The California State Ag Secretary announced yesterday that the US Department of Agricultures Forest Service is investing almost $78 million in wildfire protection projects across the state, including almost $9 million going to the Clear Lake Environmental Research Center’s Lake County Wildfire Risk Reduction Project Phase 1. The LakeCountyNews reports the project will reduce fuels and restore fire-adapted ecosystems on private lands and roadways, accomplished in part by funding a fuels team employed by the Northshore Fire Protection District. The city of Ukiah also received just over $7 million for the Ukiah Valley and Mendocino Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project on 200 acres.