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BUSINESS Friday 21 February 2020
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Report: Work to reduce wildfire risks has economic benefits

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRY- The Nature Conservancy
AN say it's serving as a model
Associated Press for other communities in
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — the U.S. West and some in
Projects to reduce the risk India and South Africa.
of wildfires and protect wa- The advocacy group start-
ter sources in the U.S. West ed the initiative in 2014 to
have created jobs and in- restore large swaths of land
fused more money in local as a way to protect and
economies, researchers bolster the region's dwin-
say, and they were funded dling water resources.
by a partnership between More than 80 local, state
governments and busi- and tribal partners have
nesses that has become a signed on since then, bring-
model in other countries. ing in $5 million in private in-
A team from the U.S. Geo- vestments and leveraging
logical Survey reviewed nearly $50 million in pub-
work being done in several lic funding. More than 219
counties along the New square miles (566 square
Mexico-Colorado border kilometers) have been
that make up the water- treated with thinning, pre-
shed of one of North Amer- scribed burns and man-
ica's longest rivers, the Rio aged natural fires and an
Grande. additional 515 square miles
The review shows how (1,335 square kilometers)
public-private partnerships are in the planning pipe-
could become a critical In this June 11, 2018, file photo, flames consume trees during a burnout operation that was per- line.
component for safeguard- formed south of County Road 202 near Durango, Colo. The investors in New Mex-
ing the land and benefit- Associated Press ico range from municipal
ing the economy amid the water utilities and federal
threat of federal funding partnership, estimates the ment and debris. square miles — 1,322 (3,424 agencies to banks and
cuts and worsening wild- work has had an economic The U.S. Bureau of Land square kilometers) — treat- breweries.
fires brought on by climate impact of about $18 million Management announced ed to reduce the risk of Brent Racher, owner of Res-
change. within five years. last week its plans to build wildfire. toration Solutions LLC said
The study focused on "We've always known the and maintain up to 11,000 The U.S. Forest Service also his four-man team has got-
2018, when the partner- water fund created jobs to miles (17,703 kilometers) of has been playing catch- ten consistent work through
ship, called the Rio Grande get the work done. Now, strategically placed fuel up, but that could become the projects financed by
Water Fund, doled out we know the true econom- breaks across several West- more challenging as the the Rio Grande Water
$855,000 to contractors in ic impact," said Steve Bas- ern states to control wild- Trump administration's pro- Fund. His company is based
the region. The spending sett, head of planning and fires across nearly 350,000 posed budget for the next in a small community near
supported an estimated data analysis for the advo- square miles (906,500 fiscal year calls for cutting the edge of the Cibola Na-
22 jobs, ranging from for- cacy group. square kilometers). funding for some research tional Forest in central New
est thinning to research, The organization and oth- The work will involve manu- and zeroing out spending Mexico.
environmental consulting ers have been pushing for al, mechanical and chemi- for certain forest restoration "I've been able to invest in
and fence removal. That land managers to consider cal treatments, including initiatives. more equipment and plan
translated to more than $1 more landscape-level res- prescribed fire and target- That could mean partner- for the future," he said.
million in labor income and toration work as a hedge ed grazing. It comes after ships like the Rio Grande "Employee stability trickles
$1.9 million in benefits for against climate change. In the agency set a record Water Fund will become down to the social fabric of
the regional economy. New Mexico, Colorado and last year for the number of more prevalent. Officials at our community."q
Spending in the area sup- other parts of the American
ported an estimated 15 West, officials persistent-
jobs and more than $1.1 ly warn that hotter, drier
million in economic output conditions are ingredients
for the 13 counties in the Rio for more intense fires and
Grande's upper watershed, those types of blazes can
according to the findings. cause more harm by dam-
In all, The Nature Conser- aging the soil and clogging
vancy, which launched the watersheds with ash, sedi-