Tag: Agriculture

Heinrich, Murray, Merkley, Klobuchar Demand Answers from USDA on Wildfire Mitigation Projects, Firefighting Hiring Halted by Trump’s Funding Freeze

February 11, 2025

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Senate Interior-Environment Appropriations Subcommittee, and U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ranking Member

Merkley, Heinrich, Western Senators: Trump’s Illegal Funding Cuts Threatening Wildfire Mitigation Efforts

February 10, 2025

Washington, D.C. – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, Ranking Member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that funds the U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service, and New Mexico’s Senator Martin Heinrich, Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, led a group

Merkley: Proposed Federal Rule is Lifesaving for Monarch Butterflies

December 10, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley—a long-time leader in the fight to revive the population of the iconic Western Monarch butterfly—today issued the following statement after the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced a proposed rule to list the monarch butterfly as ‘threatened’ under the Endangered

Merkley, Wyden Announce Over $10 Million for Critical Conservation and Restoration Projects in Oregon

December 5, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today a total of $10,105,326 in funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF)’s America the Beautiful Challenge for four projects that will boost essential ecosystem conservation and restoration efforts in the state. “Our delicate ecosystems, waterways, and

Merkley, Wyden Announce Funding for Monarch Butterfly and Pollinator Conservation in Oregon

November 26, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today a total of $758,810 in funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF)’s Monarch Butterfly and Pollinators Conservation Fund (Pollinator Fund) for two projects that will increase and improve western monarch butterfly and pollinator habitats in Oregon. “We’ve

Merkley, Wyden Announce $9.4 Million Federal Investment to Confront Wildfire Threats in Oregon

September 11, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today that $9.4 million is coming to Oregon to reduce wildfire threats in high-risk areas across the state. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is directly investing $9,422,722 in three of Oregon’s national forests to treat areas of

Merkley, Bipartisan Group of Senators Press USDA to Urgently Address Tribal Food Delivery Delays Nationwide

August 23, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley today led a bipartisan group of senators to urge the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to take immediate action to rectify mounting delays with the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR). Tribal families have been experiencing extreme disruptions in food deliveries,

As Wildfires Devastate the West, Wyden, Merkley Urge Feds to Make Grazing Flexibility and Recovery Assistance Available

August 20, 2024

Senators’ letter to Interior Secretary: “Together, we can ensure that these rural communities receive the federal support they need to recover and continue to play a critical role as important partners for natural resource management” Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they are urging

Wyden, Merkley Announce $840,000 Investment in Oregon Ranchers

August 14, 2024

Coast Fork Willamette Watershed Council and Wallowa Resources will receive funds to enhance conservational grazing for livestock Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced a federal investment of $540,523 for the Coast Fork Willamette Watershed Council and $300,000 for Wallowa Resources to expand Oregon ranchers’ access to

Oregon Delegation Pushes for USDA Disaster Declaration, More Federal Resources to Respond to Oregon Wildfires

August 2, 2024

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s entire Congressional delegation—U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, alongside U.S. Representatives Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Andrea Salinas, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, and Cliff Bentz—sent a letter to U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack urging approval of Oregon Governor Tina Kotek’s request for a disaster declaration for Oregon counties facing devastating wildfires.