The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service received $280 million of the $3 billion appropriated to the Department of the Interior under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Of this amount, $115 million is for construction projects at Service facilities and $165 million is for renewable energy projects, habitat restoration, and deferred maintenance projects. An additional $10 million in Department of Transportation funding will be used for road construction on national wildlife refuges. The funding will stimulate employment and economic growth in the  communities where these projects are completed, providing long-term value for the American public.

Project Selection
We completed a rigorous merit-based process to identify and prioritize investments that meet the criteria put forth in the Recovery Act. We are funding the projects that generate the largest number of jobs in the shortest period of time and create lasting value for the American public. All of the projects that we are completing with Recovery Act funding represent long-standing priority needs identified through our maintenance, capital improvement, and habitat restoration planning processes. The Recovery Act will allow us to fund the following types of projects:

• Capital improvements to existing buildings and fish hatchery water management facilities
• Deferred maintenance of facilities and infrastructure
• Habitat restoration
• Construction of new visitor centers and other facilities
• Reconstruction and repair of service buildings and other structures
• Energy efficiency retrofits of Service facilities

Project Types
The following pages have additional information about some of the types of projects we are completing with Recovery Act funding:

• Introduction to Energy Efficiency Retrofitting
• Introduction to Infrastructure Improvement
• Introduction to Habitat Restoration

Return to the Service’s Recovery Act homepage