A pair of local forest restoration projects will receive a $9.1 million infusion of federal funding, U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, announced.

What You Need To Know

  • The state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Forestry and Wildlife will receive $4.9 million to perform forest-restoration work in areas identified as having high value for carbon sequestration (capturing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere) and the highest potential to provide habitat for rare species
  • The project will involve planting some 80,000 native trees and removing invasive weeds from 1,200 acres of forest
  • Terraformation, a Hawaii Island company that specializes in reforestation, will get $4.2 million to design and implement means of sequestering carbon, help agricultural farmers and other agricultural producers adapt to climate change and increase the resiliency of the local food system
  • U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz: 'This new funding helps continue our work to preserve our environment in Hawaii and boost our resilience to the increasing risks we face from climate change'

 

The state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Division of Forestry and Wildlife will receive $4.9 million to perform forest-restoration work in areas identified as having high value for carbon sequestration (capturing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere) and the highest potential to provide habitat for rare species.

The project will involve planting some 80,000 native trees and removing invasive weeds from 1,200 acres of forest.

The other $4.2 million will go to Terraformation, a Hawaii Island company that specializes in reforestation, to design and implement means of sequestering carbon, help agricultural farmers and other agricultural producers adapt to climate change and increase the resiliency of the local food system.

“Restoring our diverse ecosystems is critical to both mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and ensuring a healthy environment,” Schatz said. “This new funding helps continue our work to preserve our environment in Hawaii and boost our resilience to the increasing risks we face from climate change.”

Michael Tsai covers local and state politics for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at michael.tsai@charter.com.