The Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management has set aside $2 million to fund wildfire prevention projects covering 3,000 acres statewide.
Supported by both state and federal funding, the investment is part of broader efforts to reduce the threat of wildfires in Arizona by protecting critical infrastructure, and restoring forests and watersheds.
As part of the Healthy Forest Initiative, crews will focus on reducing the dry, overgrown vegetation that fuels wildfires.
Like the latest phase of the Peeples Valley Fire District’s Model Creek project, where funds will go to improve fire control measures and create an evacuation route for residents. Crews will thin trees and reduce vegetation by over half on more than 50 acres.
Another of the 10 projects that benefit from the funds will help create a firebreak between the Oracle community and Coronado National Forest.
The Salt River Project will also receive support for wildfire risk reduction.
-
With monsoon season starting this week, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management is asking everyone to be more careful with fire, especially on red flag days. -
The threat of the Papa Fire spreading to communities or structures in and around Flagstaff is low, officials said. Crews are maintaining a strong fire line and working to protect nearby energy infrastructure. -
State and federal agencies across Arizona have put fire restrictions in place, as the danger of wildfires increases with hot and dry conditions. -
Wildfire risk is rising across the West after a dry winter and ongoing drought left vegetation more vulnerable to fire. Now, researchers at the University of Nevada, Reno are putting about $3.5 million in federal funding to work on a project aimed at reducing that risk in the eastern Sierra Nevada. -
Storms across the Western U.S. are dumping more rain in shorter bursts than in decades past. But according to new research, that doesn't necessarily mean landscapes are holding onto more water.
