outcomes,” according to the Forest Service fact sheet.
Ambient temperatures are 11 to 19 degrees Fahrenheit lower in communities with a tree canopy compared to those without, the fact sheet said.
The department also claimed that the trees will boost property values and provide jobs.
The total amount of money being disbursed is at least $1.5 billion, according to the fact sheet, with $1.13 billion of that having been allotted as grant money in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
The U.S. Forest Service received 842 applications requesting a total of $6.4 billion in funding, according to a USDA release.
“These investments arrive as cities across the country experience record-breaking heat waves that have grave impacts on public health, energy consumption, and overall well-being. … we are supporting communities in becoming more resilient to climate change and combating extreme heat with the cooling effects of increased urban tree canopy,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said in a statement.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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