Wyden, Merkley, Dexter Announce More Than $2 Million for Wildfire and Watershed Resilience in Mt. Hood National Forest

Washington D.C.-U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley with U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter today announced more than $2 million in federal investments for fuels reduction work across private and public lands in Mt. Hood National Forest to reduce the risk of wildfire.

"During another destructive wildfire season, I have heard directly from Oregonians living and working on the frontlines of these blazes about the urgent need for more resources," Wyden said. "Funding the work to protect our public lands and communities from the infernos is absolutely essential, and I will continue to fight for more resources to support wildland firefighters, increase resilience, and protect Oregon's beautiful outdoor spaces."

"Oregonians know all too well the threat of climate chaos, which is fueling increasingly frequent and severe wildfires that threaten our homes, businesses, and way of life," said Merkley, who serves as ranking member of the Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee that provides the funds the Forest Service is using for this project. "This funding will provide partners with resources needed to protect private and public lands and wildlife in the Mt. Hood National Forest. As our fire seasons continue to grow longer and more fierce, I'll keep fighting to ensure Congress follows through on its commitment to support our communities and deliver essential federal dollars for hazardous fuels work and wildfire-related risks."

"I just returned from a forty-mile backpacking trip around Mt. Hood where I saw firsthand the need for strong federal investment in wildfire and watershed resilience in the Mt. Hood National Forest," said Rep. Dexter. "Today's funding is an important first step, and I won't stop fighting for federal policies that reduce wildfire risk across Oregon."  

This $2.14 million investment from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will support restoration and hazardous fuels reduction treatments including thinning, weed removal, road improvement, vegetation management, mastication, and prescribed burning.

"As with so many things in the natural resources realm, priority issues facing northwestern U.S. forests-such as forest health, wildfire mitigation, and landscape resilience-are deeply interconnected," said Kate Skinner, interim Oregon State Forester and director of the Oregon Department of Forestry, a key partner in projects like this. "The wildfire mitigation efforts funded under this project won't just reduce the risk of wildfire itself on public and private lands, but also the impacts of wildfire on water quality, wildlife habitat, and communities in the Hood River area."

Wyden, Merkley and Dexter have been champions of sustainable forestry and common-sense policies to reduce the risk of wildfire. In June, Wyden led colleagues in introducing the bipartisan National Prescribed Fire Act of 2025 that would invest in hazardous fuels management to reduce the risk of blistering infernos by increasing the pace and scale of prescribed burns during cooler, wetter months. Wyden, Merkley and Dexter also advocated for repairing and updating critical infrastructure for disaster response, announcing over $80 million for infrastructure repairs and $9.7 million for rural airports across Oregon.

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