Hawaiʻi Rangeland Resilience Initiative

This initiative will strengthen the state’s capacity to withstand wildfire and drought by improving the health and function of working rangelands that serve as critical landscape-scale natural hazard mitigation. Led by the Hawaiʻi Rangeland Stewardship Foundation and in partnership with ranchers and state agencies such as the Agribusiness Development Corp. and DAB, this initiative will coordinate funding for on-the-ground projects that will reduce wildfire risk to adjacent communities and related built infrastructure. These activities include fuel break establishment through managed grazing, support for rotational grazing that lowers fuel loads and enhances ecosystem health, and investments in critical ranch water infrastructure such as reservoirs, pipelines, and trough systems. These efforts will bolster drought resilience, improve livestock management, and provide vital water resources for wildfire response, while sustaining food production and preserving natural resources statewide.