DEC: Nearly $640,000 in Volunteer Fire Assistance Grant funding now available - Niagara Frontier Publications

Mon, Oct 24th 2022 03:50 pm

Funds assistance with acquisition of wildland firefighting instrumentality for agrarian occurrence departments

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is present accepting applications for astir $640,000 successful Volunteer Fire Assistance Grant backing to assistance agrarian occurrence departments support nationalist information and earthy resources. The deadline for applications is Nov. 15.

“DEC’s wood rangers enactment intimately with unpaid occurrence departments to conflict wildfires, and this assistance programme is simply a large mode to assistance occurrence unit crossed the state,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said. “These grants bolster section capableness to combat wildland fires, protecting spot and communities.”

The Volunteer Fire Assistance Grant programme is funded by the U.S. Forest Service and administered by DEC wood rangers. Fire departments volition person 50/50 matching funds up to $1,500. Last year, the programme provided $1,500 grants to 412 occurrence departments.

Only expenses straight related to wildfire suppression efforts are eligible for funding. These see the acquisition of portable pumps, portable backpack pumps, manus tools, hoses, approved lightweight fire-resistant clothing, hard hats, turnout gear, portable radios, generators, and adust hydrants. Expenditures not straight related to firefighting, specified arsenic hunt and rescue, acquisition of land, operation of buildings and facilities, large apparatus purchases, and attraction items, are not eligible for funding.

Eligible occurrence departments see those that service a azygous municipality with a colonisation nether 10,000; those that service aggregate communities, 1 of which is simply a agrarian municipality of little than 10,000 residents; and occurrence departments successful towns with a colonisation of 10,000 oregon much that conscionable the exertion requirements. Fire departments that person a assistance grant indispensable implicit each required assistance paperwork.

For applications and further accusation astir the assistance program, interaction DEC astatine 518-402-8839; constitute to NYSDEC, Division of Forest Protection, 625 Broadway 3rd Floor, Albany, NY 12233-2560; oregon sojourn the DEC website astatine http://www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/2364.html.