An update on progress made to support locally led 

conservation and restoration efforts 

America the Beautiful

2023 Annual Report

Photo by NPS
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

Table of Contents

Letter to America ........................................................................................................................................ 3

I. Introduction........................................................................................................................................................................... 4 

Background on the America the Beautiful Initiative............................................................................................ 4 

Overview: Year Three of America the Beautiful .................................................................................................... 6 

II. Progress in Six Focus Areas .........................................................................................................................................13

Creating More Parks and Safe Outdoor Opportunities in Nature-Deprived Communities................13

Support Tribally Led Conservation and Restoration Priorities.....................................................................17

Expand Collaborative Conservation of Fish and Wildlife Habitats and Corridors ................................23

Increase Access for Outdoor Recreation.................................................................................................................36

Incentivize and Reward the Voluntary Conservation Efforts of Fishers, Ranchers, Farmers, and 

Forest Owners....................................................................................................................................................................40

Create Jobs by Investing in Restoration and Resilience ...................................................................................43

III. Conclusion .........................................................................................................................................................................52
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

Letter to America

Dear Reader: 

It is an honor to share with you this third annual report on President Biden’s America the 

Beautiful initiative, a decade-long, locally led campaign to conserve and restore the lands and 

waters on which we all depend, and that bind us together as a country. This report describes the 

exciting progress that has been made this year to deliver on the ambitious conservation agenda that 

the President launched in 2021. 

From restoring wetlands and building new parks to reconnecting wildlife habitat and expanding 

access to the outdoors, conservation efforts are accelerating across the country, to the benefit 

of families and communities everywhere. Much of this work is being made possible by the 

President’s Investing in America agenda, which, through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is 

delivering $1.4 billion for ecosystem restoration, aquatic connectivity, invasive species control, 

availability of native seeds for restoration, and much more. The President’s Inflation Reduction Act, 

the largest climate investment in history, has also been instrumental in driving the progress that 

you will read about in this report, including expanding urban tree cover, restoring our public lands 

for wildlife and recreation, and using nature-based solutions to bolster climate resilience in coastal 

communities, to name a few. 

As we reflect on the third year of the America the Beautiful initiative, we remain committed 

to the belief that everyone should have access to the benefits of nature; that every community’s 

contributions to the stewardship of our lands and waters should be supported, encouraged, and 

celebrated; and that the work we do to conserve our resources should honor and reflect all of this 

nation’s stories, cultures, and traditions. In March of 2023, we were proud to host the first 

Conservation in Action Summit at the Department of the Interior and to hear the President 

articulate his ambitious and inclusive vision for conservation, celebrate our nation’s extraordinary 

conservation accomplishments under his administration, and to challenge us to do all we can to 

help support and accelerate locally led, collaborative conservation. 

The enormous strides we have made together over the past year make me and my colleagues in the 

Biden-Harris administration confident and optimistic about our collective ability to achieve the 

ambitious conservation goals President Biden has challenged us to pursue. As the President noted 

during the first Conservation in Action Summit, “There is nothing beyond our capacity if we work 

together.” We look forward to continuing to share updates on our country’s proud conservation 

efforts as we continue our work to build a better future for all. 

Sincerely,

Brenda Mallory

Chair, White House Council on Environmental Quality 
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

I. Introduction

In 2023, the U.S. Federal family continued to support and advance locally led conservation 

and restoration efforts as part of the America the Beautiful initiative across the nation. As 

summarized in the America the Beautiful 2022 Annual Report, this call to action was born 

out of Executive Order 14008 on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad that 

President Biden signed during his 

first month in office. The President 

charged the Secretaries of the 

Departments of the Interior (DOI), 

Agriculture (USDA), and Commerce

(DOC), along with the Chair of the 

White House Council on 

Environmental Quality (CEQ), with 

the goal of conserving at least 30 

percent of our lands and waters by 

2030. 

As part of the America the Beautiful

initiative, the Biden-Harris 

administration committed to 

produce annual, publicly available 

reports. This report—the third on

America the Beautiful—provides an 

overview of activities that occurred 

in 2023 consistent with the goals and principles of the initiative. 

Background on the America the Beautiful Initiative

For years, scientists have sounded the alarm about the extinction crisis that threatens the 

health of the natural systems that supply our food, water, fiber, fuel, and other resources

and support an amazing diversity of life. This nature crisis exacerbates—and is 

exacerbated by—the impacts of climate change that are rapidly altering our terrestrial, 

freshwater and marine ecosystems. Nature-deprived communities across the nation bear 

the brunt of nature loss and climate change, resulting in disproportionate impacts to their 

health and well-being.

The America the Beautiful initiative is designed to strengthen the nation’s economy by 

addressing the interconnected climate and biodiversity crises and improving equitable 

access to nature. The initiative builds on America’s long tradition of collaborative 

stewardship to build a future where every person in the country can experience the 

opportunities provided by our nation’s cherished lands and waters. Locally led and 

President Biden at the 2023 White House Conservation in 

Action Summit. Photo by DOI.
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

partnership-driven, America the Beautiful supports conservation and restoration efforts 

across the country. 

Following the President’s Executive Order in January 2021, the Federal Government 

conducted listening sessions to inform the America the Beautiful initiative. A wide range of 

stakeholders provided input that supported the development of the America the Beautiful

initiative. As reflected in the initial report from May 2021, the input reflected significant 

agreement and shared values across many stakeholders, leaders, geographies, and political 

perspectives on the value of natural places and healthy ecosystems in the fight against 

climate change, in protecting clean drinking water and clean air, and in safeguarding an 

abundance and diversity of wildlife. The feedback also emphasized the belief that the 

country can and should be doing more to support and accelerate locally led conservation 

efforts of all kinds across the country, as well as the need to expand access to the outdoors 

and nature for all communities.

The input also illuminated strong agreement on a set of principles adopted as the 

foundation of the initiative. These eight principles guide the work that the Biden-Harris 

administration has done and will continue to do to advance conservation and restoration:

• Pursue a collaborative and inclusive approach to conservation;

Conserve America’s lands and waters for the benefit of all people;

Support locally led and locally designed conservation efforts; 

Honor Tribal sovereignty and support the priorities of Tribal Nations; 

Pursue conservation and restoration approaches that create jobs and support 

healthy communities; 

Honor private property rights and support the voluntary stewardship efforts of 

private landowners and fishers; 

Use science as a guide; and 

Build on existing tools and strategies with an emphasis on flexibility and adaptive 

approaches.

•

•

•

•

•

•

•

Additionally, stakeholders helped identify six areas ripe for successful collaboration 

through the initiative: creating more parks in underserved communities; supporting 

Tribally led conservation and restoration priorities; expanding collaborative conservation 

of fish and wildlife habitats and corridors; increasing access for outdoor recreation; 

rewarding voluntary conservation efforts of fishers, ranchers, farmers, and forest owners; 

and creating jobs by investing in restoration and resilience.

Within the Biden-Harris administration, the America the Beautiful Interagency Working 

Group is co-chaired by CEQ Chair Brenda Mallory, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, 

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. 

Together, they help coordinate and advance conservation and restoration work across the 

government—with many additional agencies playing significant roles. 
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

In year one, USDA made big investments to support conservation outcomes on private 

lands, enrolling more acres in Farm Bill conservation programs and making its programs 

easier to use and more responsive to the needs of farmers, ranchers, and other landowners. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) designated the Wisconsin 

Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary in Lake Michigan, initiated the designation 

process for the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of California and

expanded the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Additionally, DOI led action 

to facilitate Tribal co-stewardship on public lands, made big investments in new parks and 

outdoor spaces through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and furthered work with States 

and Tribes to conserve wildlife corridors. The first year, too, marked restorations of 

national monuments, including Bears Ears, in which President Biden reaffirmed the 

principle that once a place is protected, it is to be protected forever.

Progress continued in year two with the enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act, which 

reflects the most ambitious action taken on combatting the climate crisis in the nation’s 

history. Thanks to the historic funding, the administration launched the America the 

Beautiful Challenge as a “one-stop shop” competitive grant program to support 

conservation and restoration projects across the nation. On the policy front, the 

administration issued a new executive order on strengthening the nation’s forests, 

communities, and local economies; a plan for implementing nature-based solutions; firstof-its-kind government-wide guidance for Federal agencies to recognize and include 

Indigenous Knowledge; and interagency commitments to the Federal Interagency Council 

on Outdoor Recreation (FICOR), and the Nature in Communities Committee. President 

Biden welcomed three new national parks, signing the Amache National Historic Site Act,

the Brown v. Board of Education National Historical Park Expansion and Redesignation Act, 

and the Blackwell School National Historic Site. He also designated the first national 

monument of this administration, Camp Hale – Continental Divide National Monument in 

Colorado. The administration strengthened the system of protected public lands and 

waters with the establishment of the Lost Trail Conservation Area in Montana as the 568th 

unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS), and the Connecticut National 

Estuarine Research Reserve in the Long Island Sound. Additionally, the Federal family 

continued to strengthen public engagement, standing up the Hunting and Wildlife 

Conservation Council and a Marine and Coastal Area-based Management Advisory 

Committee.

Overview: Year Three of America the Beautiful

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration celebrated a wide range of locally led, 

partnership-driven efforts across the nation under the America the Beautiful initiative. 

Building upon the strong foundation laid in 2021 and 2022, the administration supported 

conservation of lands and waters through historic investments, new policies and initiatives, 

and new national parks, wildlife refuges, and other conservation actions. 
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Historic Investments

Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, historic investments are 

continuing to grow the American economy from the bottom up and middle out—from $392 

billion for upgrading public infrastructure and investing in clean energy, to driving over 

$600 billion in private sector manufacturing and clean energy investments in the United 

States, to creating good paying jobs and building an economy that will combat climate 

change, make communities more resilient, and address some of the legacies of racism and 

injustice. 

Combined, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act represent the 

largest investments in climate resilience in the nation’s history. On the two-year 

anniversary of the signing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, for example, DOI released a 

new analysis estimating that new and existing Department programs supported by the 

historic law supported 17,669 jobs on average and contributed an average of $2 billion to 

the economy each year.

Recently, in coordination with the release of the Fifth National Climate Assessment, 

President Biden announced more than $6 billion in investments to make communities 

across the country more resilient to the impacts of climate change, including by 

strengthening America’s aging electric grid infrastructure, reducing flood risk to 

communities, supporting conservation efforts, and advancing environmental justice.

These investments build on the significant resources provided through the Great American 

Outdoors Act (GAOA), a bipartisan investment that improves visitor experiences, bolsters 

climate resilience, and invests in the economy by creating good-paying jobs strengthening 

our national parks, wildlife refuges, recreation areas, and Bureau of Indian Education 

(BIE)-funded schools. For example, since 2021, Interior-led GAOA projects have supported 

an average of 17,000 jobs and generated an average of $1.8 billion for local economies 

annually. 

The Federal family also celebrated the second year of the America the Beautiful Challenge 

(ATBC), a competitive grant program made possible through President Biden’s Investing in 

America agenda, with funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, other Federal 

conservation programs, and private sources. This year, the Biden-Harris administration 

joined the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and public- and private-sector partners in 

announcing $141.3 million in grants through the ATBC. The 74 new grants announced 

support landscape-scale conservation projects across 46 States, three U.S. territories, and 

21 Tribal Nations, and generate at least $12 million in matching contributions for a total 

conservation impact of more than $153 million. Approximately 40 percent of 2023 grants 

and funding will support projects implemented by Indigenous communities, in line with 

President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative and emphasis on incorporating Indigenous 

Knowledge in addressing the climate and biodiversity crises. 
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This year, too, USDA issued more than $1.77 billion to agricultural producers and 

landowners through its Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), a critical piece of the 

Department’s efforts to support climate-smart agriculture and forestry on working lands. 

The CRP’s more than 667,000 participants received payments from USDA’s Farm Service 

Agency (FSA) for their voluntary conservation efforts on more than 23 million acres of 

private land, and between September 2021 and October 2023 CRP grew by 21 percent in 

terms of acres enrolled. 

The USDA also announced a commitment to invest at least $500 million over the next five 

years in wildlife conservation, leveraging its private lands conservation programs through 

its Working Lands for Wildlife (WLFW) effort. The funding will help deliver a series of 

cohesive Frameworks for Conservation Action, which establish a common vision across the 

partnership of public and private interests and goals for delivering conservation resources 

in a given ecosystem, combining cutting-edge science with local knowledge.

Additionally, DOI announced a restoration and resilience framework to guide strategic 

investments, catalyze coordination, drive meaningful outcomes, and advance climate 

resilience. Through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation 

Reduction Act, the Department is working to implement a more than $2 billion down 

payment to restore the nation’s lands and waters. 

New Policies and Initiatives

The Biden-Harris administration celebrated and announced new approaches and avenues 

for supporting conservation and restoration nationwide in line with the guiding principles 

and goals of the America the Beautiful initiative. The administration launched the American 

Climate Corps to train young people in clean energy, conservation, and climate resilience 

skills, to create good-paying jobs, and to tackle the climate crisis. This Corps will mobilize a 

new, diverse generation of more than 20,000 Americans. Seven Federal agencies – the 

Departments of Commerce, the Interior, Agriculture, Labor and Energy, the Environmental 

Protection Agency, and AmeriCorps – entered into a formal Memorandum of 

Understanding that will serve as a blueprint for the multiagency initiative.

