The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is now accepting applications for grants to help Pennsylvania’s rural communities better guard against the threat of fires on forested, undeveloped and unprotected areas. Applications are due May 21.

“Warming temperatures, sunny days and strong winds soon will usher in wildfire dangers that emphasize the value of having well-trained and well-equipped local firefighting forces in rural areas,” DCNR Acting Secretary Cindy Dunn said. “These men and women deserve the very best training and equipment.”

In 2014, $591,069 was awarded to 158 volunteer fire companies serving rural areas and communities where forest and brush fires are common. The grant program, offered through DCNR and paid through federal grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, has awarded more than $11 million since it began in 1982.

Local firefighting forces in rural areas or communities with fewer than 10,000 residents qualify for the aid, which is used for training and equipment purchases directly related to fighting brush and forest fires.

In reviewing applications, DCNR will place priority on those requests seeking funds for projects that include the purchase of wildfire suppression equipment and protective clothing.

Grants also may be used for purchasing mobile or portable radios, installing dry hydrants, wildfire prevention and mitigation work, training wildfire fighters, or converting and maintaining federal excess vehicles.

These vehicles are presented to the local departments exhibiting the greatest needs and those that commit to outfitting them for fire suppression.

Aid is granted on a cost-share basis. Grants for any project during a fiscal year cannot exceed 50 percent of the actual expenditures of local, public and private nonprofit organizations in the agreement. The maximum grant that will be considered from any fire company in 2014 is $7,500.

To expedite application and decision-making processes, DCNR is accepting only online applications.   Click Here to start the online application process.

For more information, contact DCNR’s Division of Forest Fire Protection at 717-787-2925 or send email to: ra-ffp@state.pa.us.

3/16/2015