USDA Forest Service
Forest Health Protection
The Forest Health Protection program provides technical support for combatting invasive forests pests and disease. As many as 250 scientists share expertise on forest entomology, forest pathology, invasive plants, pesticide use, survey and monitoring, suppression and control, assessment and applied sciences, and other forest health-related services.
Early warning systems
To combat what shows up – or may show up – in your community, you need solid information on what’s coming and from where. Fortunately, federal agencies and most states monitor and track forest pests and disease.
USFS Forest Pest Maps
Published annually since 1955, these report identify the then-current status of and changes to the most significant forests pests and diseases. Reports provide a national summary of conditions on all ownerships.
Alien Forest Pest Explorer
A cooperative project between Purdue University and the Forest Service, this interactive web tool which provides detailed spatial data describing pest distributions and host inventory estimates for damaging, non-indigenous forest insect and diseases.
National Early Detection and Rapid Response Information System
US Geological Survey scientists administer Siren: The National Early Detection and Rapid Response (EDRR) Information System. It provides an online forum for invasive species information sharing and collaboration that serves as the information hub of the National EDRR Framework.
FEMA
Major forest health crises may be viewed as natural disasters that qualify for FEMA disaster relief. And if other sorts of disasters might strike, funds allocated might be used to layer forest health activities on to normal FEMA-funded recovery programs.
FEMA’s also recognizes that healthy urban forests can mitigate future disasters. They encourage states and cities to recognize the role of trees and other nature-based solutions in their mandated Hazard Mitigation Plans.
Housing and Urban Development
HUD provides substantial funding through the Community Development Block Grant program where communities have suffered from a presidentially-declared disaster. These disaster recovery grants (CDBG-DR) can total millions, even billions.
They can support resilience-building projects that incorporate green infrastructure and nature-based solutions, including urban forestry. These efforts reduce future disaster risk while delivering environmental and community benefits. For example, funds may be used to create or restore natural buffers like wetlands, plant street trees to reduce urban heat, or develop green stormwater infrastructure such as bioswales and rain gardens. By integrating trees and other vegetation into recovery plans, communities enhance flood mitigation, improve air quality, and build long-term resilience to climate-driven hazards.
Other potential funding sources
Entity | Type | Primary Use | Examples |
USDA Forest Service – Forest Health Protection (FHP) | Federal | Monitoring, suppression, technical assistance | FHP grants to cities, tribes, states |
USDA APHIS – Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) | Federal | Survey, containment, eradication of invasive pests | ALB & SLF eradication programs |
USDA Forest Service – Urban & Community Forestry (IRA) | Federal | Urban canopy resilience, equity, replanting | IRA grants (2023–2027) to urban areas |
FEMA – Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) | Federal | Disaster mitigation related to forest health | Post-EAB or storm-related removal projects |
NSF & EPA Research Grants | Federal | Research on pests, forest health, urban impact | Urban IPM and tree health modeling |
State Forestry Agencies | State | Implementation, replanting, EAB response | California UCF, NY EPF, MN Shade Tree Program |
City Budgets / Local Government | Local | Tree maintenance, emergency removal, planting | Minneapolis EAB Plan, NYC replanting budgets |
Stormwater Utilities / Tree Fees | Local | Ongoing maintenance and pest-related mitigation | Fee-supported pruning or replanting |
USDA Emergency Funds / Congressional Allocations | Federal | Eradication response, large-scale pest outbreaks | ALB emergency funding to NJ & MA |