Reporter for The Canyon Weekly
The Oregon Department of Forestry plans to spend $26.6 million in federal money to support urban and community forests in the state.
The money comes to the ODF from the Inflation Reduction Act, passed by Congress in 2022.
ODF officials said that $10 million will go to the nine federally recognized tribes of Oregon and $12.5 million more to all other eligible entities. The remainder of the $26.6 million will go to program administration.
ODF officials said the grant program aims to promote equal access to the benefits of trees and aims to get more people involved in tree planting and comprehensive urban forest management.
“This is going to be a game-changer for Oregon,” said Scott Altenhoff, ODF’s program manager for urban and community forests. “This is the largest and most significant urban and community forestry investment in Oregon’s history.”
Proposals can be submitted starting July 1, with the final deadline on Sept. 30. Project funding will range from $10,000 to $750,000 and can be spent during the next four years.
Program officials can provide support to organizations with project development, grant writing, and performance reporting.
The application portal and resources related to the grants can be found at https://www.oregon.gov/odf/forestbenefits/Pages/ucf-subaward-programs.aspx/.
In addition to the recognized tribes and tribal organizations the grants are intended to support local government entities such as city/county governments, public school districts and soil and water conservation districts, academic and educational institutions and nonprofits and community organizations.
Those not eligible include for-profit companies, individuals and private citizens and state and federal agencies.
Altenhoff said that he hopes the program will support groups who have been historically less likely to apply for grants.
“We are excited to empower communities who typically lack access to federal resources,” he said. “We want to meet communities and organizations where they are at and provide support for their good ideas and projects.”
