The Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest (ASNF) utilized over 25 million funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to support projects that increase local employment, support forest restoration and fire mitigation, and boost local economy. Projects included forest restoration and fuels reduction, recreation and related road improvements, forest fire rehabilitation efforts, and greenhouse construction on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation.

The iconic and productive Sonoran Desert landscapes of the Tuscon Basin are threatened by Buffelgrass, an invasive species introduced to the area in the 1930s. Buffelgrass alters the fire regime and is a threat to ecosystems, and human life and property. The Southern Arizona Buffelgrass Coordination Center was established in 2008 to bring stakeholders together to remove Buffelgrass effectively.  

Saguaro National Park, in the Sonoran Desert near Tuscon, Arizona, is threatened by invasive perennial grasses. These grasses outcompete native plants and heighten the risk of wildfires, a disturbance that the park’s ecosystem is not adapted to. Park managers want to remove invasive grasses and restore native species landscapes. 

BLM is leading the construction and maintenance of a system of up to 11,000 miles of strategically placed fuel breaks to control wildfires within a 223-million-acre area in the Great Basin that includes portions of Idaho, Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada and Utah. Fuel breaks would be implemented along roads or rights-of-way on BLM-administered lands.

26,000 acres of Eastern Mojave Desert near Las Vegas, Nevada, is a specially managed area that receives Mojave Desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii) translocations. A 2011 Revised Recovery Plan aims to increase population densities of the tortoise by increasing native plant coverage and reducing invasive plant presence. 

The Dolores River Restoration Partnership (DRRP) is a public-private collaborative working to restore ecosystems and plant communities in the Dolores River corridor. Invasive plants in this region have degraded habitat for both native plants and wildlife, increased wildfire risk, and negatively impacted recreational opportunities. The project has four broad goal categories: ecological, social, management, and economic. 

The BLM led the restoration of sagebrush steppe and riparian plant communities on 75,000 acres of Eastern Oregon rangeland. Treatment focuses on removing western juniper, a desert conifer species that is spreading across the landscape and outcompeting other desert plants. Restoration efforts used a sequential, three-step approach: juniper cutting, controlled burns, and in some cases, aerial reseeding.

Following a devastating 2010 wildfire and post-fire flood outside of Flagstaff, city residents approved a $10 million bond to support forest restoration work to reduce the risk of wildfire and post-fire flooding. This bond created the Flagstaff Watershed Protection Project (FWPP), which implements restoration projects like thinning and fuel reduction.  

This project was initiated by BC Wildlife Services (BCWS) in 2019 to evaluate the degree to which fuel treatments have been effective in changing wildfire behavior. Two fuel treatments were studies: 1) manual treatment of older stands involving stand thinning, debris disposal + pruning, and 2) broadcast burning after timber harvesting.

The Carson National Forest (CNF) is at risk for high-intensity wildfires. Mimicking the Acequias traditional water-management system, the Cerro Negro Forest Council (CNFC) created forest mayordomos, or local managers who are a a pillar with local knowledge and heritage to serve the community within the Pueblo and Hispanic communities of northern New Mexico.  

To restore forest health and an ecological and climate-adapted fire regime, staff at Lassen Volcanic National Park (LAVO) in northern California partnered with the Sierra Nevada Conservancy and Sierra Institute in 2019 to reduce forest fuel loads within wilderness areas of the North Fork Feather River watershed.

The Fort Valley Project was an experiment designed to test forest treatments that were intended to restore natural ecological qualities and reduce the hazard of intense wildfire in the urban/wildland interface around Flagstaff, Arizona. The primary goal of the project was the reverse the degradation of ponderosa pine ecosystems by restoring their structure and function along with the natural disturbance regimes that were characteristic of their evolutionary environment.

In response to the increased wildfire risk and spread of invasive species, the Sandia Pueblo Environment Department and ranch staff from Galloping Goat Pumpkin Patch Ranch, with funding from the Forest and Watershed Restoration Act through the New Mexico State Forestry Division, implemented a goat grazing program in 2021.

The Great Dismal Swamp, a 45,000-ha state and federally protected Coastal Plain peatland located on the border of North Carolina and Virginia, was degraded after centuries of drainage and logging. To restore its ecosystem structure and function, US FWS installed two adjustable water control structures (WCS).

Led by USACE, the Bosque Wildfire Project was initiated to restore bosque habitat and wetland function around Albuquerque, New Mexico. Key features of restoration included constructing wetlands and swales to support moisture-seeking plants and animals, creating high-flow channels and bank terracing to enhance hydraulic connectivity within the bosque, and revegetating with native plants.

Forests in Arizona are increasingly affected by persistent drought conditions due to global warming. The Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI) researched the effects of climate variability and accelerated forest thinning on watershed-scale runoff, aiming to improve water flows and reduce forest mortality. The focus was on ponderosa pine forests.

To reduce the damage of future wildfires, the Paradise Recreation and Park District (PRPD) established multi-benefit greenspaces, or natural areas for recreational and aesthetic purposes (e.g. parks), within Paradise’s eastern and southern borders. These greenspaces will help increase community wellbeing and prevent trauma associated with wildfire by providing a multitude of recreational activities, conservation benefits, and local economic opportunity.

The Ohkay Owingeh riparian restoration project is a series of coordinated projects reaching back to the 1990s that now encompasses over 700 acres of restored ecological mosaic including wetlands, cottonwood gallery forest, grassland, shrub cover, open water, and dense emergent willow thicket that is ideal for bird habitat, particularly Southwestern Willow Flycatcher.

This project explored the potential of using Wildfire Risk Reduction Buffers (WRRBs) between the urban area and the wildlands for fire risk reduction. The team selected Paradise, CA as its prioritization site due to its fire risk, opportunity, and recreation value. They created five buffers totaling 34,553 acres and conduct habitat-sensitive fuel reduction and open space management.

Two major fires and subsequent flooding events wreaked havoc on a critical watershed and reservoir that supplies Denver with water. Water utilities partnered with the U.S. Forest Service and corporate sponsors to manage the watershed and improve forest health.