The Biden-Harris administration followed through on the promise made on World Ocean 

Day in 2022 to develop and implement a first-ever, whole-of-government Ocean Climate 

Action Plan. The plan released this year outlines three goals that mobilize the Federal

Government and civil society to take effective and innovative ocean climate action: create a 

carbon-neutral future, without emissions that cause climate change and harm human 

health; accelerate solutions that tap the power of natural coastal and ocean systems to 

absorb and store greenhouse gases, reduce the climate threat, and protect communities 

and ecosystems against unavoidable changes; and enhance community resilience to ocean 

change by developing ocean-based solutions that help communities adapt and thrive in our 

changing climate.
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

Consistent with direction from Executive Order 14072, Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, 

Communities, and Local Economies, in December 2023, USDA announced a proposal to 

amend all 128 forest land management plans to conserve and steward old-growth forest 

conditions on national forests and grasslands nationwide. This will provide consistent 

direction across the Forest Service on how to conserve and restore old-growth forest 

conditions across the nation, and marks the first time that the Forest Service has adopted a 

nationwide forest plan amendment to guide new management direction on all national 

forests at once. Also, in December 2023, the Forest Service initiated the process to update 

the Northwest Forest Plan for climate resilience, including for mature and old forest 

ecosystems. In April 2023, USDA and DOI released the joint report “Old-Growth and Mature 

Forest: Definition, Identification, and Initial Inventory on Bureau of Land Management and 

Forest Service Lands.” The report established a comprehensive definition framework and 

an initial inventory that shows the distribution of mature and old-growth forests across

lands administered by the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management (BLM). In 

addition, the Forest Service published the “Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for 

National Forest and Grassland Climate Resilience,” asking for public input into how the 

Forest Service should adapt its current policies to protect, conserve, and manage national 

forests and grasslands for climate resilience. In response to Executive Order 14072, USDA 

and DOI also worked together to develop a “Reforestation Targets and Federal Cone and 

Seed Collection Strategy,” which recognizes the urgency to increase the rate of 

reforestation and to integrate the best available science and technology in the deployment 

of climate-informed reforestation techniques.

Additionally, BLM issued a proposal for public comment that would guide the balanced 

management of America’s public lands for the benefit of current and future generations. 

The proposed Public Lands Rule would, among other things, provide tools for BLM to 

improve the resilience of public lands in the face of a changing climate; conserve important 

wildlife habitat and intact landscapes; plan for development; and better recognize unique 

cultural and natural resources on public lands.

At the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on 

Climate Change, the Biden-Harris Administration unveiled the first-ever U.S. Ocean Justice 

Strategy to advance environmental justice for communities that rely on the ocean and 

Great Lakes for economic, cultural, spiritual, recreational, and food security purposes. For 

the first time, the Federal Government outlined how it will integrate principles of equity 

and environmental justice in federal ocean activities, including conservation, management 

of marine resources, and infrastructure projects.

New National Parks, Wildlife Refuges, and Other Conservation Actions

National Monuments

President Biden took action to establish four additional national monuments that protect 

historically and culturally significant areas and conserve our nation’s treasured outdoor 
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

spaces. At the White House Conservation in Action Summit in March, President Biden 

established two new national monuments: Avi Kwa Ame National Monument in Nevada 

and Castner Range National Monument in Texas. Avi Kwa Ame honors Tribal Nations and 

Indigenous peoples while conserving our public lands and growing America’s outdoor 

recreation economy. In Texas, Castner Range expands access to the outdoors for the El Paso 

community while honoring our nation’s veterans and servicemembers. 

In July, President Biden signed a 

proclamation establishing the 

Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley 

National Monument in Mississippi 

and Illinois. The new national 

monument will help tell the story of 

the events surrounding Emmett Till’s 

murder, their significance in the civil 

rights movement and American 

history, and the broader story of 

Black oppression, survival, and 

bravery in America. 

In August, President Biden 

established the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah 

Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the 

Grand Canyon National Monument in 

Arizona. This designation, which marked the fifth new national monument established by 

President Biden, honors Tribal Nations and Indigenous peoples by protecting sacred 

ancestral places and their historically and scientifically important features, while 

conserving our public lands, protecting wildlife habitat and clean water, and supporting 

local economies.

National Wildlife Refuges

In 2023, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland established two new national wildlife 

refuges, building on decades-long, locally led efforts to conserve habitat for species and 

maintain recreational access. The Wyoming Toad Conservation Area in Wyoming and the 

Paint Rock River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in Tennessee are the 569th and 570th 

units of the NWRS, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). 

Other Conservation Actions

In addition to these new designations, many agencies advanced locally led, partnershipdriven conservation efforts nationwide. In January 2023, the Biden-Harris administration 

announced actions to protect the Tongass National Forest in Alaska, the Boundary Waters 

Canoe Area Wilderness and surrounding watershed in Minnesota, and the Bristol Bay 

President Biden and Vice President Harris at the 

signing of the Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley 

National Monument. Photo by White House.
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

ecosystem in Alaska. These actions are among a series of steps the administration has 

taken to conserve and restore some of America’s most cherished lands and waters that are 

sacred to Tribal Nations.

The USDA finalized protections for the Tongass National Forest in Alaska, the world’s 

largest intact temperate rainforest. The final rule repealed the 2020 Alaska Roadless Rule 

and restored longstanding roadless protections to 9.37 million acres of roadless areas that 

support the ecological, economic, and cultural values of Southeastern Alaska. 

Responding to concerns regarding the potential impacts of mining on the area’s watershed, 

fish and wildlife, Tribal and treaty rights, and robust recreation economy, Secretary 

Haaland withdrew public lands in the Superior National Forest in northeastern Minnesota 

from disposition under the United States mineral and geothermal leasing laws for a 20-year 

period, subject to valid existing rights. This action helps to protect the Rainy River 

watershed, including the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and the 1854 Ceded 

Territory of the Chippewa Bands, from the potential adverse impacts of new mineral and 

geothermal exploration and development. 

Additionally, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a Final Determination 

under the Clean Water Act to help protect Bristol Bay, the most productive wild salmon 

ecosystem in the world. With this action, the Biden-Harris administration protected certain 

waters that are important to sustaining Southwest Alaska’s salmon resources from disposal 

of dredged or fill materials associated with developing the Pebble deposit.

The administration continued this momentum to advance landscape-scale conservation 

actions throughout the rest of the year. In March, President Biden used his executive 

authority to complete protections for the entire Beaufort Sea Planning Area in Alaska from

future extractive development. The withdrawal ensures protections for important habitat 

for whales, seals, polar bears, as well as for subsistence purposes. 

In June, Secretary Haaland took action to protect the cultural and historic resources 

surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park from new oil and gas leasing and 

mining claims. President Biden first announced efforts to protect the greater Chaco 

landscape at the White House Tribal Nations Summit in November 2021. The newly issued 

public land order withdrew public lands within a 10-mile radius of the park for 20 years, 

subject to valid existing rights, and responded to decades of efforts from Tribes, elected 

officials, and the public to better protect the sacred and historic sites of Tribal communities 

currently living in northwest New Mexico.

In September, the administration announced significant steps to protect the Arctic National 

Wildlife Refuge (Arctic Refuge) and more than 13 million acres in the National Petroleum 

Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A). In the Arctic Refuge, Secretary Haaland authorized the 

cancellation of the remaining seven oil and gas leases issued by the previous 

administration in the Coastal Plain. The leases were suspended in June 2021 following the 
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issuance of an earlier Secretary’s Order that identified legal concerns. The BLM also 

initiated a rulemaking to establish maximum protection for more than 13 million acres of 

ecologically sensitive, designated Special Areas in the NPR-A in recognition of their 

significant natural and historical values.

Additionally, this year NOAA continued to work on designations of six new national marine 

sanctuaries and two national estuarine research reserves. In March 2023, President Biden 

directed DOC to explore designation of a national marine sanctuary for the Pacific Remote 

Islands, and NOAA began the public scoping process in April. These islands and 

surrounding waters and reefs are home to an abundant and diverse array of marine life, as 

well as a rich cultural history of early Micronesian and Polynesian voyagers and World War 

II battles to present day exploration and research. NOAA received strong support for the 

proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of California during 

public scoping and released draft designation documents for further public comment, as 

well as a draft Indigenous Collaborative Management Framework to continue active and 

inclusive engagement with Tribes and other Indigenous community groups. Also, NOAA is 

nearing final designation for the Lake Ontario national marine sanctuary, which will 

protect the rich maritime heritage of the area, expected to be complete in early 2024. 

Sanctuary designation for Hudson Canyon, the largest submarine canyon along the U.S. 

Atlantic coast, moved forward with continued engagement with interested Tribes and with 

the establishment of a community-based advisory council. Designation processes are also 

ongoing for proposed sanctuaries in Lake Erie and Papahānaumokuākea (Northwestern 

Hawaiian Islands), and for proposed national estuarine research reserves in the 

Atchafalaya Basin in Louisiana and the Bay of Green Bay in Wisconsin. 
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II. Progress in Six Focus Areas

This section highlights work accomplished in 2023 to advance the six areas of focus within 

the America the Beautiful initiative. As in the past annual reports, the compilation here does 

not include all the efforts underway nor recognize all the ongoing partnerships with local, 

State, and Tribal governments as well as non-governmental organizations that advance 

partnership-driven, locally led conservation and restoration. Instead, it offers a snapshot of 

highlighted accomplishments from across the Federal family to both celebrate the work 

that has been accomplished and inform and inspire future conservation and restoration.

Creating More Parks and Safe Outdoor Opportunities in Nature-Deprived 

Communities

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration built on the foundation laid in 2021 and 2022 and 

continued to create more parks and safe outdoor opportunities in nature-deprived 

communities. Examples include:

• Executive Order on Revitalizing Our Nation’s Commitment to Environmental 

Justice for All: During his first week in office, President Biden launched the most 

ambitious environmental justice agenda in the nation’s history. To continue 

delivering on that vision, in 2023, President Biden signed an executive order further 

embedding environmental justice into the work of Federal agencies to achieve real, 

measurable progress that communities can count on.

Nature in Communities Committee: In its first full year, this interagency 

committee of 10 Federal departments and agencies continued working to advance 

the vision set out in the Memorandum of Understanding on Promoting Equitable 

Access to Nature in Nature-Deprived Communities as signed last year. This work 

included developing language and guidance that agencies can include in requests for 

proposals or notices of funding opportunities; developing resources for agency staff, 

grant recipients, and communities to integrate green infrastructure into their 

planning and programs; and holding roundtables in Chicago and New Orleans and 

engaging with community-based organizations, national organizations, and Federal, 

State, and local agencies.

Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership: The National Park Service (NPS) 

announced that it will distribute nearly $22 million in funding through the Outdoor 

Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) program for the redevelopment or creation 

of five new local parks that will serve communities across the nation. In addition, 

the NPS also announced a funding opportunity for more than $224 million in grant 

funding for next year, which represents the largest grant funding since the launch of 

the program, for local communities across the United States for the creation of new 

parks and trails, or substantial renovations to existing parks through the ORLP 

program.

•

•
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• Urban Tree Cover and Access to Green Spaces: In 2023, the Forest Service

announced more than $1 billion 

in competitive grants to plant 

and maintain trees, combat 

extreme heat and climate 

change, and improve access to 

nature in cities, towns, and 

suburbs where more than 84

percent of Americans live, work, 

and play. Communities in all 50 

States, the District of Columbia, 

and several U.S. territories and 

Tribal Nations received funding, 

covered by the Justice40 

Initiative and made possible by 

President Biden’s Inflation 

Reduction Act.

Urban Waters Federal 

Partnership: Led by EPA, this existing partnership among 15 Federal agencies 

continued its work throughout 2023 to help reconnect communities with their 

waterways by improving coordination and collaboration with community-led 

revitalization efforts and promoting their economic, environmental, and social 

benefits. This year, EPA, USDA, and DOI announced the Walnut Creek 

Watershed/Raleigh as the 21st Urban Waters Federal Partnership location, bringing 

resources together to work collaboratively with local partners to restore the Walnut 

Creek watershed and mitigate flood risk, support healthy people and ecosystems, 

enhance recreational opportunities, strengthen local economies, and create jobs. 

Additionally, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) announced an investment of $1.5 

million to improve urban waterways with science-based projects, which local 

partners will match with nearly $1.5 million in additional funds as part of the 

partnership. 

Community, Equity, and Resiliency Initiative: In 2023, EPA announced the launch 

of this initiative, a groundbreaking effort to help communities across the nation 

navigate EPA’s Inflation Reduction Act investments and other new funding 

opportunities made possible by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. This 

new initiative will facilitate community-driven partnerships and provide a space for 

communities to learn, connect, and cultivate ideas on how to access the historic 

resources, especially in low-income and disadvantaged communities. 

Bureau of Indian Education Tribal Community Schoolyards: At the 2022 White 

House Tribal Nations Summit, DOI announced a new partnership between BIE and 

Trust for Public Land to create culturally informed education spaces with a pilot of 

nine schools. In 2023, three schools signed memorandums of understanding, and 

•

•

•

USDA Secretary Vilsack and CEQ Chair Mallory

celebrating an historic investment to expand urban 

tree cover. Photo by USDA.
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

the new schoolyards in Tribal communities will combine nature, physical activity, 

education, Native languages, and cultural heritage based on local community 

engagement in the design process.

Urban Bird Treaty Program: In 2023, the FWS Urban Bird Treaty Program 

contributed $180,000 to support projects in seven cities, representing more than 

$310,000 from FWS and its partners combined that engage communities in habitat 

restoration and bird monitoring, education, and recreation and improve access to 

nature for diverse and underserved communities.

Urban Wildlife Conservation Program: The DOI announced a $1 million 

investment for conservation partnerships at Deer Flat NWR in southwest Idaho’s 

Treasure Valley, which is part of FWS’s Urban Wildlife Conservation Program 

supporting 101 urban refuges across the country that host more than 11.7 million 

people per year.

National Historic and Natural Landmarks: Secretary Haaland designated 16 new 

National Historic Landmarks and two new National Natural Landmarks, including 

Glenwood Caverns and Iron Mountain Hot Springs in Colorado and John Boyd 

Thacher State Park in New York. The designations reflect the importance of the sites 

in sharing America’s rich history and extraordinary natural features.

Land Use Innovation Grants: In 2023, the NPS, EPA, and Groundwork USA, a 

national nonprofit serving a network of local groundwork trust organizations, 

continued working on the commitment made and inaugural funding awarded in 

2022 to improving the natural and built environments of low-resource 

communities, through this grant initiative helping communities transform 

brownfields into parks, trails, and greenspace. 

NOAA Environmental Justice Strategy: In 2023, NOAA released its Fisheries 

Equity and Environmental Justice Strategy to increase coordination, communication, 

and engagement with underserved and underrepresented groups. Additionally, 

through Natural Resource Damage Assessment, NOAA and DOI secured nearly $93

million through settlements with polluters to restore natural resources, often in 

disadvantaged communities disproportionately affected by pollution. In 2023, 

construction began for creation of a five-acre riverfront park in the City of East 

Newark that will compensate the public for natural resource injuries by providing 

waterfront access and green space for communities along the lower Passaic River, a 

waterbody long impacted by industrial pollution. 

