There is one month left for Alaskan communities to take advantage of the second round of funding for the federal Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG) program. A total of $1 billion is available over a five-year period through the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act that awards grants to at-risk communities to develop or revise a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP); and carry out projects described in a CWPP that is not more than 10 years old.
The deadline for this second application period is October 31, 2023.
Individual grants through the CWDG program will fund up to $250,000 to create and update community wildfire protection plans or conduct outreach and education, and up to $10 million for associated infrastructure and resilience projects. Projects must be completed within five years.
The State of Alaska opted in to the CWDG program, which allows our state applicants the maximum resources and assistance from the Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection. The division encourages eligible communities and organizations to take advantage of the funding opportunity and apply.
“To support additional wildland fire mitigation in at-risk communities, the State of Alaska opted in to the CWDG program to allow local applicants the maximum resources and assistance from the Alaska Division of Forestry & Fire Protection,” said Norm McDonald, Chief of Fire and Aviation. “The Division encourages eligible communities and organizations to take advantage of the funding opportunity and apply.”
Alaskan Tribal leaders, local governments & communities and non-profits that may be interested in this funding are encouraged to view the Alaska CWDG Applicant Informational webinar to determine whether their community is a good candidate for funding. The webinar recording can be viewed here: Alaska CWDG Applicant Informational webinar.
Alaskan communities that want to determine if they are eligible to apply for this program, are encouraged to visit the USFS CWDG homepage and start by using the Wildfire Risk tool. This is an important first step to determining the level of wildfire risk your community has. The deliberate language in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law legislation that created this program, ensures that priority is given to communities that have a high, or very high wildfire hazard potential, are identified as low income or have been impacted by a severe disaster.
The second important step before committing to the application process is to reference your community’s Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). If your community does not have a CWPP, this is an excellent opportunity to apply for up to $250,000 to create or update one. To see if your community has a current or outdated CWPP, go to https://forestry.alaska.gov/fire/cwpp/index.
There are two CWDG funding categories that can be applied for:
- PLANNING APPLICATION: For Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) Development or Revision: One of the fundamental building blocks in creating a fire adapted community is the development, adoption and continuous use of a well-prepared CWPP. In some cases, a community may choose to utilize a FEMA-approved hazard mitigation plan or Tribal hazard mitigation plan with a wildfire component that meets the same objectives of a CWPP.
- PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION: The project must be described in a Community Wildfire Protection Plan that is not more than 10-years old.
This Round 2 of CWDG funding will close on 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on October 31, 2023. If there is interest in your community, please reach out to the State of Alaska Point of contact, Sarah Saarloos for the unique application link required to access the CWDG Application Portal.
Categories: Grants
Alaska Wildland Fire Information 