Description
The Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Forest and Woodland Resource Management Program manages and conserves 58 million acres of forest and woodland in 12 western states and Alaska. These forests provide a range of ecosystem services including wildlife habitat, hydrologic function, and sustainable harvest of forest products valued by society. A primary activity of the program is to maintain and improve the resilience of forest and woodland ecosystems to wildfire, insects, disease, and drought through density management using timber sales, Stewardship agreements, and Good Neighbor (GNA) agreements. In particular, BLM Colorado manages 3.5 to 4 million acres of forested lands in Colorado. More than 2.5 million acres are considered woodlands, dominated by piñon, juniper and oak. The remaining forested acres consist of traditional commercial tree species such as ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine and Douglas fir. BLM Colorado has an opportunity to work with partner organizations to assist and collaborate with a recipient to leverage additional resources outside of the federal government, which not only furthers the BLM mission, but also improves our responsiveness to the public. In addition, by working across jurisdictional boundaries, public agencies, such as the BLM, gain efficiencies and streamline processes, which results in greater public and private participation. These collaborative efforts generate cost savings to the public by utilizing a recipient that shares similar goals of local economic improvement, environmental enhancement, and resource sustainability. Funded projects under this program will focus on high priority work that promote the following: 1) forest and woodland health; 2) sustainable forest management; 3) fire resiliency; 4) infrastructure development for future sustainable timber harvest; 5) biomass utilization; 6) habitat conservation needs; and 7) insect, disease and fire recovery. Eligible projects include, but are not limited to, the following activities: planting trees; pre-commercial and commercial thinning; salvage/sanitation forest treatments; control of competing vegetation; fuels reduction, riparian or upland restoration; project development and layout; planning analysis and document preparation needed in concert with or to carry out land use planning decisions, Endangered Species Act, cultural clearances, data collection, and monitoring. For more information on how to apply, please visit https://www.grants.gov and download the application, instructions and templates.