Mitigating Heat: In 2023, the National Integrated Heat Health Information System 

(NIHHIS) at NOAA issued a competitive funding opportunity from Inflation 

Reduction Act funds to expand the creation and implementation of actionable, placebased climate information for community heat resilience. The $5 million award will 

create two new NIHHIS Centers of Excellence to provide technical and other 

assistance in developing community science observations to inform equitable heat 

resilience action, and in planning, taking action on, and evaluating equitable heat 

resilience including through promoting equitable access to nature.

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• Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program: In 2023, NPS staff 

continued to build on the work of past years to provide free, on-location help 

through this program to 260 communities and public land managers who are 

working to create and restore parks, conservation areas, and brownfields. 

Completed projects helped restore rivers, wildlife habitats, and impaired resources; 

improve outdoor recreation; develop climate resiliency strategies; and support 

natural disaster recovery. 

Community Development Block Grants: In fiscal year 2023, the Department of 

Housing and Urban Development (HUD) provided more than $200 million in 

funding directed by States, cities, and counties to develop and improve parks and 

recreational facilities and to plant trees.

Choice Neighborhoods Grants: The HUD awarded $370 million in fiscal year 2023 

through the Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grants to eight communities 

throughout the country that have completed comprehensive local planning 

processes and are ready to implement plans to redevelop the neighborhood. Up to 

15 percent of funds awarded can be spent on activities to support the targeted 

neighborhood, including activities which impact the green environment and 

recreational amenities components such as parks, outdoor plazas, walking trails, 

outdoor performance space, playgrounds, public art, murals, kayak launch, and 

other community upgrades.

Reconnecting Communities: The Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded 

$185 million in funding for the Reconnecting Communities Program (RCP), the firstever Federal program dedicated to reconnecting communities that were previously 

cut off from opportunities by transportation infrastructure. The DOT released a 

second funding opportunity for the RCP combined with the Neighborhood Access 

and Equity Program totaling $3.35 billion, called the Reconnecting Communities and 

Neighborhoods Program, with similar goals of providing funding for projects that 

improve walkability, safety, and affordable transportation access and community 

connectivity, especially in disadvantaged or underserved communities. Under the 

RCP, the New York State Route 33 Kensington expressway project received more 

than $55.5 million to cap more than 4,000 feet of expressway and invest in green 

spaces, trees, and parkland for nature-deprived communities in the area.

AmeriCorps Expanding Access to Green Spaces: In 2023, AmeriCorps members 

engaged in expanding, maintaining, and restoring access to parks and public lands. 

The Conservation Corps North Carolina partnered with local high school students to 

build a network of walking trails and rain gardens in Princeville, North Carolina, the 

first Black town to be incorporated in the U.S. As part of the Lake Paradise Pathway 

Revitalization Project in Illinois, AmeriCorps members cleared trail corridors, 

developed trails, installed amenities, and established pollinator plots. In Vermont, 

AmeriCorps members completed several projects to improve the health of Vermont 

waters, forests, and trail networks and to make the outdoors more accessible to the 

public.

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• Pollinator Program: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) implemented a 

Pollinator Program in partnership with the General Services Administration in the 

District of Columbia. The program enhances the pollination of plants in the District 

of Columbia’s Ward 8, which includes many nature-deprived communities, and 

beekeepers from the DC Beekeepers Alliance have partnered with DHS to supply 

and maintain the apiaries.

• Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grant Programs: Through hazard mitigation 

programs such as the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program 

and Flood Mitigation Assistance program, the Federal Emergency Management 

Agency (FEMA) provides States, local communities, Tribes, and territories funding 

to address high-level future risks to natural disasters and funds projects such as the 

Jersey City McGovern Park Resilience Project in New Jersey, which received $3.84 

million to install a stormwater park that will reduce the risk of flooding and provide 

access to green space. The funding awarded in 2023 included 64 projects that use 

nature-based solutions for hazard mitigation. 

Support Tribally Led Conservation and Restoration Priorities

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration continued its work to honor Tribal sovereignty 

and support the priorities of Tribal Nations within the America the Beautiful initiative. 

Examples include:

• Avi Kwa Ame National Monument: President Biden signed a proclamation 

establishing the Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, honoring Tribal Nations and 

Indigenous peoples by protecting this sacred Nevada landscape and its historically 

and scientifically important features, while conserving our public lands and growing 

America’s outdoor recreation 

economy. Avi Kwa Ame is considered 

to be among the most sacred places 

on Earth by the Mojave, Chemehuevi, 

and some Southern Paiute people. 

The proclamation calls for BLM and 

NPS to manage the monument in 

partnership with Tribal Nations 

through a co-stewardship agreement.

Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – 

Ancestral Footprints of the Grand 

Canyon National Monument: 

President Biden established the Baaj 

Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral 

Footprints of the Grand Canyon 

National Monument in Arizona. The 

new monument conserves nearly one

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President Biden established the Baaj 

Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints 

of the Grand Canyon National Monument. 

Photo by DOI.
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million acres of public lands surrounding Grand Canyon National Park and managed 

by BLM and Forest Service, including thousands of cultural and sacred sites that are 

important to Tribal Nations in the Southwest – including the Havasupai Tribe, Hopi 

Tribe, Hualapai Tribe, Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, Las Vegas Paiute Tribe, Moapa 

Band of Paiutes, Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, Navajo Nation, San Juan Southern 

Paiute Tribe, Yavapai-Apache Nation, Pueblo of Zuni, and the Colorado River Indian 

Tribes.

Chaco Region: The DOI took action to protect the cultural and historic resources 

surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park from new oil and gas leasing 

and mining claims. President Biden first announced efforts to protect the greater 

Chaco landscape at the White House Tribal Nations Summit in November 2021. A 

new public land order withdraws public lands within a 10-mile radius of the park 

for 20 years, subject to valid existing rights, and responds to decades of efforts from 

Tribes, elected officials, and the public to better protect the sacred and historic sites 

and Tribal communities currently living in northwest New Mexico. The action was 

informed by extensive public engagement, including significant consultation with 

Tribal Nations. The Department is continuing to work on a broader discussion 

around the greater Chaco Landscape through the Honoring Chaco Initiative.

Placitas Area: The DOI announced a proposal by BLM to protect more than 4,000 

acres within the Placitas area in Sandoval County, New Mexico, to safeguard sacred 

Tribal lands, boost important local recreation opportunities, and support wildlife 

habitat connectivity. The Pueblos of San Felipe and Santa Ana have long sought 

protections for the Placitas area, which they consider ancestral and sacred lands, 

and the proposed mineral withdrawal would prevent new mining claims and oil and 

gas development in the area for a 50-year period, subject to valid existing rights. 

Advancing Tribal Co-Stewardship Policies: Since signing Joint Secretarial Order 

3403 committing to co-stewardship of Federal lands, waters and wildlife, the 

Departments of the Interior, Agriculture, and Commerce have continued advancing 

their efforts. At the 2023 Tribal Nations Summit, the Biden-Harris administration 

made announcements to build on work from this year and further promote support 

and respect for Tribal Nations through Federal policy by encouraging Nation-toNation partnerships with Tribal Nations, improving Federal employees’ 

understanding of Tribal sovereignty and treaty rights, streamlining critical federal 

processes that Tribal Nations rely on, renewing focus on the health, safety, and 

welfare of Native women, children and families, and making it easier for Tribal 

Nations to access and utilize federal dollars to provide vital services to their citizens. 

Co-Stewardship Agreements: In 2023, DOI, Forest Service, and DOC completed 

nearly 200 landmark co-stewardship agreements with Tribes, Alaska Native 

Corporations and consortiums, with more under development. A representative 

sample of the agreements include:

Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and BLM: The Blackfoot 

Watershed drainage co-stewardship project with the Confederated Salish 

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and Kootenai Tribes seeks to restore important Tribal cultural plants, camas 

and bitterroot. The Tribes and the BLM are also addressing Douglas fir 

encroachment on the habitat areas for these significant cultural plants. The 

Tribes have provided forestry crews to help with the encroachment and 

shared Indigenous Knowledge about the cultural plants, so the BLM has a 

deeper understanding of the plants’ meaning to the Tribes. 

Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate and FWS: The FWS held an event with the 

Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate to celebrate the signing of a memorandum of 

understanding between the two governments for the co-stewardship of the 

Waubay NWR. This collaboration will increase Tribal involvement in 

protecting, managing, and restoring culturally significant wildlife and plant 

species, while promoting culturally aware educational opportunities for 

Tribal members, students, and visitors to the Refuge. The memorandum of 

understanding commemorates a momentous effort to unite the conservation 

efforts of FWS with the Indigenous peoples of the area and reflects a shared 

vision for conservation, stewardship, and respect for cultural preservation. 

Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma and NPS: The Castillo de San 

Marcos National Monument in Florida is working closely with the Cheyenne 

and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, Kiowa Tribe, Comanche Nation, and Caddo 

Nation, to better interpret the 1886 imprisonment of Apache tribal members 

at Fort Marion. Inspired by the Honoring Historic Footprints Symposium 

hosted in November 2022, the Tribe and NPS are co-developing interpretive 

materials, including a brochure, and planning events for 2023.

Santa Clara Pueblo and Forest Service: The Forest Service entered a selfdetermination co-stewardship agreement with the Santa Clara Pueblo that 

builds upon the long-standing Tribal Forest Protection Act collaboration with 

Santa Clara. The 2023 agreement builds workforce capacity in the Pueblo 

community and meets the Pueblo’s need to care for their ancestral 

homelands through ecological restoration, reforestation, and fuels 

management that will reduce the risk of wildfire and utilize restoration 

byproducts to support community fuelwood needs fuels.

Winnemem Wintu Tribe and Department of Commerce: Representing the

Department of Commerce’s first Tribal co-stewardship agreement, NOAA, the 

California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe 

signed a co-stewardship agreement in May 2023 to restore Chinook salmon, 

including a call for the Tribe to contribute traditional ecological and practical 

knowledge of the species to the mountains north of Redding, California. 

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• Gravel to Gravel: In 2023, DOI announced an investment of more than $16 million 

over the next four years from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to 

enhance the resilience of ecosystems and salmon in Alaska’s Yukon, Kuskokwim, 

and Norton Sound region through co-stewardship with Alaska Native Tribes. This 

investment includes $5 million in Tribal grants to support Tribes in building a 
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strong foundation for co-stewardship, bring Tribal partner voices, Indigenous 

Knowledge, and local expertise into the planning and decision-making process. 

Through a public-private partnership, Native Americans in Philanthropy provided 

additional matching funding for the Tribes. These investments serve as a catalyst

and a model for additional public and private sector investments in the region and 

in the foundational planning, science, and restoration projects needed to respond to 

the salmon crisis and to heal the broader ecosystem through co-stewardship. 

Through these investments, the Department also launched a new Gravel to Gravel 

Keystone Initiative, a mountains-to-the-sea restoration approach, unveiled as part 

of a restoration and resilience framework guiding $2 billion in investments from the 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act to restore lands and 

waters and advance climate resilience.

Bison Restoration: In 2023, DOI announced several new steps to restore wild and 

healthy populations of American bison and the prairie grassland ecosystem. 

Through a new Secretary’s Order 3410 and over $25 million from the Inflation 

Reduction Act, the Department is empowering its bureaus and partners to use the 

best available science and Indigenous Knowledge to help restore bison across the 

country. The funding will support Tribally led efforts to strengthen bison 

conservation and restoration of grassland habitats. The funding advances the 

Department’s new Grasslands Keystone Initiative, which is also part of the

restoration and resilience framework. 

Salmon Restoration: In September 2023, President Biden signed a Presidential 

Memorandum to prioritize the restoration of healthy and abundant wild salmon, 

steelhead, and other native fish populations to the Columbia River Basin. The 

Presidential Memorandum recognizes the important benefits that the Columbia 

River provides to communities and businesses throughout the region. In 2023, the 

Biden-Harris Administration also announced two historic agreements that support 

the goals in the Presidential Memorandum. In September, the Administration 

announced a historic agreement to support Tribally-led efforts to restore healthy 

and abundant salmon populations in the Upper Columbia River Basin. The 

agreement between the United States, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville 

Reservation, the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, and the Spokane Tribe of Indians will fund 

efforts to ultimately reintroduce salmon in blocked habitats in the Upper Basin. In 

addition, in December, the Administration announced a historic agreement to work 

in partnership with the States of Oregon and Washington; the Nez Perce, Umatilla, 

Warm Springs, and Yakama Tribes; and environmental non-profit organizations to 

restore wild salmon populations, expand Tribally-sponsored clean energy 

production, and provide stability for communities that depend on the Columbia 

River System.

Columbia Estuary Ecosystem Restoration Program: The Columbia Estuary 

Ecosystem Restoration Program (CEERP) was established in 2000 by BPA and the 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to conserve and restore ecosystems of the 

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lower Columbia River and estuary. In 2023, BPA and USACE invested approximately 

$9 million in restoration and associated research and monitoring and also 

completed 45.7 acres of habitat reconnection and restoration. The CEERP is part of a 

multi-state, multi-agency partnership that supports the successful reestablishment 

of healthy, self-sustaining populations of salmonids in the wider ecosystem. Longterm CEERP objectives of increased estuarine habitat opportunities and quality for 

salmonid juvenile life stages will also effectively support the success of Tribally led 

salmon reintroduction efforts in the Upper Columbia River Basin.

Indigenous Knowledge in Historic Preservation: In 2023, the Advisory Council 

on Historic Preservation (ACHP) developed a draft policy statement on Indigenous 

Knowledge after conducting 12 listening sessions and outreach opportunities in 

2023 with Indian Tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, Federal agency personnel, 

and State and Tribal Historic Preservation Officers. The policy statement will 

establish a set of standards and guidelines regarding the role Indigenous Knowledge 

has in the historic preservation decision-making process, including site 

management, mitigation of adverse effects to religious or culturally significant 

landscapes, and consideration of sacred sites and other properties that may be of 

religious and cultural significance to Tribes.

Replacement of Derogatory Names: The DOI announced the outcome of the Board 

on Geographic Names’ vote to change the name of Mt. Evans in Colorado so that it no 

longer bears the name of a former governor who was closely linked to the Sand 

Creek Massacre of Native Americans in 1864.

