COEUR D'ALENE – A new wildfire mitigation project aims to improve the overall health of forests here, the Idaho Panhandle National Forests announced.

The Highway 95 Hazardous Fuels Project will generate $2,194,800 for state and private lands and $2,778,500 for federal lands in northern Idaho. It is one of 10 Joint Chiefs' Landscape Restoration Partnership projects selected nationwide and will focus on 829,453 acres of high-hazard forest lands in Kootenai, Bonner and Boundary counties over the next three years. The goal is to mitigate hazardous fuels by actively treating more than 7,700 acres.

“This project looks at wildfire risk from a landscape perspective, regardless of who owns or manages the land,” says Jeff Lau, Northern Idaho co-management coordinator for the Forest Service and Idaho Department of Lands. “By working with multiple agencies and private landowners, we are working toward regional wildfire resilience that no single agency could achieve alone.”

The project is responding to the increasing number of landowners requesting assistance in mitigating hazardous fuels, while continuing educational opportunities such as public community meetings, informational mailings, and forestry education field days.

“We are excited to continue the work and partnerships we have built with previous projects like Scattered Lands,” says Craig Foss, IDL State Forester. “We want to thank the landowners again who participate in forest health treatment assistance programs on their lands so that we can truly continue these projects across property lines and jurisdictions.”