12 Ways the Inflation Reduction Act Will Benefit Birds and People

The name doesn’t make it obvious, but the Inflation Reduction Act is the most significant climate legislation ever to become law. It also does a lot of other important things. Here are 12 ways this bill benefits birds, people, and the places we need.

1) Reducing Carbon Pollution Through Clean Energy 

Improving our nation’s transmission infrastructure is critical to delivering renewable energy to consumers and enabling the transition to clean, carbon-free electricity at the pace climate threats demand. The IRA would provide more than $70 billion in new loan authority within the Department of Energy, which will help expand clean energy and transmission, as well as update infrastructure to meet climate threats and ensure that new projects are designed with conservation of existing environments in mind.   

The IRA includes $4 billion in drought resilience funding for the American West, where rivers like the Colorado River—which provides water for 40 million people and 400 bird species—are in crisis. Specifically, this funding allows agricultural and municipal water users to voluntarily reduce water consumption (leaving more water in rivers), advance projects for efficiencies in water conservation, and restore habitats impacted by drought. In the face of a hotter and drier climate, all of these actions will help the Colorado River, the Salton Sea, and other western rivers. 

The bill includes $2 billion for wildfire risk reduction, including funds for nature-based solutions like beavers, which can restore natural hydrology and reconnect river systems. Hundreds of millions of dollars are also included for wetland conservation and restoration on National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Wildlife Refuge properties. 

In addition, the IRA includes $220 million for Tribal climate resilience, $12.5 million for near-term actions to mitigate drought impacts for Tribes, and $550 million for disadvantaged communities to plan, design, and build water projects that create or improve reliable access to water. 

5) Bringing America's Grassland Prairies Back to Life

Grasslands are crucial habitat during the lifecycle of beautiful migratory songbirds across America. These habitats are used for nesting, breeding, and foraging. Henslow’s Sparrow, Bobolinks, and the Eastern Meadowlark are three species that spend part of their life cycle living in grasslands while feasting on various insects and seeds from the tall stalks surrounding them.   

In 2019 Audubon found that fewer than 40 percent of the historic grasslands of North America remain. Also in 2019, researchers found that grassland birds suffered the greatest loss of abundance — a staggering 53 percent loss. More than three-quarters of the priority grasslands in the United States are privately owned.

The Inflation Reduction Act invests $20 billion in voluntary conservation programs on private lands — including grasslands — through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Audubon hopes to see these funds prevent grassland conversions and support collaborative partnerships that keep grasslands intact. By supporting proven programs we hope to save these songbirds and grasslands. 

6) Restoring and Conserving Forests

Healthy forests are important for birds and people. The Inflation Reduction Act will invest more than $450 million to help private landowners manage forests and to provide incentives that will help protect more forest ecosystems. Forests naturally store carbon dioxide in their trees, shrubs, and soils, and keep carbon pollution out of the atmosphere.  

They also build climate resilience in places like the Upper Mississippi River Watershed where Audubon is working with landowners on forest restoration and management. There, floodplain forests provide communities along the river critical protection from flooding as well as habitat for nearly 200 bird species, including the Prothonotary Warbler, Cerulean Warbler, and Red-Shouldered Hawk.   

Managing forests for birds is highly compatible with managing forests for other purposes. Private landowners are already engaged in healthy forest management across the United States, including the Upper Mississippi River Watershed and the Atlantic Flyway where Audubon is working with private landowners and foresters.

7) Growing Healthy Forests for Everyone

Red-tailed Hawks and other generalist species like Blue Jays benefit tremendously from urban foresting projects. Green spaces in urban areas are also proven to improve both the mental and physical health of those living in surrounding neighborhoods. The IRA invests $1.5 billion in grants for urban and community forestry.   

There is an additional $2 billion for National Forest System lands. This funding will support healthy forest management that will make our national forests more resilient to stressors like climate change, and provide important bird habitat and ecosystem services like water quality, flood control, and carbon storage.

These projects will not only provide varied and valuable habitat in urban and rural areas but can help cities reduce energy needs and mitigate the destructive effects of climate change in rural areas. Forest ecosystems support more birds than any other habitat type. Healthy forest management is key to improving habitat diversity; forests featuring new and old growth trees, with canopy gaps for undergrowth development and downed wooded material help birds at various life stages.

8) Putting Our Lands to Work for Birds and People

The $20 billion from the IRA going toward the grasslands efforts mentioned in #5 will also help more producers implement climate and habitat-friendly practices on their farms and ranches even beyond grasslands. With an additional $1 billion in Conservation Technical Assistance, these funds will help support programs at the USDA that have proven to work for farmers, ranchers, and birds together by supporting landowners as they make habitat improvements. There is often significantly more interest in these programs than there is funding to meet that interest.

In 2021, Audubon found that maintaining and restoring important bird habitats can also help mitigate climate change. The majority of these priority areas are on private lands. These funds will support land owners who implement changes to improve carbon storage and hopefully also the habitat on their land.

Audubon California works with rice farmers to adopt these types of practices and by doing so their active farmland is able to serve as a habitat for migratory birds like the Tricolored Blackbird, Greater Yellowlegs, and the Northern Pintail. 

9) Bolstering Natural Infrastructure to Protect our Coasts

The Inflation Reduction Act allocates $2.6 billion dollars to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for coastal protection and restoration. Through grants, contracts, and technical assistance, coastal states and Tribes will be able to increase their resilience to climate change by restoring habitats like beach dunes and wetlands. These coastal ecosystems act as natural infrastructure, buffering nearby communities from storms and sea-level rise, while also providing a home for nesting and migrating birds.

Additionally, the legislation gives NOAA $50 million dollars for National Marine Sanctuaries, which preserve unique ocean areas, providing critical habitat for marine life and a boost to local economies. For example, the recently expanded Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in the Gulf of Mexico is home to seabirds like Magnificent Frigatebirds and Northern Gannets, as well as coral reefs, endangered sea turtles, and sharks. Protecting and restoring coastal habitats both on land and in the ocean will also reduce carbon pollution in the atmosphere and bring the U.S. closer to its climate goals, as wetland plants and coral reefs permanently store carbon pollution.

10) Protecting People and Wildlife

The Inflation Reduction Act will also invest $1 billion for federal agencies to conduct robust reviews under the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) for projects using federal funds or on federal lands. NEPA ensures that the government not only accounts for impacts through sound scientific study but also through public input. These reviews are critical, especially as we know energy and infrastructure projects have historically had a disproportionately negative effect on low-income and rural communities, as well as people of color.

The Endangered Species Act has helped has recovered bird species like the Bald Eagle, Brown Pelican, and Black-capped Vireo. This work is often difficult and underfunded but the IRA injects $125 million into the implementation of endangered species recovery plans and addressing climate change impacts on key habitats. Government agencies, like the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, work with states, Tribes, and other partners to implement these plans.

Habitat is incredibly important to the conservation and recovery of birds and other wildlife. The IRA also provides $121 million toward rebuilding and restoring parts of the National Wildlife Refuge System and state wildlife areas.

11) Helping Communities and Conservation Through the Energy Transition

There are several provisions in the legislation that will help communities and workers transition to a clean energy economy, like incentives for siting new energy projects on brownfields (i.e. former gas plants and coal mines) and providing benefits for employing workers from energy communities in transition.