Deschutes & Ochoco National Forests
Crooked River National Grassland

National Fire Plan

Agencies Call For Community Assistance, Fire Mitigation Proposals

Communities in Oregon and Washington will again benefit from a federal multi-agency community assistance program designed to reduce wildland fire threats and enhance local economies. The U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs have once again packaged Forest Service community grant programs and a Department of the Interior Wildland-Urban Interface Fuels community assistance program as part of the National Fire Plan goals.

The goal, say agency representatives, is to provide grants and assistance under the National Fire Plan using a “one-stop” approach that allows grant seekers to submit a single proposal, while letting the agencies match the request to the best available program.

For fiscal year 2006 grants, applications must be received by close of business on February 11, 2005. The agencies expect to award between $4 and $6 million for fiscal year 2006. A majority of money will go for proposals under $250,000. Grants will be awarded after October 1, 2005 when fiscal year 2006 funds become available, likely in February 2006.

The four programs for proposals include wildland-urban interface fuels reduction, fuels utilization and marketing, education and prevention, and community wildfire protection planning.

Each program has a different focus, but combined, they increase interagency and community coordination and encourage grass-roots solutions to reduce wildland fire threats.

Some projects that could be funded include:

• Developing Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPPs);
• Conducting hazardous fuels reduction activities, including mechanical treatment and prescribed fire, as identified in CWPPs;
• Providing incentives, technical assistance and education programs to encourage reduction of hazardous fuels in fire-prone communities;
• Developing prevention and education programs focused on mitigating fire risk in the wildland-urban interface; and
• Expanding markets for the by-products of hazardous fuels reduction.

Grants through the National Fire Plan are highly competitive. I encourage applicants to begin collaboration with state, federal and tribal partners very early,” said Bonnie Wood, National Fire Plan Coordinator for Oregon and Washington. “The most successful proposals are those that respond to the criteria, are collaborated and supported locally, leverage other funds, can be completed in one to two years, and have a realistic budget, generally less than $200,000.”

Proponents seeking funding for treatment of hazardous fuels are expected to have complete community wildfire protection plans. Projects in the wildland-urban interface with adjacent projects on federal and/or tribal land are encouraged.

More information on eligibility requirements and project evaluation criteria for the four programs, and a link to the electronic grant application database can be found on the Internet at
http://www.nwfireplan.gov

All applications must be submitted to the electronic grants database by February 11, 2005 at 5:00 p.m. All applications must be submitted on-line through the grants database.