The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service (FS) has signed a $290 million Good Neighbor Agreement (GNA) with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission to accelerate recovery efforts from damage caused by Hurricane Helene.
The agreement’s scale breaks from the norm, making waves as the FS’s largest investment in hurricane recovery and community strengthening in its history. The funds will advance recovery efforts in two national forests over the next decade, enabling the commission to remove storm debris, repair roads and recreation areas, manage invasive species, restore damaged watersheds and enhance wildlife habitat.
The recovery efforts follow a tremendous swathe of destruction to the Pisgah and Nantahala national forests in the wake of Hurricane Helene. Collateral damage included tens of thousands of acres of blown-down timber, extensive damage to infrastructure, a surplus of fuel for wildfires from downed trees and vegetation and destruction of wildlife habitat.
The GNA is a component of the Good Neighbor Authority – mechanism empowering the FS to collaborate with state, county or Indian tribe partners to protect and preserve forests. The agreement establishes a framework for cooperative restoration efforts on National Forest System (NFS) lands. These authorized activities may include:
- Treating insect and disease infected trees.
- Reducing hazardous fuels.
- Assorted activities to restore or improve forest, rangeland and watershed health, including fish and wildlife habitat.
- Reconstructing, restoring and repairing decommissioned NFS roads as needed to facilitate recovery efforts.
Additional authorized restoration activities may include timber harvesting, hazardous, fuels treatment and tree planting or seeding among other approved measures.
Photo by Mark Stebnicki from Pexels
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