Monte Vista is greening up through a USDA Forest Service grant intended to help communities plant and maintain trees. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced this week the awarding of funding for around 400 projects in communities around the country, with Monte Vista set to receive $1 million through the program.
Monte Vista will use its funding to inventory the current number of trees and identify any that are diseased and need to be replaced, said City Manager Gigi Dennis. The city also plans to plant 100 trees annually for five years to help with climate mitigation, which is the intention of the federal program.
“All good things,” Dennis said. “We’ll likely put a process in place to give trees to Monte Vista residents.”
The U.S. Forest Service awarded $37.2 million to the Rocky Mountain Region for projects similar to Monte Vista. The money comes through Congress’ approval of the Inflation Reduction Act, which pumped $1.5 billion into the Forest Service’s Urban and Community Forestry Program.