Pacific County receives wildfire defense grant

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack on March 20 announced $197 million in funding for the federal Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG) program -- more than $25 million of which will come to the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for 14 Washington state projects.

The Pacific County Emergency Management Agency will be receiving $103,000.00 to develop a Community Wildfire Prevention Plan. This grant and planning process are a continuation of a process that began 4 years ago to develop a plan to address an ever-increasing threat from wildfire across the depth and breadth of Pacific County, as evidenced by the Chinook Complex Wildfire that burned 120 acres in the Chinook area in November of 2022.

Community Wildfire Defense Grants are federally funded and intended to help at-risk communities and tribes plan for and mitigate wildfire risk. This round of funding for the federal CWDG grant program attracted 417 applications from 36 states and one territory, and 45 applications from tribes and Alaska Native Corporations totaling $525 million. Projects from 21 states and seven tribes were awarded funding.

The funding awarded for these 14 Washington state projects will pass through the DNR’s Community Resilience program to grant recipients. All 14 projects were funded at the full amount requested.

PCEMA is excited to continue its active partnerships with all of the Public Safety Agencies in Pacific County to help build a more resilient and fire safe communities. Questions may be Directed to PCEMA Director Scott McDougall smcdougall@co.pacific.wa.us or 360-875-9338.