116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
In USDA’s $1.1 billion investment in tree planting, Cedar Rapids’ ReLeaf reforestation effort awarded $6 million
Iowa communities, Department of Natural Resources receive $15.7 million through Forest Service grants
CEDAR RAPIDS — In a move to expand equitable access to trees and green spaces nationwide, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on Thursday announced an award of $6 million toward Cedar Rapids’ effort to reforest the city after the 2020 derecho toppled most of the city’s tree canopy.
Gathered at Greene Square in the heart of Cedar Rapids, federal officials shared Cedar Rapids is among 385 recipients of $1.13 billion in U.S. Forest Service grants that will help communities grow tree cover in urban spaces and provide Americans with the health benefits that trees offer.
“The grants announced today will significantly move the needle in our fight to make our communities more resilient, increase urban tree cover, boost equitable access to nature and tackle climate change,” said Brenda Mallory, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. “Working side by side with all of our partners, we are investing from the ground up to improve the health and vibrancy of disadvantaged communities across the nation that have historically been marginalized, underserved and overburdened.”
In Iowa, Vilsack said Cedar Rapids was the largest grant recipient with $15.7 million coming to the Hawkeye State overall. Decorah, Dubuque, Ames, Council Bluffs, Des Moines and West Des Moines as well as the Iowa Department of Natural Resources also received grants.
The funding, made available through the $740 billion Democrat-backed Inflation Reduction Act that took effect in August 2022, is intended to expand equitable access to nature while making communities more resilient to extreme heat, storm-induced flooding and other effects of the human-caused climate crisis.
Locally, Thursday’s announcement moved the city of Cedar Rapids and Trees Forever closer to the $37 million needed to fund their ReLeaf partnership to replenish the trees downed in the derecho, the costliest thunderstorm in U.S. history. The unprecedented storm wiped out more than two-thirds of Cedar Rapids’ tree canopy, about 669,000 trees.
“We very much appreciate the support,” City Manager Jeff Pomeranz told The Gazette. “It’s critical to bringing back our trees and our tree canopy for the future of Cedar Rapids. This was a team effort and we want to thank the secretary of agriculture and his team for working with us and collaborating and supporting this huge Cedar Rapids effort and need.”
Vilsack told reporters the combination of community leadership, nonprofit organizations, faith-based organizations and other partnerships behind ReLeaf Cedar Rapids made it a compelling application within the state of Iowa and a fitting location to spotlight in unveiling the grants.
“What really struck me was how comprehensive and how excited and how passionate people are for this program in Cedar Rapids,” Vilsack said to those gathered in Greene Square. “I certainly appreciate the fact that a good part of the resources are going to be focused initially on those areas that in the past may not even have had the benefit of trees or if they did, they were fairly scarce.”
Momentum for ReLeaf
Specifically, the ReLeaf plan calls for planting about 42,000 trees on public parks and rights of way over 10 years with a focus on place-making and equitably restoring tree cover in vulnerable neighborhoods. The plan envisions trees as a means of strengthening social bonds in the community by promoting volunteerism.
How to get involved
To learn more and view the ReLeaf plan, visit CityofCR.com/ReLeaf. For additional information and to donate, go to treesforever.org/releaf/.
Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell said ReLeaf “is an unparalleled and ambitious plan making Cedar Rapids a leader in urban forestry and disaster recovery.”
“We know that the path to fully meeting our urban forestry needs here in Cedar Rapids and throughout the country will require ongoing federal support, potentially spanning several years … and many additional sources of funding,” O’Donnell said.
ReLeaf Cedar Rapids was honored in June with a Congress for the New Urbanism 2023 Charter Award, the top urban design award.
The city has committed at least $1 million annually toward ReLeaf for 10 years, plus funds to water the new trees. Deb Powers, interim chief executive officer of Trees Forever, said ReLeaf has secured about $3.5 million in private support so far and the federal investment will hopefully draw more contributions.
Since the Cedar Rapids City Council adopted the ReLeaf plan in February 2022, Trees Forever has worked to rally support among private donors and mobilize volunteers around replanting efforts with programs such as neighborhood “tree captains.”
“Our ability to continue to raise money is crucial to this program,” Powers told The Gazette. “And a lot of funders are listening and saying, ‘Well, if you can get that leverage money.’ So now we got it.”
Pastor Keeyon Carter with the Wellington Heights Community Church said trees are the “lungs of our neighborhood” and are sorely needed where economic disparities are prevalent.
“Trees are not just objects of nature,” Carter said. “They are a symbol of hope and resilience. When we invest in rebuilding our tree canopy, we send a powerful message to communities like Wellington Heights. We are saying that we care deeply for the well-being of Wellington Heights and other neighborhoods.”
Climate resilience
Vilsack touted the investment in tree planting as part of President Joe Biden’s agenda to advance environmental justice and climate resilience, spur economic opportunity and build a green economy.
As part of an approximately $370 billion investment in combating the climate crisis, the Inflation Reduction Act allocated $1.5 billion to the Urban and Community Forestry Program to plant more trees across U.S. communities, with a focus on overlooked and disadvantaged areas.
The Forest Service grants were open to community-based organizations, tribes, municipal and state governments, nonprofit partners, universities and other eligible entities. There were 842 applications seeking $6.4 billion in funds. Cedar Rapids had applied for a $14.2 million grant.
No members of Iowa’s entirely Republican congressional delegation, who all voted against the Inflation Reduction Act, were present Thursday. Rep. Zach Nunn, the Republican representing Iowa’s 3rd District, was Iowa’s only current member of Congress who was not yet in office when the bill was passed. O’Donnell said members of the delegation did provide letters of support for funding.
Some Republican presidential hopefuls and members of Congress have proposed axing some climate spending provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. That threat continues as lawmakers iron out the 2023 farm bill, the primary federal agricultural and food policy instrument.
As farmers have benefited from the IRA’s investment in climate-friendly agricultural resources, Vilsack told reporters he’s confident elected officials will see the wisdom of preserving these resources as they hear from farmers and ranchers.
“Frankly, folks have to make a decision with reference to the farm bill, with reference to the Inflation Reduction Act: Are you going to be for the few, or the many and the most?” Vilsack said. “I think we want a farm bill that's for the many and the most, which means preserving that IRA funding, because that's going to have conservation opportunities for all farmers, not just a select group of farmers, creating new income sources for all farms.”
Comments: (319) 398-8494; marissa.payne@thegazette.com
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