Nearly $1M in grants available to assist fire companies with brush fires

HARRISBURG – The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is planning to distribute nearly $1 Million in grants to help fire companies prepare for and battle brush fires and forest fires.

DCNR says they will invest up to $882,000 in grants for rural volunteer fire companies.

Grants will be up to $15,000 per fire company and funding will be on a 50/50 cost-share basis, DCNR says.

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 grant project, according to DCNR.

Eligible applicants include fire departments in rural areas or communities with fewer than 10,000 residents and funding can be used for training or equipment related to fighting brush and forest fires

Recipients will be selected based on vulnerability and adequacy of existing fire protection, with a focus on improving volunteer readiness and protecting lives and property in under-protected areas.

Priority will be placed on projects that include the purchase of wildfire suppression equipment and protective clothing. Grants may also be used to purchase mobile or portable radios; install dry hydrants; conduct wildfire prevention and mitigation work; train wildland firefighters; or convert vehicles into wildland fire engines.

“We appreciate the value of well-equipped and highly trained wildland firefighters and encourage fire companies to apply for these grants,” said DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn. “The commitment and dedication of these volunteers is critical to ensuring the Commonwealth doesn’t experience larger wildfires. We appreciate the hard work of the men and women who volunteer with fire companies serving our rural communities across Pennsylvania.”

Applications must be submitted electronically through DCNR’s grant website by 4:00 PM, Wednesday, December 31. To expedite processing, only online applications will be accepted.

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