U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced nearly $150 million to restore land and waters across the nation, yesterday in Columbia, North Carolina. The funding will support 200 projects in 48 states.
It was the latest stop in her tour around the nation to promote President Joe Biden’s Investing in America Agenda. The tour highlights projects funded through the administration’s 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In North Carolina, projects include cleaning up abandoned mines and nearly $1.5 million to restore the Scuppernong River Boardwalk at the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. The 1,000-foot boardwalk has served as an educational and recreational tool for U.S. Fish and Wildlife for decades, but persistent flooding and other extreme weather events have led to its disrepair.
The administration has shelled out $2 billion over five years in various ecological projects. In her remarks yesterday, Haaland emphasized repeatedly that climate change is a priority for the her and the administration.
“As the climate crisis threatens biodiversity, wildlife communities and their economies everywhere, investing in our landscapes and expanding nature-based solutions are so critical to maintaining that connection to the land for future generations,” Haaland said.
Guiding the department's approval for projects is a few things. This is the third phase of project announcements,which includes testing restoration approaches, monitoring project impacts, and assessing ecosystem outcomes. A focus is to spend the money on areas that rural, low-income, or Indigenous, as well as communities of color.
“More than half of the projects being funded today will benefit historically underserved communities, advancing President Biden’s Justice 40 Initiative, which aims to deliver 40% of the overall benefits of climate, clean energy and related investments to disadvantaged communities," Haaland said, including rural Tyrrell County in that category.