Climate Resilience:

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o Climate Resilience and Relocation Planning: In 2023, through its Tribal 

Climate Resilience Program, DOI announced the availability of $120 million 

in funding through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to help 

Tribal communities plan for the most severe climate-related environmental 

threats to their homelands. Tribal communities can use this funding to 

proactively plan to adapt to these threats and safely relocate critical 

community infrastructure. This is one of the largest amounts of annual 

funding made available to Tribes and Tribal organizations in the history of 

the Tribal Climate Annual Awards Program in the Bureau of Indian Affairs 

(BIA). 

o Coastal Habitat Restoration and Climate Resilience Priorities: In the first 

round of funding competitions in 2023, NOAA awarded more than $26.3 

million for 15 projects to be led by Tribal applicants for fish passage and to 

build Tribal organizational capacity. In the second round of funding 

competitions, NOAA will fund up to $84 million in Tribal Priority Fish 

Passage Projects and up to $20 million for Tribes through the Habitat 

Restoration and Coastal Resilience for Tribes and Underserved Communities 

funding competition through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation 

Reduction Act.
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• Native American Lands Environmental Mitigation Program: In fiscal year 2023, 

the Department of Defense (DoD) entered into Cooperative Agreements with 14 

federally recognized Tribes, including nine in Alaska. Through this program, DoD 

awarded $15.5 million, which will address environmental impacts to Tribal lands 

from past military activities. 

International Workshop on Indigenous Perspectives: In 2023, as a result of a 

workshop in 2022 on Indigenous perspectives, the State Department funded the 

International Visitor Leadership Program for several Indigenous community 

representatives and protected area agency officials from Chile to the United States. 

They met with NPS, NOAA, and Native American and Native Alaskan representations

to continue discussions on strategies for co-stewardship of marine, coastal, and 

terrestrial protected areas.

Pollution Management Grants: In 2023, the EPA awarded a total of $13.8 million 

in Clean Water Act section 319 funding to support Tribally led efforts to protect and 

restore waters from nonpoint source pollution. Grants went to seven federally 

recognized Tribes to support Tribally led efforts to develop and implement the Gulf 

Hypoxia Action Plan under the Gulf Hypoxia Program.

Tribal Transportation Funding: The DOT supported efforts to improve 

transportation and access for Tribes across the country. For example, with more 

than $589 million in this program available in fiscal year 2023, the funds help 

support Tribal priorities to improve community access to parks, natural areas, and 

other outdoor opportunities, including areas of traditional or cultural importance.

Tribal Wildlife Grants: In 2023, the FWS awarded more than $6.4 million to 

federally recognized Tribes to benefit fish and wildlife resources and their habitats. 

The funding will support 36 Tribes for conservation projects across 17 States, 

benefiting a wide range of wildlife and habitat, including species of cultural or 

traditional importance to Indigenous communities. 

Tribal Forest Protection Act: The USDA announced more than $12 million from 

the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in investments in fiscal year 2023 to complete 

projects in support of the Tribal Forest Protection Act. Projects have been selected 

to support a range of activities focused on forest and grassland restoration. Work 

will include vegetation management, hazardous fuels risk reduction, and cultural 

and ethnobotanical surveys on Indigenous landscapes.

Tribal Fish Hatcheries: The BIA announced the investment of $10 million through 

President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda to support Tribal fish hatchery 

programs. The funding expands the bureau’s Fish Hatchery Maintenance Program, 

which provides competitive funding to federally recognized tribes to maintain, 

enhance, and upgrade fish hatcheries.

Tribal Restoration Projects: The USACE advanced significant efforts in 2023 to 

support Tribal restoration efforts. Examples include:

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o Missouri River: The Lower Brule Sioux Tribe and USACE completed 

construction on the first project in USACE’s Tribal Partnership Program to 
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investigate potential solutions to shoreline erosion, restore nationally and 

culturally significant degraded environmental habitat, and re-establish 

cultural and recreational connectivity to the river and native plants that are

culturally important to the Tribe. These features will help restore natural 

habitats, protect the Tribal land, and provide safe water access for Tribal 

members to the Missouri River.

o Elim Subsistence Harbor: The USACE signed a design agreement for 

improvements to the Elim Subsistence harbor, located in a remote Inupiat 

Village north of Nome, Alaska. The project will help make the village more 

resilient and sustainable in the face of a changing climate and improve the 

overall long-term viability of the community.

Expand Collaborative Conservation of Fish and Wildlife Habitats and Corridors

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration continued its work to enhance fish and wildlife 

habitat nationwide through close coordination and partnership with States, Tribes, local 

communities, and willing private landowners. Examples include:

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Bristol Bay Salmon Fisheries: In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration 

announced action to help protect the Bristol Bay Salmon Fisheries when EPA issued 

a Final Determination under the Clean Water Act to help conserve the area, which 

contains one of the economically and culturally significant wild salmon fisheries in 

the world.

Tongass National Forest: In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration finalized 

actions to conserve the Tongass National Forest in Alaska, the world’s largest intact 

temperate rainforest. The USDA’s final rule repealed the 2020 Alaska Roadless Rule 

and restores longstanding roadless protections to 9.37 million acres of roadless 

areas that support the ecological, economic, and cultural values of Southeastern 

Alaska.

Wildlife Corridors Guidance: The CEQ issued new guidance to Federal agencies on 

how to better incorporate ecological connectivity and wildlife corridors into federal 

planning and decision-making. The guidance highlights the importance of 

connectivity across terrestrial, marine, and freshwater habitats, encouraging 

collaboration across management and ownership boundaries with States, Tribes, 

local governments, and private landowners.

Landscape Health and Conservation Proposed Rule: The DOI published a 

proposal this year to guide the balanced management of America’s public lands for 

the benefit of current and future generations. The proposed Landscape Health and 

Conservation Rule would, among other things, provide tools for BLM to improve the 

resilience of public lands in the face of a changing climate; conserve important 

wildlife habitat and intact landscapes; plan for sustainable local economic 

development; and better recognize unique cultural and natural resources on public 

lands.

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• Action to Protect Alaska’s Arctic

o Beaufort Sea: The Biden-Harris administration issued a withdrawal of 

certain areas off the United States Arctic Coast of the Outer Continental Shelf 

from Oil or Gas Leasing. This withdrawal of approximately 2.8 million acres 

of the Beaufort Sea ensures the entire United States Arctic Ocean is off limits 

to new oil and gas leasing.

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: The DOI took action to protect the Arctic 

National Wildlife Refuge by canceling the remaining seven oil and gas leases 

issued by the previous administration in the Coastal Plain. The leases were 

suspended in June 2021 following the issuance of Secretary’s Order 3401, 

which identified legal deficiencies.

National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska: The Biden-Harris administration is 

considering actions in the NPR-A to better protect for the more than 13 

million acres of Special Areas in the reserve, while supporting subsistence 

activities for Alaska Native communities. 

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• Enhancements of Public Lands and Waters: The Federal family celebrated the 

expansion and addition of public lands and waters that improve and connect 

habitats and corridors as well as increase access to nature and outdoor recreation.

Across the Federal family, some highlights of expansions from 2023 include:

o Wyoming Toad Conservation Area: The FWS established the Wyoming 

Toad Conservation Area in the Laramie Plains of the Wyoming Basin as the 

569th unit of the NWRS. The refuge supports the protection of habitat critical 

for the survival of the Wyoming toad, one of the most endangered 

amphibians in North America. The area is also important for the 

conservation of other species, including the white-tailed prairie dog, 

pronghorn and migratory birds. The acquisition will provide future public 

access to the Laramie River and opportunities for outdoor recreation, 

including hiking, fishing, hunting, and wildlife observation.

Paint Rock River National Wildlife Refuge: The FWS established the Paint 

Rock River NWR in Tennessee as the 570th unit of the NWRS. The refuge 

serves as a critical link between nearby State and nonprofit conservation 

lands in Tennessee and Alabama that help conserve the Paint Rock River 

watershed and one of the largest contiguous tracts of hardwoods remaining 

in eastern North America. The Paint Rock River NWR is part of a unique 

ecosystem with a high diversity of aquatic, terrestrial, and karst habitats that 

support threatened and endangered species including gray bats, Indiana 

bats, Tennessee cave salamanders, and Alabama cave shrimp. Its waters are 

home to 100 species of fish and 50 kinds of freshwater mussels, including 

some that are found nowhere else in the world.

Middle Mississippi National Wildlife Refuge: The FWS announced an 

expanded acquisition boundary for the Middle Mississippi River NWR in 

Missouri and Illinois, which allows the Service to acquire up to 90,000 acres 

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of land purchases from interested landowners who are willing sellers within 

the expanded boundary. The refuge expansion will provide for the protection 

and restoration of large, connected areas of floodplain hardwood forest. It 

also will provide additional important habitat for migratory birds and federal 

threatened and endangered species, as well as land and river access for 

hunters, anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts. These priorities all 

contribute to fulfilling the mission of the NWRS.

San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge: The FWS acquired 5,636 acres at 

San Bernard NWR in Texas, connecting an existing 4,800 acres of NWRS 

lands to form the largest protected piece of Columbia Bottomlands in 

southeast Texas. Columbia Bottomlands habitat is a critically important area 

for millions of migrating birds that use it as a staging area between wintering 

habitats in the Caribbean and South America and breeding habitats in North 

America.

Green River National Wildlife Refuge: The FWS acquired 1,335 acres for 

the Green River NWR in Henderson County, Kentucky. The lands along the 

Green River experience regular backwater flooding. Thousands of waterfowl 

winter in the area, including mallards, northern pintails, gadwalls, widgeons, 

northern shovelers, blue and green-winged teal, wood ducks, Canada geese, 

white-fronted geese, and snow geese. 

Shenandoah National Park: In 2023, NPS officially commemorated the 

2022 donation of nearly 1,000 acres of woodlands from the Shenandoah 

National Park Trust, which includes the headwaters of Naked Creek in the 

Tanners Ridge area of Page County.

Big Cypress National Preserve: In 2023, NPS acquired more than 14,000 

acres for the Big Cypress National Preserve in southern Florida. The 

freshwater wetland ecosystem provides habitat to a diverse mixture of 

wildlife and protects the flow of freshwater into estuaries of the neighboring 

Everglades National Park and Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife 

Refuge. 

Cape Hatteras National Seashore: In 2023, the NPS purchased two 

oceanfront properties at Cape Hatteras National Seashore containing beach 

homes that faced a precarious threat of being swept away into the ocean. As 

climate change exacerbates sea level rise, storm intensity and frequency, and 

erosion, these oceanfront homes pose threats to park resources and visitor 

safety. The acquisition of threatened structures allows for better protection 

of wildlife habitat, scenic views, and recreational opportunities at the park. 

New River Gorge National Park and Preserve: At New River Gorge 

National Park and Preserve, the NPS acquired nearly 1,000 acres, including 

more than 800 acres of unfragmented forest. The acquisition also preserves 

views of the largest waterfall on the New River. 

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o North Umpqua Wild and Scenic River: The BLM acquired 216 acres along 

the North Umpqua Wild and Scenic River, which will allow BLM to help 

maintain and enhance the outstanding nature of the North Umpqua River 

and support its fish habitat, water quality and quantity, recreation 

opportunities, and scenic and cultural values.

Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument: The BLM acquired 640 

acres with the Cottonwood Creek parcel of the monument. This inholding 

acquisition alleviates the immediate threat of disease transmission to local 

desert bighorn sheep, preserves the remote character and natural resources 

of the area, and assures continued outstanding recreation opportunities.

John Day Wild and Scenic River and Oregon National Historic Trail

The BLM acquired approximately 4,000 acres of property along the lower 

John Day Wild and Scenic River. This property expands public recreation 

opportunities along the river, located near McDonald’s Crossing in a historic 

location where thousands of emigrants traveling west on the Oregon Trail 

traversed the Lower John Day River. 

Fermilab Prairie: The Department of Energy (DOE) Fermi National 

Acceleratory Laboratory in Illinois received a DOE Sustainability Award for 

its partnership with organizations dedicated to maintaining the health of 

restored prairie at Fermilab. Through a cooperative research and 

development agreement, Fermilab has been able to maintain its iconic 

National Environmental Research Park and 4,000 acres of natural areas 

containing more than 1,200 acres of restored prairie. Fermilab and its 

partners help preserve biodiversity of flora and fauna, monitor trends over 

time, and protect diverse wildflowers that promote pollinators among many 

other benefits.

Oak Ridge Reservation: Researchers at the DOE Oak Ridge National 

Laboratory in Tennessee have developed high-resolution landscape 

connectivity models and identified priority management areas on the DOE 

Oak Ridge Reservation. Researchers worked closely with land management 

and natural resources personnel to integrate ecological modeling with 

broader land use priorities, monetary costs, and feasibility.

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• Wildlife Conservation Commitments: In 2023, USDA announced that it will 

expand its work on wildlife conservation by investing at least $500 million over the 

next five years and by leveraging all available conservation programs, including the 

CRP, through its WLFW effort. The USDA will update three existing WLFW 

frameworks in the Sagebrush Biome, Great Plains Grasslands, and Northern 

Bobwhite, Grasslands and Savannas to newly integrate FSA’s CRP, and the USDA will 

also work with partners on the ground to develop four new frameworks to be 

released in 2024-25 focused on migratory big game, deciduous forests, aquatic 

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• Endangered Species Act Anniversary: The DOI spent 2023 with significant and 

regular amplification of the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act. In 

addition to speeches and events featuring Secretary Haaland and other leaders, 

examples include:

o Endangered Species Recovery Planning: The DOI announced a $62.5 

million investment from the Inflation Reduction Act to help plan for 

endangered species recovery efforts that will be implemented over the next 

several years to benefit more than 300 species currently listed under the 

Endangered Species Act.

Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund: The DOI announced 

more than $40.6 million in grants through FWS to 10 States and the U.S. 

Virgin Islands to support land acquisition and conservation planning projects 

on over 7,200 acres of habitat for 65 listed and at-risk species through the 

Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund. These grants will be 

matched by more than $17.6 million in partner funds.

