Last October, the Department of Natural Resources’ Urban Forestry program awarded fifteen communities and tribes with grant funding in response to the State of Emergency declared on July 18th, 2019. This declaration triggered the availability of up to 20% of the program’s funds, an amount of $104,920, to affected Wisconsin communities to help lessen the burden of storm-related damages to their urban forest canopy. Each applicant was able to request a maximum of $50,000; however, due to the unprecedented number of applications received, grants were limited to awards ranging from $4,000 to $8,428.19.

The Department submitted a request in December to the Joint Committee on Finance to transfer funds from the forestry emergency reserve. This reserve was created in 2017 as a result of Wisconsin Act 59 for emergency responses to significant fire, disease, infestation, or other natural disasters that could not otherwise be reimbursed by federal funds.

Continue reading “Catastrophic aid request approved for communities” →

Local units of government (LUGs) are eligible to apply for four Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program grants and two related federal programs administered by the DNR. The annual application deadline is May 1^st for the grant programs listed below.

Knowles-Nelson Stewardship local assistance grant programs:

• Aids for the Acquisition and Development of Local Parks (ADLP)
• Urban Green Space (UGS) grants
• Urban Rivers (UR) grants
• Acquisition of Development Rights (ADR)

Federal recreation grant programs:

• Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)
• Recreational Trails Program (RTP)

Continue reading “Funding opportunities available through the DNR” →

Are you seeking funding for an urban and community forestry project with multi-state or national impact? If so, consider applying for the USDA Forest Service National Forest Resiliency Innovation 2020 Challenge Cost Share Grant Program.

• Deadline: March 30^th, 2020
• Total funding available: approximately $900,000 (based on the availability of funding, which may be subject to change).

The USDA seeks innovative (new, cutting-edge or builds upon existing studies) grant proposals for program development, study, and collaboration that will address urban and community forest resilience and aligns with one or more applicable goals in the National Ten Year Urban and Community Forestry Action Plan (2016-2026):

Continue reading “Grant opportunity: USDA National Forest Resiliency Innovation 2020 Challenge” →

Bird City Wisconsin announces a new small grants program available to current Bird City communities. Grants totaling $500 will be awarded in each of three categories: creating and protecting bird habitat, educating residents about interactions between birds and people, and protecting birds by reducing threats.

The application deadline is March 31^st, 2020.

For more information and to apply, please visit this webpage.

Nonprofit conservation organizations (NCOs) are encouraged to apply for grants to help fund the acquisition of land through the WDNR’s Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program. Applications are due March 1st, 2020 for the following NCO grant subprograms:

• Habitat Area grants
• Natural Area grants
• Stream Bank Protection grants
• State Trail grants

Application materials for the fiscal 2020-2021 NCO grant cycle are available on the DNR website at https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/Stewardship/Grants/ApplyNCO.html

(Please note that applications for Knowles-Nelson Stewardship grants available to local units of government (LUGs) will be due May 1, 2020. More information on the LUG application process is available on this webpage.)

This October, thirty-six applicants were selected to receive funding from the WDNR Urban Forestry program. Of the thirty-six selected, twenty will receive regular grants while the remaining sixteen will receive startup grants. $419,680 in available grant funding was awarded towards their efforts during the 2020 calendar year. The selected recipients join fifteen recipients of 2020 WDNR catastrophic storm grants earlier this year.

Between regular and startup grant projects, the funds awarded will range from $3,500 to $25,000 in a dollar-for-dollar match on projects that are estimated to total nearly $2 million.

The DNR Urban Forestry Grant program funds projects consistent with state and national goals for increasing the urban forest canopy and the benefits it provides. The urban forest encompasses trees on both public and private property. Priorities for the 2019 grant cycle include, but are not limited to, projects that increase the ability of local municipal partners to expand their urban forestry program; increase the ability of all local partners to provide ongoing urban forestry funding, services and/or markets; benefit multiple communities; and put existing inventories of urban trees to use.

Continue reading “Recipients announced for regular and startup grants” →

Fifteen communities will share $104,920 in 2020 grant funding to assist with storm damage sustained during the State of Emergency declared last July. Recipients in alphabetical order are as follows: City of Antigo, City of Appleton, City of Barron, Town of Greenville, Village of Kimberly, Village of Little Chute, City of New London, Oneida Nation, City of Pittsville, Village of Port Edwards, Village of Turtle Lake, City of Two Rivers, and City of Wisconsin Rapids.

Applicants requested a total of $593,975 in grant funding, with reported damages amounting to $1,712,261. We are seeking additional funding to fully meet all Catastrophic Storm Grant requests.

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 the event of 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.