Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that nearly $10 million is being invested in forest nursery and native seed partnerships, thanks to funding from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Of the total funding, $4.5 million is being invested in twenty-nine facilities from states, U.S. Island territories and commonwealths to modernize forest nurseries and $5.3 million will help increase native seed collection and native plant availability to restore and support resilient ecosystems on national forests and grasslands.
These investments help build capacity across public and private lands to meet mounting reforestation demands and complement the recently announced $35 million investment in Forest Service nurseries in support of the National Forest System Reforestation Strategy (PDF, 7 MB).
“As forests across the nation are confronted by the climate crisis, wildfire, natural disasters, and insect and disease outbreaks, it is critical to support nurseries and help them meet the demand for seedlings to restore healthy, resilient forests,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “The Biden-Harris administration is making a forward-thinking investment in the nation’s reforestation pipeline and ensuring we have the capacity we need to restore the healthy and resilient forests that we all treasure.”
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