Species Recovery Regulations: The DOI announced significant action to 

better facilitate species recovery by providing more flexibility for the 

introduction of threatened and endangered species to suitable habitats 

outside their historical ranges. The FWS finalized revisions to section 10(j) 

regulations under the Endangered Species Act that will help improve the 

conservation and recovery of imperiled ESA-listed species in the coming 

decades, as growing impacts from climate change and invasive species cause 

habitats within species’ historical ranges to shift or become unsuitable.

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• Mature and Old-Growth Forests: The USDA and DOI announced actions to foster 

forest conservation, enhance forest resilience to climate change, and inform 

policymaking on ensuring healthy forests on federally managed lands administered 

by the Forest Service and BLM. To support these actions, USDA and DOI worked 

together to develop several reports, as directed by President Biden’s Executive 

Order 14072, Strengthening the Nation’s Forests, Communities, and Local Economies, 

which he signed on Earth Day 2022. The Forest Service also held a public comment 

period with an advance notice of proposed rulemaking about how the Forest Service

should adapt policies to conserve and manage the national forests and grasslands 

for climate resilience.

Northwest Forest Plan Federal Advisory Committee: The USDA established and 

appointed members to a new Federal Advisory Committee to provide advice and 

recommendations on modernizing landscape management across national forests 

within the Northwest Forest Plan area in Washington, Oregon and Northern 

California.

Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program: The DOT’s Federal Highway Administration 

announced $110 million in grants for 19 wildlife crossing projects in 17 states, 

including four Indian Tribes. The funding is made possible by a new program in 

President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and can support projects that 

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construct wildlife crossings over and below busy roads, add fencing, acquire 

tracking and mapping tools, and more. Projects funded by this program reduce 

wildlife crashes, which will reduce the economic impact caused by wildlife crashes 

(such as loss of income, medical costs, property damage, and decline in productivity 

and quality of life) while simultaneously improving habitat connectivity to sustain 

the environment and improve the overall safety of the traveling public.

• Federal Partnerships:

o Interagency Coordination on Fish Passage: President Biden’s Investing in 

America agenda includes more than a $3 billion investment in fish passage 

and aquatic connectivity projects, including funding from the Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. Federal agencies are 

actively coordinating effective delivery of fish passage funding across the 

nation through regular meetings, information sharing, and interagency 

review panels for funding opportunities. Examples from this year include:

 National Fish Passage Program: In 2023, FWS announced a $35 

million investment in fiscal year 2023 funding from the Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law for 39 projects in 22 States, and also announced 

the availability of up to $36 million in fiscal year 2024 funding. 

Funded projects will address outdated, unsafe, or obsolete dams, 

culverts, levees, and other barriers fragmenting our nation’s rivers 

and streams. This funding is part of the Department’s five-year $200 

million commitment to restore free-flowing waters, allowing fish 

migration and protecting communities from flooding rivers and 

streams through the National Fish Passage Program. As of the end of 

fiscal year 2023, 18 barriers had been removed and 271 stream miles 

had been reopened through Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding. 

When completed, projects funded in 2022 and 2023 will address 212 

barriers and open over 6,200 stream miles. 

NOAA Fish Passage Projects: In the first round of funding 

competitions, NOAA announced nearly $105 million in funding for 36 

new fish passage projects under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, 

including significant funding to implement fish passage projects that 

meet Tribal priorities and build Tribal organizational capacity as 

mentioned earlier. In the second round of funding competitions, up to 

$174 million in funding is available for fish passage projects and up to 

$84.5 million for restoring Tribal priority fish passage projects.

Coastal Zone and National Estuarine Research Reserve Projects: 

In 2023, NOAA announced the distribution of $109.4 million in funds 

from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act to 

support coastal habitat restoration and conservation projects and 

capacity-building. This includes 33 projects across coastal States and 

territories, and at least eight of these projects—totaling more than 

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$20 million—will be carried out in partnership with, or directly by, 

Tribes, including the acquisition and conservation of ecological and 

culturally significant ancestral lands.

The National Fish Habitat Partnership: A collaboration of Federal, 

State, and Tribal governments, as well as non-governmental and 

research organizations, the National Fish Habitat Partnership 

supports nationwide gains for fish habitat, aquatic communities, and 

recreational anglers through 20 diverse Fish Habitat Partnerships. In 

2023, FWS facilitated the distribution of more than $5 million to 102

projects through the broad network of Fish Habitat Partnerships 

across the country, and NOAA supported four specific coastal 

partnership projects that enhance collaboration with recreational 

fishing communities, as well as protect and restore important fish 

habitat. In addition to the funding provided by FWS and NOAA, 

partners provided more than $54 million to support these projects, 

representing a nearly 9:1 leveraged match for projects funded 

through the partnerships.

Culvert Grants: In 2023, the DOT’s Federal Highway Administration 

announced a total of $196 million in funding going to 59 Tribal, State, 

and local governments to fix or remove 169 culvert barriers to 

improve fish passage. Such projects will not only improve habitat 

connectivity for fish, but also reduce road flood risk and ensure 

connectivity for human communities. 

Collaborative Aquatic Landscape Restoration and Legacy Roads 

and Trails: In August 2023, the Forest Service announced more than 

$65 million of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law investments to improve 

water quality, roads, trails and fish habitat through the Collaborative 

Aquatic Landscape Restoration Program and the Legacy Roads and 

Trails program. Projects enhance the resiliency of aquatic systems to 

better withstand increased visitation pressure and climate changerelated conditions. 



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o Forest Service Keystone Agreements: The Forest Service established 

several national keystone agreements to support habitats nationwide using 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act funding with 

multiple partners. Examples include:

 Forests and Grasslands: A $50 million Keystone Agreement with the 

National Wild Turkey Federation supports a 20-year national master 

stewardship agreement to protect communities, improve forest 

health, wildlife habitat, and water quality on national forests and 

grasslands. 

 Watersheds: A $40 million Keystone Agreement with Trout 

Unlimited funds watershed restoration treatments in priority and 
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source watersheds to protect natural infrastructure and support 

wildfire resiliency, while accomplishing Justice40 objectives. 

Migration Corridors: A $60 million Keystone Agreement with the 

Mule Deer Foundation in the first 5 years focuses on implementing 

ecological restoration work and leverages investments with other 

Federal, State, Tribal, and private sector partners. Treatments include 

habitat management along the important mule deer seasonal 

migration corridors for the summer range managed by Forest Service

and the winter range managed by private landowners.

Reforestation: A $20 million Keystone Agreement with American 

Forests will support climate-smart reforestation on National Forest 

System lands. 





o Migration Paths: The DOI announced nearly $4 million in grants along with 

$9.2 million in matching contributions for 13 projects in nine States that will 

help secure key migration paths and restore critical wildlife habitats. 

Together, more than $13 million will be invested to protect pronghorn, elk, 

mule deer, and other iconic species across the American West. The grants are 

made possible through the Improving Habitat Quality in Western Big Game 

Migration Corridors and Habitat Connectivity program established following 

Secretary’s Order 3362. The program is administered by the National Fish 

and Wildlife Foundation in part through annual appropriations funding from 

the BLM, FWS, and USDA.

Invasive Species Advisory Committee: Newly appointed members of the 

Invasive Species Advisory Committee met for the first time since being 

disbanded in 2019 to discuss strategies to prevent, eradicate, and control 

invasive species, which impose substantial costs on society and cause 

damages that impact the global economy, including an estimated $120 billion 

in environmental damages and losses annually in the United States. The 

Council comprises the senior leadership of 12 Federal departments and 

agencies, and four executive offices of the President. Co-chairs are the 

Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture and Commerce. The interagency body 

provides the vision and national leadership to coordinate, sustain and 

expand Federal efforts to safeguard the interests of the United States through 

the prevention, eradication, and control of invasive species, and through the 

restoration of ecosystems and other assets impacted by invasive species.

o

o National Seed Strategy for Rehabilitation and Restoration: The BLM

continued to advance its public-private collaboration with hundreds of 

partners to protect native plants and develop native seed for restoration. In 

2023, a variety of efforts progressed: BLM signed a Memorandum of 

Understanding with the NPS and FWS to collaborate in Seeds of Success, a 

Justice40-covered program that collects native seed across the United States 

for ecosystem restoration. This agreement nearly doubled the native seed 
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collecting teams from 36 in 2022 to 60 collecting teams in 2023, and it 

supported teams from Justice40 communities, including Tribal Nations and 

underserved populations. The Office of Wildland Fire also approved over $28 

million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds for 26 projects to support 

burned area rehabilitation by proactively developing native seeds and plant 

materials for all DOI agencies. Additionally, BLM’s Plant Conservation and

Restoration Program sponsored the 2023 National Native Seed Conference in 

Washington, D.C., with more than 500 attendees from 48 States and 9 

countries to discuss the restoration seed supply chain, and DOI’s National 

Seed Strategy Keystone Initiative focused its fiscal year 2023 funding on 

native seed collections, native seed commercial production, and ecoregional 

programs.

Recovery and Sustainment Partnership: This DoD initiative, which 

manages habitats across the country in collaboration with DOI, continued to 

support efforts to better address the dynamic between protected species and 

mission activities. In 2023, the partnership focused on improving the 

conservation status of more than 40 species and celebrated the recovery of 

numerous species. In 2023, DoD and FWS continued to implement nine 

species action plans affecting 40 installations and ranges to address the most 

urgent conservation needs for DoD mission-priority species that will impact 

over 100 installations and ranges.

Whitebark Pine Restoration: In 2023, the NPS and American Forests 

announced the signing of a five-year agreement to help return threatened 

whitebark pine to its range in the northern Rocky Mountains. The 

partnership, made possible through funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, 

supports restoration activities in national parks where whitebark pine grow, 

and advances the National Seed Strategy. 

Army Corps of Engineer Partnerships: The USACE signed and began 

implementing new national memoranda of understanding with Trout 

Unlimited and the Back Country Hunters and Anglers. The Trout Unlimited 

memorandum of understanding provides a foundation for collaboration 

related to the protection, restoration, and management of cold-water 

fisheries. The Back Country Hunters and Anglers memorandum of 

understanding provides a framework to develop and expand interest in 

wildlife-dependent outdoor recreation and sustainable wildlife habitat.

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• Ecosystem Management and Planning: The USACE funded more than $43 million 

in fiscal year 2023 providing more than $24 million to manage and improve public 

lands and waters specific to wildlife and habitat management, more than $10 

million to pest and invasive species management, more than $7 million to forest 

management, and more than $1 million to fisheries management. Work effort 

associated with this funding resulted in the planned treatment of nearly 400,000 
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acres for invasive species, the management of over 1.5 million acres for wildlife 

habitat, and the improvement of nearly 240,000 acres for habitat purposes.

National Environmental Research Parks: The approximately 200,000-acre 

Savannah River Site (SRS), the first of seven National Environmental Research Parks

(NERP) designated by the DOE, continued its efforts to support environmental 

stewardship and conservation efforts in South Carolina. In 2023, the Savannah River 

Ecology Laboratory, a University of Georgia research unit, collaborated with a wide 

variety of Federal, State, and private partners to advance habitat restoration and 

conservation efforts and proposed a bold new undergraduate and graduate 

experiential learning program called the NERP Scholars Program focused on

addressing environmental justice issues surrounding the SRS by providing 

enhanced educational opportunities to students from local communities.

Sustainable Climate-Ready Sites: The DOE’s Sustainable Climate-Ready Sites 

Initiative recognizes participating sites for excellence in natural resource and 

habitat conservation, improvements in adaptation and resilience to climate change, 

and other environmental benefits. For fiscal year 2023, the voluntary program 

covered approximately 2.4 million acres of DOE-managed land, and twelve sites 

signed on to the initiative, representing all DOE program offices with operations on 

DOE-managed land. 

State Wildlife Grants: In 2023, FWS distributed more than $64 million in fiscal year 

2023 annual funding to States, territories, and the District of Columbia through the 

State Wildlife Grant Program and the nationally competitive State Wildlife Grants 

that support large landscape-scale species conservation efforts. Both programs 

support recipients in their work to protect “species of greatest conservation need” 

that are identified in State Wildlife Action Plans. These projects often contribute to 

FWS findings of “not warranted” for listing under the Endangered Species Act and to 

recovery of listed species. 

•

•

•

• Hawaiian Forest Bird Extinction Prevention: In 2023, DOI committed nearly $16 

million as part of President 

Biden’s Investing in 

America agenda to prevent 

the imminent extinction of 

Hawaiian Forest Birds and 

announced the new 

Hawaiian Forest Bird 

Conservation Keystone 

Initiative, which was 

unveiled as part of the 

Department’s framework 

on restoration and 

resilience.

Secretary Haaland announced funding and efforts to 

support Hawaiian forest birds during her visit in 2023. 

Photo by DOI.
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• Border Barrier Migration Corridor Studies: In fiscal year 2022, the U.S. Customs 

and Border Protection awarded mitigation funding for several collaborative wildlife 

conservation projects in Texas that began implementation in fiscal year 2023. This 

funding included $14.5 million to FWS to study impacts of border barriers on ocelot 

and large mammal migration, and $1.9 million in mitigation funding provided to 

USGS to evaluate impacts of border barrier on mammal movement regarding flood 

waters.

• Watersheds, Rivers, and Oceans: 

o National Marine Sanctuaries: The NOAA initiated a process to designate a 

national marine sanctuary in Eastern Lake Erie adjacent to Pennsylvania. 

Additionally, NOAA released for public comment for the proposed Chumash 

Heritage National Marine Sanctuary and a proposed rule for the proposed 

Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary. The NOAA also began a public 

process to consider designating the submerged lands and waters 

surrounding the Pacific Remote Islands as a national marine sanctuary. In 

addition, NOAA is continuing with efforts to designate national marine 

sanctuaries in Papahānaumokuākea in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands 

and Hudson Canyon off New York and New Jersey. 

Marine and Coastal Area-based Management Advisory Committee: The

NOAA established the Marine and Coastal Area-based Management Advisory 

Committee, which will advise the Under Secretary on science-based 

approaches to area-based protection, conservation, restoration, and 

management in marine and coastal areas, including the Great Lakes. The 

committee will provide a forum for discussion and advice on area-based 

management, including opportunities to enhance conservation of 

biodiversity, climate resilience, and access to nature for underserved 

communities.

Salmon Habitat: In 2023, BOR and FWS announced five funding award 

recipients to implement $34 million in salmon habitat improvement projects 

within the Central Valley Project under the Central Valley Project 

Improvement Act.

