Millions Awarded To Conserve Farms, Forest Around Washington
The state of Washington has awarded millions of dollars to conserve working farms and forests around the Evergreen State. The $5.2 million in grant funding comes from the Washington state and Recreation and Conservation Funding Board. The board also received word of funding from federal grants for projects that develop and improve recreational opportunities for boaters and recreationists. The federal grants total more than $3.9 million for 9 projects. All together the money will be used on nearly two dozen projects statewide.
“These grants help ensure our farms and forests, often at risk of being developed, are still available for growing timber and still available for growing crops and raising livestock,” said Kaleen Cottingham, director of the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office, which administers these grants.
“In a lot of ways, these projects and the lands they’re on sustain all of us, including the families who have, in many situations, managed the lands for generations. These working farms and forests provide family income, commodities and open space, and help keep Washington green and growing.”
Click below to see descriptions of projects in each county.
Grants will fund the preservation of the organic Kristoferson Farm, an icon on Camano island; renovation of Lincoln Park in one of Wenatchee’s underserved areas; guest moorage for boats visiting Sekiu on the Olympic Peninsula; construction of a boat house on Green Lake in Seattle; conservation of a farm and cattle ranch in Okanogan County so it can remain agricultural for the next generation; and construction of a playground accessible to children of all abilities in Mountlake Terrace, to name just a few of the projects.
“These are important projects,” Cottingham said. “They are the nuts and bolts of what we do to keep Washington a great place to live, start a business or just have fun. Without these grant programs, Washington would look much different and wouldn’t be the jewel it is today.”
Funding for the projects comes from the following three grant programs managed by the board:
- Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program, which receives funding from the sale of state bonds to develop recreation opportunities and conserve wildlife habitat and working farms and forests.
- Boating Infrastructure Grant program, which receives funding from the federal Aquatic Resources Trust Fund to build facilities for motorboats 26 feet long or longer.
- Land and Water Conservation Fund, which receives a portion of federal revenue from selling and leasing off-shore oil and gas resources, to build parks, trails and other recreational opportunities and to conserve wild areas.
Established by citizen Initiative 215 in 1964, the Recreation and Conservation Funding Board helps finance recreation and conservation projects throughout the state. Since 1964, the board has improved the state's quality of life through its investment of public funds in parks, trails, beaches, boating facilities, wildlife habitat and natural areas.
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