Governor Abigail Spanberger announced more than $52 million in federal funding to support Hurricane Helene recovery projects across Southwest and Western Virginia. The money comes through Good Neighbor Agreements signed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, providing federal funding over a 10-year period targeted primarily at the Helene disaster recovery area in Southwest Virginia.
The agreements involve the George Washington & Jefferson National Forest, Virginia's Department of Forestry, and Department of Conservation and Recreation. The initiatives address forest restoration, infrastructure repair, and economic recovery in the affected region.
Specific projects include $13.9 million for recreational infrastructure recovery, with work to restore, rebuild, and relocate approximately 400 miles of trails and related infrastructure damaged by the hurricane. Recovery work includes trail reconstruction, hazard tree removal, drainage improvements, and repairs to roads, bridges, and trailheads across impacted counties, including Grayson Highlands State Park and Douthat State Park.
Another $15.5 million will support native forest vegetation regeneration through managed practices treating approximately 500 acres annually. The agreement allocates $9.5 million for wildfire hazard mitigation and prescribed burning targeting at least 1,000 acres per year, $5.3 million for ecological restoration of state forests, $3.2 million for invasive species control, and $1.28 million for community forestry work in gateway communities. The City of Lexington Moore's Creek Dam project will receive $3.5 million to address safety concerns for the downstream reservoir.