Restoration Investments: In 2023, EPA announced significant resources for 

restoration of water bodies across the country. For example, EPA's Columbia 

River Basin Program received $79 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law 

funds and, in 2023, obligated $72 million of those funds through two rounds 

of awards. Additionally, EPA is investing $1.175 million of the Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law resources in a financial incentive program for propertyowners in Delaware through the Chesapeake Bay Program, and EPA 

announced $30 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for 

restoration projects that advance environmental justice in underserved and 

overburdened communities across the Great Lakes.

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o Healthy Watersheds: In 2023, EPA worked to highlight the critical role of 

land conservation in protecting and restoring waters by publishing a new 

Watershed Protection Guide for Land Trusts, launching the web-based 

Funding Integration Tool for Source Water, and delivering trainings aimed at 

strengthening coordination between clean water programs and the land 

conservation community.

o Estuary and Wetlands Conservation and Restoration:

 Northeast Salt Marsh: In 2023, the FWS, NOAA, and other Federal, 

State, and local partners celebrated the groundbreaking of the Herring 

River Restoration Project in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, the largest salt 

marsh restoration effort in the northeastern United States.

National Estuary Program Grants: The National Estuary Program 

led by EPA and partners conserved and restored more than 186,000 

acres across 28 nationally designated watershed-based estuarine 

systems in 2023. In 2023, $55,499,600 of Bipartisan Infrastructure 

Law funds were awarded to the program.

National Estuarine Research Reserve System: In 2023, NOAA 

accepted the State of Louisiana’s nomination of a site for the National 

Estuarine Research Reserve System that encompasses portions of the 

river delta, alluvial floodplains, and estuarine ecosystems of the 

Atchafalaya Delta. The NOAA is also working with the State of 

Wisconsin on a reserve designation for a proposed site that 

encompasses approximately 37,726 acres in portions of the Green Bay 

estuary, including the Peshtigo River, Lower Bay, and Sturgeon Bay 

components. 

Noyes Cut Ecosystem Restoration: In 2023, USACE constructed the 

Noyes Cut Restoration Project in Georgia, which is the culmination of 

over 80 years of locally led efforts, to restore tidal exchange through 

two local creeks, correct salinity gradients, and increase connectivity 

for fish and wildlife in the Dover Bluff area.

Wetland Restoration: In 2023, DOI celebrated multiple 

announcements supporting wetland restoration across the country.

Examples include:



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



• The FWS announced it was awarding $19.1 million in grants to 

22 projects in eight States through the National Coastal 

Wetland Conservation Grants Program, which leverage $18.1 

million in non-federal project contributions to protect, restore, 

or enhance 13,752 acres of important coastal wetlands 

habitats, including several miles of shoreline.

• The DOI announced that more than $196 million in funding 

was approved by the Migratory Bird Conservation 

Commission, providing FWS and its partners the ability to help 
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conserve or restore 348,600 acres of wetland and associated 

upland habitats for waterfowl, shorebirds and other birds 

across North America – including Canada and Mexico. The 

Commission approved more than $90 million in North 

American Wetlands Conservation Act grants that will be 

matched by more than $147 million in partner funds. In 

addition, the Commission approved more than $32.94 million 

from the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund to conserve land 

on national wildlife refuges.

o River Conservation: 

 Sustainable Rivers Program: The Sustainable Rivers Program 

through the USACE focused on improving the health and life of rivers 

by changing infrastructure operations. In 2022 and 2023, the program 

engaged 10 new river systems through collaboration with Tribes and 

stakeholders and now includes more than 12,000 river miles in 45 

river systems.

 Central Valley Salmon Habitat: In 2023, BOR and FWS announced 

five funding award recipients to implement $34 million in habitat 

improvement projects to restore salmon within California’s Central 

Valley under the Central Valley Project Improvement Act.

o Coastal Restoration: The Coastal Program within FWS, through cooperative 

conservation partnerships in priority coastal ecosystems and communities, 

completed 145 projects in fiscal year 2023 that protected 68,928 upland 

acres, 9,703 wetland acres, and 131 river miles. Additionally, the program 

restored and enhanced 4,601 upland acres, 4,455 wetland acres, and more 

than 14 river miles. Every Coastal Program project dollar was leveraged by 

approximately 10 non-program dollars for restoration work, and by 

approximately 215 dollars for protection work, to maximize the benefit to 

America’s wildlife and people.

Coral Reefs: The DOI announced $2.7 million in fiscal year 2023 funding 

under the Office of Insular Affairs Coral Reef Initiative and Natural Resources 

program to help protect corals and fight invasive species in the U.S. 

territories and the freely associated states. The NOAA also continued to 

advance its efforts in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary in fiscal 

year 2023 by, for example, investing over $2.3 million for the Mission: Iconic 

Reefs coral reef restoration project. In 2023, in response to a record-setting 

marine heatwave event in the Florida Reef Tract, NOAA and program 

partners implemented a coordinated response strategy to rescue and 

relocate affected corals that are critical to ongoing reef restoration efforts.

Highlands Conservation: In February 2023, FWS announced $20 million in 

grants through the Highlands Conservation Act Program. Funds will allow 

project partners to conserve natural resources in Connecticut, New York, and 

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Pennsylvania to create wildlife habitat, enhance recreation, protect drinking 

water resources, and address climate change.

o Everglades Restoration: In 2023, FWS announced the future availability of 

the Everglades to Gulf Conservation Area Draft Land Protection Plan, 

Environmental Assessment, and Conceptual Management Plan. This is a part 

of a public planning process to help determine if and how the NWRS may 

help conserve important wildlife habitat in Southern Florida.

Increase Access for Outdoor Recreation

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration continued to support access to the outdoors by 

enhancing opportunities nationwide for hiking, fishing, hunting, biking, boating, and other 

activities. Outdoor recreation continues to be an economic powerhouse, and a new NPS 

report showed visitor spending in communities near national parks in 2022 contributed 

more than $50 billion nationwide and supported nearly 380,000 jobs. Additionally, the

National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation shows outdoor 

activities like fishing, hunting, wildlife watching, recreational boating, and target shooting

generated an estimated $394 billion from equipment, travel, licenses, and fees in one year. 

In 2023, new data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis again affirms outdoor recreation 

as a major economic driver as past reports have shown. This year, the report showed that

outdoor recreation contributed more than $1 trillion in economic output, accounting for 

more than two percent of gross domestic product, nearly five million jobs, and more than 

three percent of U.S. employees in 2022. Examples include:

• Castner Range National Monument: President Biden signed a proclamation 

establishing the Castner Range National Monument in El Paso, Texas. This action 

will protect the cultural, scientific, and historic objects found within the monument’s 

boundaries, honor our veterans, servicemembers, and Tribal Nations, and expand 

access to outdoor recreation on our public lands. Located on Fort Bliss, Castner 

Range served as a training and testing site for the U.S. Army during World War II, 

the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The Army ceased training at the site and 

closed Castner Range in 1966. Once the area is sufficiently remediated to be safe for 

public access, Castner Range will offer unique opportunities for the El Paso 

community to experience, explore, and learn from nature.

• Boundary Waters: The Biden-Harris administration took action to protect the 

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and surrounding watershed, a spectacular 

network of rivers, lakes, and forests in northeastern Minnesota that comprise the 

most heavily visited wilderness area in the United States. Responding to concerns 

regarding the potential impacts of mining on the area’s watershed, fish and wildlife, 

Tribal and treaty rights, and robust recreation economy, Secretary Haaland signed 

Public Land Order 7917 withdrawing approximately 225,504 acres in the Superior 

National Forest in northeastern Minnesota from disposition under the United States 

mineral and geothermal leasing laws for a 20-year period, subject to valid existing 
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rights. This action will help protect the Rainy River watershed, including the 

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and the 1854 Ceded Territory of the 

Chippewa Bands, from the potential adverse impacts of new mineral and 

geothermal exploration and development. 

Federal Interagency Council on Outdoor Recreation: The Biden-Harris 

administration launched this interagency effort in 2022 to create more safe, 

affordable, and equitable opportunities for Americans to get outdoors. In 2023, the

council—which includes leaders from DOI, USDA, DOC, and DoD—continued its 

work focusing on improving access to nature, expanding outdoor recreation 

opportunities, and providing the public with improved and more affordable 

experiences on America’s public lands and waters.

Interagency Task Force on Outdoor Recreation for Veterans: This task force, 

established by the COMPACT Act of 2020 and co-chaired by the Department of 

Veterans Affairs (VA) and DOI, continued coordination between the VA and public 

land agencies. The task force developed preliminary recommendations to better 

facilitate the use of public lands for wellness and therapy for veterans through 

engagement with the Veterans Outdoor Recreation Groups, which provided unique 

perspectives in this process and helped establish a path forward to completing this 

work.

Blueprint for 21st Century Outdoor Recreation: The BLM released a new 

Blueprint for 21st Century Outdoor Recreation intended to guide investments, 

partnerships, outreach, and program development to address increasing visitation 

and expand outdoor opportunities on public lands for all.

Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Council: The DOI and USDA convened the 

newly established council for three meetings in 2023. The council received briefings 

from the Departments and discussed and provided recommendations on a number 

of topics, including conservation land acquisition, access to public lands, 

reauthorization of Farm Bill programs, and more. 

Hunting and Fishing Access and Opportunities: In 2023, FWS opened or 

expanded 48 hunting or sport fishing opportunities on approximately 3,000 acres 

across three refuges. Over 10.8 million acres at 400 wildlife refuges and 36 wetland 

management districts are currently open to hunting, and fishing is open on 343 

wildlife refuges and 35 wetland management districts managed by FWS. Also in 

2023, NOAA Fisheries issued a national policy committing the agency to enhance a 

broadly accessible, diverse array of sustainable saltwater recreational and noncommercial fisheries for the benefit and enjoyment of the nation; six regionally 

tailored implementation plans identify specific actions and metrics of success to 

advance the policy and support sustainable, high-quality saltwater recreational and 

non-commercial U.S. fisheries.

Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration: The FWS announced fiscal year 2023 annual 

funding through the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program, including $1.2 

billion for wildlife restoration and hunter education and $423.9 million for sport 

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fish restoration representing more than seven percent and six percent increases 

from 2022 funding, respectively, for State fish and wildlife agencies to conserve and 

manage fish and wildlife and their habitats for the use and enjoyment of current and 

future generations.

Green Space Around Military Installations: The DOI and DoD announced a new 

partnership and $80 million in investments to preserve land around military 

installations and improve access to outdoor recreation for millions of Americans. 

Through this program, the Defense Department's Readiness and Environmental 

Protection Integration Program secures land adjacent to military bases to serve as 

buffers to development, enhance recreational access, protect at-risk species, and 

improve resistance to impacts from climate change and severe weather events.

National Survey of Wildlife-Associated Recreation: The FWS announced the 

findings of the 2022 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated 

Recreation. The survey, coordinated by FWS, shows that U.S. residents over the age 

of 16 took over 1.7 billion trips in 2022 to participate in outdoor activities like 

fishing, hunting, wildlife watching, recreational boating, and target shooting. In 

doing so, outdoor enthusiasts spent an estimated $394 billion on equipment, travel, 

licenses, and fees last year alone.

Recreational Boating Safety Program: In fiscal year 2023, the U.S. Coast Guard 

awarded more than $121 million to 56 States and territories, and more than $6 

million to 31 nonprofit organizations. Funded projects include efforts to expand 

established program outreach and information in Spanish and for those with limited 

English proficiency on boating and recreation safety.

National Trails System: The DOI announced the designation of nine new national 

recreation trails in nine States, adding 340 miles to the National Trails System. With 

the new additions of land and water trails, the network now includes more than 

1,300 trails with at least one in every U.S. State, the District of Columbia, and Puerto 

Rico.

Transportation Alternatives Program: The DOT provided $1.3 billion for smaller 

scale but critically important multimodal transportation projects at both the State 

and local level. The Transportation Alternatives Set Aside Program provides funding 

for a variety of transportation projects, such as pedestrian and bicycle facilities; 

construction of turnouts, overlooks, and viewing areas; recreational trails; and safe 

routes to school projects. As part of the Transportation Alternatives Set Aside 

Program, DOT will provide up to $84 million dollars per year through fiscal year 

2026 to advance the work of its Recreational Trails Program to support States in 

developing, maintaining, and improving access to park and recreation facilities for 

both nonmotorized and motorized recreational trail users.

Recreation Infrastructure: Across the Federal family, many Departments and 

agencies invested in recreation infrastructure to help improve access to the 

outdoors. Some examples include:

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o USACE: The USACE is continuing the investment of more than $11 million to 

support improvements and repairs associated with outdoor recreation 

opportunities, utilizing more than $4 million in 2023 received from the 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and more than $7 million of the Disaster Relief 

Supplemental Appropriations Act (DRSAA) in 2023. In fiscal year 2023, 

USACE was successful in expending over $12 million dollars for road and 

parking improvements associated with recreation facilities, utilizing $1.5 

million from DRSAA in supplemental program funds and nearly $8 million 

from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. 

o Forest Service: In 2023, the Forest Service announced more than $36 

million in investments to 

improve vital recreation 

infrastructure located on 

national forests and 

grasslands, with funding 

made possible by the 

Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law.

NOAA: In 2023, NOAA 

started to invest $50 

million from the 

Inflation Reduction Act 

in new visitor 

interpretation facilities 

and sanctuary offices to 

enhance the NOAA presence in sanctuary gateway communities, as well as 

partnering to increase visitor interaction. Additionally, NOAA National 

Marine Fisheries Service dedicated $20 million of Inflation Reduction Act 

funding toward improving recreational fisheries data, strengthening StateFederal data exchange, and harnessing the power of video and acoustic 

surveys for red snapper and other reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico. These 

investments will address scientific and management uncertainty, benefiting 

millions of anglers in the world’s largest recreational fisheries. 

