Credit: Joseph O’Brien, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org

On Thursday, July 29, Governor Evers issued Executive Order #128, declaring a State of Emergency due to severe weather across the state of Wisconsin. This has triggered the opening of the DNR Urban Forestry’s Catastrophic Storm Grant program for communities, counties, tribal governments and 501(c)(3) organizations to apply for funding. Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 27.

The DNR Urban Forestry Catastrophic Storm Grant program funds tree repair, removal or replacement within urban areas following a catastrophic storm event for which the governor has declared a State of Emergency under s. 323.10, Wis. Stats. A catastrophic storm means damage to urban forests caused by snow, ice, hail, wind or tornado. Catastrophic storm does not include insect infestation or disease, forest fire, drought or water saturation due to flooding.

In a declared State of Emergency, the DNR Urban Forestry Grant program allots 20% of its available annual funds to aid communities, non-profits and tribes. The grants do not require a dollar-for-dollar match.

Urban forest damage must have occurred in an area with a minimum of 100 residents per square mile. Residential density is determined from statistics provided by the Wisconsin Demographic Services Center according to U.S. Census Bureau data. To find the density for your area, open the 2020 Population Density Microsoft Excel document on this webpage and click on the MCD Population Density tab.

For more information and to apply, please visit this webpage. Find additional storm-damaged tree care resources here.