Wildfire mitigation and prevention projects in Washington are set to get $23.4 million in federal money, thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.
The money, distributed through Community Wildfire Defense Grants (CWDG), will help pay for 13 state, local and tribal efforts to deal with and anticipate the Washington’s increasingly active wildfire seasons. The $25 million total ranks second behind California among the states that will get a portion of the overall grant package.
“Over the past thirty years, the number of acres per year by wildfire has more than doubled,” Vice President Kamala Harris told reporters during Monday’s grant announcement. “Our future is not yet written. The solutions are at hand…we must act with haste, and we can actually, right now, have an impact on how this all plays out.”
Washington’s Department of Natural Resources said Monday funding requests for all 13 projects were fully granted. Most of the projects are in western and central Washington.