FWS: In 2023, FWS announced the distribution through the Boating 

Infrastructure Grant program of more than $20 million in grant funding to 

assist States and territories in the construction, renovation, and maintenance 

of marinas and other boating facilities for outdoor recreation. Grants will 

support projects in 20 States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Land and Water Conservation Fund State-side Projects: In 2023, DOI 

announced the distribution of nearly $300 million from the Land and Water 

Conservation Fund (LWCF) to all 50 States, U.S. territories, and the District of 

Columbia for State-identified outdoor recreation and conservation projects. 

o

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Photo of a secluded forest lake in a western 

national forest. Photo by USDA.
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Along with this year’s LWCF distribution, the NPS released an update to the 

LWCF Manual that directs States to work more closely with Tribes and 

underserved communities during the development of their Statewide 

Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plans, a requirement for eligibility to 

receive LWCF funds. It also prioritizes the creation of parks in underserved 

communities. While Tribes were already eligible to receive LWCF grants, the 

changes to the Manual are intended to clarify this availability and encourage 

Tribal governments to apply for these funds. 

Incentivize and Reward the Voluntary Conservation Efforts of Fishers, Ranchers, 

Farmers, and Forest Owners

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration has remained faithful to its commitment to 

support healthy rural economies, advance climate-smart, sustainable agriculture practices, 

and keep working lands and waterfronts productive. The Federal family has continued to 

appreciate conservation as a continuum, recognizing the varied and important 

contributions of voluntary conservation efforts from fishers, farmers, forest owners, 

ranchers, and other landowners. Examples include:

• Conservation Reserve Program: In 2023, USDA issued more than $1.77 billion to 

agricultural producers and landowners. The CRP’s more than 667,000 participants 

received payments from USDA’s FSA for their voluntary conservation efforts on 

more than 23 million acres of private land.

Big Game Conservation: The USDA and the State of Wyoming formalized a 

partnership and a pilot project to support voluntary conservation of private 

working lands underpinning important migratory big game populations in fiscal 

year 2023. This pilot program delivered over $21 million in assistance through the 

Environmental Quality Incentives Program and Agricultural Conservation Easement 

Program. Nearly 308,000 acres of working lands were made more sustainable for 

ranching and wildlife and 17 conservation easements over 11,830 acres of working 

lands will be maintained as open space for migratory wildlife perpetually. Wyoming 

also witnessed a 30 percent increase in Grassland Conservation Reserve Program 

participation, with 25 percent located in the migratory big game priority areas. 

Based on this success, USDA is expanding the Wyoming migratory big game pilot 

into a national landscape initiative in 2024, to include Wyoming, Idaho, and 

Montana.

Climate-Smart Practices: The USDA made more than $3 billion in funding from the 

Inflation Reduction Act available for agricultural producers and forest landowners 

nationwide to participate in voluntary conservation programs and adopt climatesmart practices in fiscal year 2024. These funds provide direct climate mitigation 

benefits, advance a host of other environmental co-benefits, and expand access to 

financial and technical assistance for producers to advance conservation on their 

farm, ranch, or forest land through practices like cover cropping, conservation 

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tillage, wetland restoration, prescribed grazing, nutrient management, tree planting 

and more.

Private Lands Investments: In fiscal year 2023, NRCS continued to make major 

investments to support private lands conservation through its Farm Bill 

conservation programs. These funds provide direct climate mitigation benefits, 

advance a host of other environmental co-benefits, and expand access to financial 

and technical assistance for producers to advance conservation on their farm, ranch, 

or forest land through practices like cover cropping, conservation tillage, wetland 

restoration, prescribed grazing, nutrient management, tree planting and more.

Small Acreage Forests: In 2023, the Forest Service made $150 million available to 

help underserved and small acreage forest landowners connect to emerging 

voluntary climate markets. These markets can provide economic opportunities for 

landowners and incentivize improved forest health and management.

WaterSMART Initiative: The USDA announced a $25 million investment in three 

new priority areas and 37 existing priority areas in the West as the result of a 

collaboration with the National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). This year, 

BOR’s WaterSMART programs have announced over $305 million in funding to 181 

projects that help farmers, ranchers, and local communities conserve water and 

build drought resilience.

Environmental Water Resource Projects: In 2023, DOI announced a $51 million 

investment in 30 new Environmental Water Resource Projects in 11 States through 

the BOR. These collaborative projects focus on water conservation, cooperative 

watershed management, and restoration efforts that will result in significant 

benefits to ecosystem or watershed health.

Sentinel Landscapes Partnership: The partnership, founded in 2013 and 

implemented through coordination between DoD, USDA, and DOI, empowers private 

landowners around military installations to advance sustainable management 

practices on their farms, ranches, and forests. In 2023, the partnership designated

two new sentinel landscapes in Virginia and South Carolina, bringing the total 

number of sentinel landscapes to 12. To date, the program and associated 

contributions have permanently conserved more than 610,000 acres of land and 

enrolled 3 million acres of land in technical assistance programs.

Partners for Fish and Wildlife: In 2023, FWS supported landowners in their 

voluntary efforts to conserve wildlife habitat, through the Partners for Fish and 

Wildlife Program, by offering financial and technical assistance to interested 

landowners and helping to keep working lands in working hands. In fiscal year

2023, the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program completed 1,895 projects, 

restoring and enhancing 167,229 upland acres, 15,565 wetland acres, 216 river 

miles, and 67 fish passage structures. Every Partners for Fish and Wildlife project 

dollar leveraged approximately five non-program dollars to maximize return on 

investment.

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• Candidate Conservation Agreements with Assurances: In 2023, FWS continued 

to support these collaborative agreements that provide non-Federal landowners 

with additional incentives for engaging in voluntary conservation to support nonlisted species. For example, the latest agreement, signed on September 15, 2023, is 

the Quail Country programmatic agreement that covers 28 Georgia and 7 Florida 

counties for 12 species; one landowner has already enrolled 100 acres under this 

agreement. In total, the program’s 62 active agreements involve 48 States and more 

than 724 landowners, cover more than 27 million acres and 93 stream miles, and 

support 128 species. 

Safe Harbor Agreements: In 2023, FWS finalized two new safe harbor agreements, 

which support the voluntary efforts of non-Federal landowners whose actions 

specifically contribute to the recovery of species listed as endangered or threatened. 

The two recent additions, one for California red-legged frog and the other for 

northern spotted owl, bring the current total to 118 active agreements with 737 

landowners, covering more than 6.4 million acres and 84 linear miles of stream and 

providing conservation benefits to 152 species.

Wildlife Conservation Initiative: In 2023, FWS, National Alliance of Forest 

Owners, and the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, Inc., announced 

a memorandum of understanding that formalizes the Wildlife Conservation 

Initiative, a collaborative partnership focused on advancing the conservation of atrisk and listed species within private working forests nationwide.

Tidal Channel Restoration: In 2023 the USACE continued its work in Puerto Rico

on both the vegetation and solid waste removal contracts established in 2022 to 

provide $163 million for restoration of Cano Martin Peña tidal channel to support

the revitalization of eight impoverished communities settled along the tidal channel 

and significantly improve the aquatic ecosystem. 

Gulf of Mexico Watershed: The EPA's Gulf of Mexico Division funded $14.5 million 

in 2023 through its Farmer to Farmer program for 11 projects to help reduce 

impacts of excess nutrients on the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. These projects work 

cooperatively with farmers, ranchers, and landowners to demonstrate and increase 

adoption of innovative nutrient reduction strategies.

Marine Species Conservation:

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o Species in the Spotlight: Through its “Species in the Spotlight” initiative, 

NOAA continues taking targeted actions to halt the decline of the nine species 

most at-risk of extinction in the near future. In 2023, NOAA continued 

implementing action plans through voluntary measures and public-private 

partnerships to, for example, rehabilitate Hawaiian monk seal pups. 

o Species Recovery Grants: These grants from NOAA support States, Tribes, 

and territories in implementing high priority recovery actions, including 

management, research, monitoring, and/or outreach activities, that have 
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direct conservation benefits for species listed as threatened or endangered. 

In fiscal year 2023, NOAA awarded $6.3 million across 26 multi-year awards.

Marine Mammal Rescue Grant Program: This NOAA grant program 

provides funding for communities to develop or continue conservation 

efforts such as 

marine mammal 

stranding 

response, 

rehabilitation, 

and scientific 

research 

regarding 

marine mammal 

health. In fiscal 

year 2023, 

NOAA awarded 

$4 million 

across 50 grants 

to recipients in 

20 States and 

one Tribe.

Create Jobs by Investing in Restoration and Resilience

In 2023, the Biden-Harris administration advanced many efforts to strengthen the nation’s 

resilience to sea level rise, flooding, extreme wildfires, droughts, storms, and other climaterelated impacts while also supporting activities like restoration, reclamation, and 

reforestation in the nation’s natural systems. For example, marking the two-year 

anniversary of President Biden signing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, DOI released a 

new analysis that estimates that investments from the historic law supported on average 

17,669 jobs and contributed an average of $2 billion to the economy each year. This and 

related work create and deliver economic benefits to communities nationwide, a central 

focus of the America the Beautiful initiative. Examples include:

America the Beautiful Challenge Grants: The Biden-Harris administration joined 

the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and public-and private-sector 

partners in announcing $141.3 million in grants through the America the Beautiful 

Challenge. The 74 new grants support landscape-scale conservation projects across 

46 States, three U.S. territories, and 21 Tribal Nations, and will generate at least $12 

million in matching contributions for a total conservation impact of more than $153 

million. Approximately 40 percent of the 2023 grants support projects implemented 

by Indigenous communities. This investment represents an unprecedented level of 

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NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad meets with partners at

the Ohio Chagrin River Floodplain Land Conservation

project to learn about restoration plans funded under the

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Photo by NOAA.
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funding dedicated to Tribally led projects. Through a public-private partnership 

with Native Americans in Philanthropy that leverages $1.5 million in private dollars, 

Tribes will be able to access more than $50 million in new public funding to address 

critical conservation projects.

• American Climate Corps and Youth Opportunities: This year, the Biden-Harris 

administration launched the American Climate Corps, a workforce training and 

service initiative that will ensure more young people have access to the skills-based 

training necessary for good-paying careers in the clean energy and climate 

resilience economy. The American Climate Corps will mobilize a new, diverse 

generation of more than 20,000 Americans – putting them to work conserving and 

restoring our lands and waters, bolstering community resilience, deploying clean 

energy, implementing energy efficient technologies, and advancing environmental 

justice, all while creating pathways to high-quality, good-paying clean energy and 

climate resilience jobs in the public and private sectors after they complete their 

paid training program. As part of this commitment, the Interior Department joined 

other Federal agencies – including the Departments of Commerce, Agriculture, 

Labor and Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and AmeriCorps – in 

formally entering into an agreement to serve as the blueprint for the multiagency 

program. Examples of existing programs that provide meaningful opportunities 

include:

o AmeriCorps Projects: In 2023, over 14,000 AmeriCorps members carried 

out environmental stewardship and disaster response activities, introducing 

them to careers in restoration and resilience. As a first major partnership 

under the American Climate Corps, the White House announced a $15 million 

agreement between AmeriCorps and the Forest Service to establish the new 

AmeriCorps National 

Civilian Community 

Corps Forest Corps. 

Additionally, in 2023, 

AmeriCorps invested 

$111 million in grant 

funding to support 156 

organizations to carry 

out conservation, 

climate, and disaster 

services projects in 

rural and urban 

communities across the 

country. State leaders, 

including the Governors 

of Michigan and 

Washington, launched 

Youth crew members repair a bridge as part of a 

trail project. Photo by DOI.
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AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL

Statewide climate corps to engage AmeriCorps members in conserving public 

lands, increasing access to green spaces, and addressing climate change. 

Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grant Program:

EPA is leveraging historic funding from President Biden’s Investing in 

America agenda to increase pathways for young people into environmental 

justice careers through the American Climate Corps. EPA’s $2 billion 

Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grant Program 

announced in November 2023 includes an option for community-based 

organizations to propose their own Climate Corps program for youth in 

disadvantaged communities to pursue careers in greenhouse gas and air 

pollution reduction, along with other strategies to take climate action, reduce 

pollution, and increase community resilience.

Indian Youth Service Corps Program: The DOI announced a $15 million 

commitment through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda to the 

Indian Youth Service Corps (IYSC) and other programs supporting the next 

generation of conservation and climate stewards. The DOI also announced its 

first IYSC grants to eight projects involving more than 20 Tribes and Tribal 

organizations; these first grants awards were designed to help develop Tribal 

capacity in conservation, natural resource management, and climate 

resilience and also provide Tribes and Tribal organizations with funding to 

enable them to invest in, train, and recruit a new generation of skilled 

Indigenous workers. The IYSC, announced by Secretary Haaland last year, is a 

partner-based program designed to provide Indigenous youth with 

meaningful, Tribally-led public service opportunities to support the 

conservation and protection of natural and cultural resources through 

construction, restoration, or rehabilitation.

Urban Wildlife Conservation Program: In 2023, FWS Urban Wildlife 

Conservation Program bolstered the efforts of 27 urban national wildlife 

refuges by providing training, coaching, mentoring and youth internships to 

engage in co-designing conservation with systematically excluded 

communities. These efforts are part of the $26.7 million FWS invested in 

fiscal year 2023 in long-term internships or fellowships with more than 494 

young adults to support restoration projects and conservation activities 

across public and partner lands.

NOAA Ocean Guardian Youth Ambassador Program: The pilot NOAA 

Ocean Guardian Youth Ambassador Program launched in January 2023 with 

over 250 students from across the United States and U.S. territories. Nearly 

100 youth ambassadors submitted ideas for action through this program, 

and many have reported on their stewardship projects or events at their 

school or in their communities. 

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• Great American Outdoors Act: The Act continues to provide historic investments 

in America’s iconic public lands and BIE schools by addressing critical overdue 
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maintenance needs. These investments are rehabilitating or restoring thousands of 

assets for generations of visitors, employees, and volunteers. Legacy Restoration 

Fund (LRF) projects funded in fiscal year 2023 at both DOI and the Forest Service

are expected to contribute approximately 18,700 jobs and $2 billion in Gross 

Domestic Product. By the end of 2023, DOI has awarded more than $2.3 billion of 

LRF funds across 228 projects, and Forest Service has awarded $461 million across 

700 projects. The following are examples of major project accomplishments funded 

by the LRF: 

o NPS: In fiscal year 2023, NPS funded 24 projects across 22 States and 

territories for the LRF, bringing total projects in the first three years to 104, 

with an average project budget of more than $29 million. This includes 

Rehabilitate Seawalls and Shoreline Landscape at the Tidal Basin and West 

Potomac Park at the National Mall and Memorial Parks in Washington DC. 

