Interior Department Invests Nearly $11 Million from President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda to Restore Lands and Waters

Date: Friday, March 22, 2024
Contact: Interior_Press@ios.doi.gov

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Interior today announced a nearly $11 million investment from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to restore our nation’s lands and water through 29 locally led, landscape-scale restoration projects across 18 states and the District of Columbia. The investment from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law builds on more than $157 million announced last month. With today’s announcement, over half a billion from section 40804 of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has now been committed for ecosystem restoration under the Biden-Harris administration. 

This work supports the President’s America the Beautiful initiative, which set the nation’s first-ever goal to conserve and restore 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030. The 10-year, locally led and nationally scaled initiative lifts up efforts to protect, conserve, connect and restore the lands, waters and wildlife upon which we all depend. In his first two years in office, President Biden invested more dollars in conservation than any other President in a two-year period, and he is on track to conserve more lands and waters than any President in history. This historic funding also advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which sets the goal that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that have been historically marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. 

“At a time when tackling the climate and biodiversity crises could not be more critical, these investments in clean water, clean air, wildlife habitat, cultural resources and open spaces will benefit people, wildlife and local economies for generations to come,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “Today’s investments from the President’s Investing in America agenda will support nature-based solutions across the country, from conserving salmon in Alaska and restoring sagebrush and grassland ecosystems to revitalizing salt marshes along the east coast.” 

Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the Interior Department is stewarding a combined $2 billion over five years in new investments to put people to work restoring our nation’s lands and waters and building critical resilience. To guide these historic investments, in April 2023, the Department unveiled the Restoration and Resilience Framework to catalyze coordination and drive transformational outcomes across existing programs and initiatives. The framework includes a commitment to nine keystone conservation initiatives that address climate change impacts, including restoring the Klamath Basin, salt marshes and core sagebrush areas; supporting habitat for salmon, bison and Hawaiian forest birds; improving the quality of life in Appalachia and restoring native plant communities by ensuring a robust native seed supply chain and managing invasive species.

Investments from today’s announcement will support projects in fiscal year 2024 and will be stewarded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, Office of Native Hawaiian Relations, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

Investments will fund 29 projects in 18 states and the District of Columbia, including projects to:   

• Advance co-stewardship and salmon conservation in Alaska; 
• Invest in Native Hawaiian Biocultural engagement for Hawaiian Forest Bird Conservation in Hawaii; 
• Convert agricultural and degraded lands in six parks in Appalachia into native grassland ecosystems, improving environmental health and ecosystem services; 
• Restore grasslands and cultural resources across Oklahoma, Minnesota and South Dakota, including through a nearly $2 million investment for embankment repairs at the Kiowosay Wildlife of the Red Lake Nation; 
• Revitalize 82 acres of tidal salt marshes in Chincoteague National Wildlife in Virginia and advance additional salt marsh restoration efforts in other areas along the East Coast; 
• Restore core sage brush areas in California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming;    
• Restore wetland, stream, and riparian habitats for drought resiliency and threatened and endangered species in the Klamath River Basin; and  
• Build resilient freshwater systems in Arizona and Montana, reopening miles of streams and managing invasive aquatic species. 

A full project list is available on the Department’s website.

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