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Summit's state Rep. Millie Hamner is pushing legislation that would set aside nearly $2.5 million for forest restoration, wildfire prevention and pine beetle mitigation projects over the next five years.
The bill, HB1032, reauthorizes a forest restoration program and three related funds established in legislation passed by former Sen. Dan Gibbs in 2007, which is set to sunset this year.
The proposal won approval in the state House Agricultural Committee last week, passing by an 8-2 vote without amendments.
It is set to be heard by the House Committee on Appropriations Friday.
Hamner and Gibbs called the bill a problem-solving measure that encourages local, state and federal governments as well as citizens to work together to prevent wildfires in the beetle-kill ravaged forests in Colorado.
“The purpose of the program is to empower local communities to come together to do the problem solving it takes to solve complicated issues related to the bark beetle epidemic and resulting fear of wildfires,” Hamner said.
The legislation designates funding to be distributed through matched grants. The money supports projects, which, primarily are focused on removing beetle-killed trees that could fuel wildland fires.
During its first five years, the program supplied $2.65 million in state funds and was matched by $6.6 million in federal funds, gifts and other grants, funding 68 mitigation projects across 12,000 acres of forest.
Many of those projects were in Summit County and particularly helped address wildfire risks near urban interfaces by providing local homeowners associations with funding for defensible space.
One project in Dillon funded pine beetle mitigation for a 50-acre space near Straight Creek.
“That project was really positive,” said Gibbs, now a Summit County Commissioner. “It helped protect the water source for the town of Dillon.”
Whenever possible, the program funds projects staffed by the Colorado Youth Corps, an organization that provides jobs to young adults.
“These are kids that are learning a skill that they can use later in life to get a job,” Gibbs said. “It's pretty exciting.”
But the real power of the program, according to Gibbs, is the structure that forces collaboration between governments and individuals.
“There's not one entity that's large enough to deal with the (forest health) problems that we have,” he said. “The federal government can't handle it, our state can't handle it all, the county can't, the towns can't and homeowners can't. But if we all work together we can accomplish a lot.”
So far, despite the still-fragile budget environment at the Statehouse, the bill has garnered bipartisan support, Hamner said, pulling votes from both sides of the aisle in the agricultural committee last week.
“It's not a partisan issue,” she said. “Healthy forests are a concern for all residents of Colorado and all legislators.”
The bill, HB1032, reauthorizes a forest restoration program and three related funds established in legislation passed by former Sen. Dan Gibbs in 2007, which is set to sunset this year.
The proposal won approval in the state House Agricultural Committee last week, passing by an 8-2 vote without amendments.
It is set to be heard by the House Committee on Appropriations Friday.
Hamner and Gibbs called the bill a problem-solving measure that encourages local, state and federal governments as well as citizens to work together to prevent wildfires in the beetle-kill ravaged forests in Colorado.
“The purpose of the program is to empower local communities to come together to do the problem solving it takes to solve complicated issues related to the bark beetle epidemic and resulting fear of wildfires,” Hamner said.
The legislation designates funding to be distributed through matched grants. The money supports projects, which, primarily are focused on removing beetle-killed trees that could fuel wildland fires.
During its first five years, the program supplied $2.65 million in state funds and was matched by $6.6 million in federal funds, gifts and other grants, funding 68 mitigation projects across 12,000 acres of forest.
Many of those projects were in Summit County and particularly helped address wildfire risks near urban interfaces by providing local homeowners associations with funding for defensible space.
One project in Dillon funded pine beetle mitigation for a 50-acre space near Straight Creek.
“That project was really positive,” said Gibbs, now a Summit County Commissioner. “It helped protect the water source for the town of Dillon.”
Whenever possible, the program funds projects staffed by the Colorado Youth Corps, an organization that provides jobs to young adults.
“These are kids that are learning a skill that they can use later in life to get a job,” Gibbs said. “It's pretty exciting.”
But the real power of the program, according to Gibbs, is the structure that forces collaboration between governments and individuals.
“There's not one entity that's large enough to deal with the (forest health) problems that we have,” he said. “The federal government can't handle it, our state can't handle it all, the county can't, the towns can't and homeowners can't. But if we all work together we can accomplish a lot.”
So far, despite the still-fragile budget environment at the Statehouse, the bill has garnered bipartisan support, Hamner said, pulling votes from both sides of the aisle in the agricultural committee last week.
“It's not a partisan issue,” she said. “Healthy forests are a concern for all residents of Colorado and all legislators.”