Rehabilitation of the Old Faithful Wastewater Collection and Treatment 

system at Yellowstone NP in Wyoming and Stabilize and Rehabilitate 

Alcatraz Island Historic Structures at Golden Gate NRA in California.

BLM: Building on previous years, BLM awarded more than 30 construction 

contracts to improve facilities and infrastructure on public lands in the 

Western States. Additionally, BLM completed 18 projects with noticeable 

public benefits. For example, in Wyoming, BLM reshaped the Hyattville 

Logging Road, improving drainage and removing boulders from the roadway 

increasing safety for those travelling the road. 

FWS: In 2023, FWS continued work on 35 LRF projects at national wildlife 

refuges in over 20 States, Puerto Rico, and Midway Atoll NWR. Several 

primary visitor center and administrative headquarters projects are 

complete at the Crab Orchard NWR, Tule Lake NWR, and Bombay Hook NWR. 

These facilities provide opportunities for improved visitor contact and 

environmental education. Installation of new public use boat ramps have 

been completed at Kenai NWR and Dale Bumpers NWR. The LRF-funded 

FWS Maintenance Professional workforce has completed numerous public 

use improvements to heavily utilized boardwalks, trails, and wildlife 

observation facilities at national wildlife refuges across the nation.

Forest Service: At the end of fiscal year 2023, the Forest Service had 

completed 218 deferred maintenance projects across 80 national forests in 

32 States with 775 additional projects underway. Once completed, these 

LRF-funded projects will address approximately $650 in backlog 

maintenance, spanning 127 national forests and 7 the Forest Service

research stations across 43 States and Puerto Rico. This work involves 518

active partnerships and leverages more than $200 million in partner 

contributions. Projects address numerous priorities by supporting small 

businesses and rural economies—97 percent of contracts are with small 

businesses and 46 percent are disadvantaged small businesses—as well as 

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investing in infrastructure to help communities adapt to and manage impacts 

of climate change and to help protect communities with the highest wildfire 

risk.

• Restoration and Resilience Framework: The DOI unveiled a restoration and 

resilience framework to guide strategic investments, catalyze coordination, drive 

meaningful outcomes, and advance climate resilience. Through President Biden’s 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, the Department is 

implementing a more than $2 billion investment to restore our nation’s lands and 

waters. This new framework will help ensure that investments from these two laws 

are focused strategically to solve key conservation challenges and advance climate 

resilience. For example, the framework has helped guide many DOI projects in 2023, 

such as:

o Ecosystem Restoration: The DOI invested $125 million this year from the 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to restore our nation’s lands and waters. The 

funding, to be spent over the next four years, will support 240 locally led 

projects through BIA, BLM, BOR, NPS, Office of Insular Affairs, FWS, and 

USGS.

NPS Climate Resilience: The DOI announced more than $44 million through 

the President’s Investing in America agenda to meet critical ecosystem 

resilience, restoration, and environmental planning needs for the NPS in 

fiscal year 2023. 

BLM Restoration Landscapes: The DOI announced plans to allocate $161 

million provided in the Inflation Reduction Act to ecosystem restoration 

efforts and resilience on the nation’s public lands as part of President Biden’s 

Investing in America agenda. This work, led by BLM, focuses on 21 

“Restoration Landscapes” across 11 western States and will range from 

restoring wildlife habitat in the sagebrush steppe of the high desert to recreating wetland meadows to repairing watersheds on former industrial 

timberlands. The announcement of funding from the Inflation Reduction Act 

complements the approximately $40 million that BLM has already deployed 

from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for restoration activities, including, 

for example, $4.5 million to improve sagebrush habitat on both public and 

private lands.

BLM Resilient Recreation: The BLM invested $3.2 million of Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law funds to complete resilient recreation infrastructure for 

projects, such as new campgrounds, hiking trails, picnic areas, and shoreline 

restoration. 

National Wildlife Refuge System and State Wildlife Management Areas: 

The DOI announced a more than $120 million investment from the Inflation 

Reduction Act to rebuild and restore units of the NWRS and partnering State 

Wildlife Management Areas that have been affected by adverse weather 

events. The investment prioritizes projects that promote coastal resilience 

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and climate adaptation, address invasive species threats, and provide for 

additional data collection needed to support successful natural resource 

resilience.

o Keystone Initiatives: The framework includes a commitment to nine 

keystone initiatives, which address climate change impacts, including 

through restoring the Klamath Basin, salt marshes and core sage brush areas; 

supporting habitat for salmon, bison and Hawaiian forest birds that hold 

cultural, subsistence, and ecosystem significance; and enhancing 

communities’ quality of life in Appalachia by improving outdoor spaces and 

addressing legacy pollution. The framework also invests resources towards 

the National Early Detection and Rapid Response Network and National Seed 

Strategy. Advances in this work are highlighted throughout this report.

• Policies to Strengthen Adaptation and Resilience Efforts: The DOI announced 

the publication of new policies to strengthen the Department’s ability to meet its 

mission in the face of a changing climate. In a first-ever effort to factor the climate 

crisis into all operations, four new Departmental Manual policies clarify and make 

more consistent the types of climate information used across the Department in 

order to strengthen and enhance mission-critical decisions and activities.

Actions in Support of Nature-Based Solutions: The Interior Department 

announced new steps to utilize nature-based solutions in its efforts to tackle the 

climate crisis, including the launch of a new tool called the DOI Nature-based 

Solutions Roadmap that provides the Department and public with guidance on the 

implementation of nature-based solutions.

Policy Recognizing Role of Ecosystem Health in Climate Resilience: In 2023, 

DOE issued revisions to its Departmental Order on sustainability recognizing the 

significance of ecosystem health as an element of climate resilience and mission 

assurance and directing DOE programs to include ecosystem values in land 

management planning.

Policy Statement on Climate Change and Historic Preservation: The ACHP 

adopted in 2023 a policy statement on climate change, recognizing the 

environmental and economic value of historic and culturally significant sites and 

recognizing the Federal Government's role in ensuring that these sites will be 

rehabilitated to mitigate climate impacts and, where applicable, adapted to respond 

to climate change-related threats.

Wildfire Mitigation: In 2023, USDA announced $197 million in wildfire mitigation 

through the Forest Service’s Community Wildfire Defense Grant program. The 

Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission also released a report 

outlining a comprehensive, consensus-based set of recommendations to Congress to 

address the nation’s wildfire crisis. Additionally, DOI announced over $468 million 

in new allocations from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help

increase wildland fire management efforts on more than 2.5 million acres of land in 

fiscal year 2023, a 30 percent increase over fiscal year 2022 accomplishments. The 

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funding will advance collaborative wildfire risk management efforts with private 

landowners, Tribes, States and local governments, help communities acquire slip-on 

tank units to operate vehicles as fire engines, support special pay supplements for 

Federal wildland firefighters and expand remote sensing for wildfire detection. 

These investments build on the nearly $180 million from DOI allocated in fiscal year 

2022.

• Tackling Legacy Pollution: The Biden-Harris administration advanced efforts to 

address orphan wells, abandoned mine lands, and remediation sites:

o Brownfields Cleanup: The EPA Brownfields Program helps revitalize 

communities by cleaning up and repurposing contaminated sites. In fiscal 

year 2023, the program assessed 1,894 sites—over 200 more than in the 

previous year—while cleaning up 170 properties. This work exceeded the 

successes of fiscal year 2022, leveraging 17,443 jobs and making 18,670

acres available for reuse, often including parks or other open space. 

Orphan Well Clean Up: As part of the historic $4.7 billion investment 

authorized through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to 

identify and address orphaned oil and gas wells across the nation, DOI

launched a new Orphaned Wells Program Office to ensure accountable and 

effective implementation of the new program. Building on investments made 

in fiscal year 2022, DOI announced $64 million to clean up 207 well sites on 

Federal lands, and $40 million to clean up well sites on Tribal Lands. Through 

initial grants made to States, nearly 6,000 orphaned wells have been plugged 

on State and private lands. 

Reclamation of Abandoned Mine Lands: In 2023, DOI made available $725 

million of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law grant funding to States and Tribes 

for abandoned coal mine land remediation. These funds will support 

reclamation work that creates good-paying union jobs and addresses safety 

and environmental hazards posed by abandoned mine lands.

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• Coastal Resilience:

o Climate-Ready Coasts Initiative: In 2023, through Inflation Reduction Act 

funding, NOAA announced approximately $562 million in funding to support 

the Climate-Ready Coasts initiative. This includes investments in nearly 150 

projects across 30 coastal and Great Lakes States and territories to make 

communities and the economy more resilient to climate change. The ClimateReady Coasts initiative is focused on investing in high-impact, nature-based 

infrastructure projects that create climate solutions by storing carbon; build 

resilience to coastal hazards such as extreme weather events, pollution and 

marine debris; restore coastal habitats that help wildlife and humans thrive; 

and provide employment opportunities.

o Climate Resilience Regional Challenge: In 2023, NOAA launched a firstever $575 million Climate Resilience Regional Challenge to help coastal and 

Great Lakes communities, including Tribal communities in those regions, 
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become more resilient to extreme weather and other impacts of the climate 

crisis. The funding supports innovative coastal resilience and adaptation 

solutions, such as building natural infrastructure, planning and preparing for 

community-led relocation, and protecting public access to coastal natural 

resources, that protect communities and ecosystems from sea level rise, tidal 

flooding hurricanes, storm surge, among other severe climate impacts.

o Habitat Restoration and Coastal Resilience Projects: In the first round of 

the Biden-Harris Administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and 

Inflation Reduction Act funding competitions, NOAA awarded more than 

$265 million in funding for 38 transformational habitat restoration and 

coastal resilience projects this year, as well as an additional $20.4 million in 

funding in future years. This significant level of investment provides an 

extraordinary opportunity for NOAA to continue making an impact for 

fisheries, protected resources, and coastal communities. In the second round 

of funding competition, up to $240 million in funding is available for 

transformational habitat restoration and coastal resilience. The NOAA also 

awarded nearly $25 million in funding for 35 new projects that will advance 

the coastal habitat restoration priorities of underserved communities.

• Regional Restoration: Several examples from 2023 of significant regional efforts 

include:

o Gulf States: In 2023, DOI announced the distribution of over $353 in fiscal 

year 2022 energy revenues to Gulf States to support coastal conservation and 

restoration projects, hurricane protection programs, onshore infrastructure 

projects, and activities to implement marine and coastal resilience 

management plans.

Delaware River Watershed: In 2023, FWS announced more than $14.9 

million in funding through the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund, in 

partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, for 36 

conservation projects in the Delaware River Watershed. The support 

includes more than $4.5 million from President Biden’s Bipartisan 

Infrastructure Law for six projects that will improve public access, 

recreational opportunities and water quality, as well as enhance shoreline 

and wildlife habitat.

Klamath Basin: In 2023, BOR and NRCS announced 11 projects totaling $6 

million to be awarded as part of three Klamath Basin Salmon Restoration 

grant programs. Partnering with NFWF to administer funds, the grants will 

be combined with $9,395,146 in matching contributions for a total 

conservation impact of nearly $15 million.

Great Lakes: In 2023, FWS announced more than $2.9 million in fiscal year 

2023 funding through the Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act, and 

the thirteen selected projects address key conservation and restoration 

needs in the basin across four States.

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o Lake Tahoe: In 2023, FWS announced $3.1 million in fiscal year 2023 

funding from the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to support the 

Lake Tahoe Invasive Species Program and prevent and combat the spread of 

aquatic invasive species in Lake Tahoe. The funds will support existing 

cooperative agreements with the Washoe Tribe of California and Nevada and 

the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency and augment a historic effort to restore 

the Lake Tahoe Basin ecosystem.

• Marine Minerals Program: The Marine Minerals Program within the Bureau of 

Ocean Energy Management manages more than 40 active contracts advancing and 

improving the National Offshore Sand Inventory within Federal waters in the 

Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. The projects provide information and data for 

coastal planners and communities to prepare for, mitigate, and respond to climate 

change and natural disasters. National Offshore Sand Inventory projects facilitate 

proactive management of sand and sediment exploration and leasing and advance 

investments in coastal protection, resource evaluation, and environmental research 

to build resilience for communities and infrastructure along our Nation’s coast.

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Stream Crossing and Stream Restoration Projects: The Forest Service National 

Stream and Aquatic Ecology Center led and implemented advanced technical 

training, project support and mentoring on road-stream crossing, stream and 

floodplain restoration, and dam removal projects across national forests. Through 

the selected projects, more than 300 resource specialists were trained and 

supported for 100 road infrastructure and stream and floodplain restoration 

projects.

Addressing Natural Disaster Risks: In fiscal year 2023, FEMA Agency announced

$3 billion in selections for climate resilience funding as part of President Biden’s

Investing in America agenda. This funding includes $2.3 billion for critical resilience

projects funded by the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program

to help communities increase resilience to heat waves, drought, wildfires, flood,

hurricanes, and other hazards by preparing before disaster strikes, and $711 million

for Flood Mitigation Assistance for individual and community-scale flood mitigation.

Promoting Resilient Transportation: In 2023, DOT announced $848 million in 

funding availability for the Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, 

Efficient, and Cost-saving Transportation Discretionary Grant program to ensure 

surface transportation resilience to natural hazards, including climate change, sea 

level rise, flooding, extreme weather events, and other natural disasters through 

support of planning activities, resilience improvements, community resilience, and 

evacuation routes, and at-risk coastal infrastructure.

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III. Conclusion

As in years past, the historic call-to-action set by President Biden in Executive Order 14008 

and the Federal family’s commitment to advancing locally led, partnership-driven 

conservation and restoration through the America the Beautiful initiative have spurred 

action nationwide. During the first year of the initiative, the Biden-Harris administration 

developed its foundational and inclusive vision and created strong momentum with 

unprecedented funding. In the second year, the administration completed broad public 

engagement and continued supporting efforts nationwide. 

Now, at the completion of its third year, the administration has continued to make effective 

use of transformative investments, advance thoughtful policies and tools for restoration, 

and take actions to conserve special places. Looking ahead, the Biden-Harris administration 

will continue to capitalize on the Investing in America agenda and engage with States, 

Tribes, underserved and overburdened communities, and other key stakeholders to build a 

better America for all for present and future generations.