For Immediate Release:  September 6, 2022

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY FROM COMMUNITY WILDFIRE DEFENSE GRANT

APPLY NOW THROUGH OCTOBER 7, 2022

To view video please click on photo or view at this link: https://vimeo.com/738793085

(HONOLULU) – Each year wildfires burn thousands of acres of land in Hawai‘i impacting communities and natural resources. Dealing with serious fire threats to human safety, infrastructure, native ecosystems and wildlife, agricultural production, watersheds, and more, can leave both rural and urban communities overwhelmed.

The Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG) Program is offering funding to assist communities to prevent, plan, and mitigate for wildfire risks.

Grants prioritize communities in areas identified as having high or very high wildfire hazard potential, are low-income, and/or have been impacted by a severe disaster. The application window is open through October 7, 2022.

The CWDG Program is anchored in the three goals of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy:

• Restore and Maintain Landscapes: Landscapes across all jurisdictions are resilient to fire-related disturbances, in accordance with management objectives.
• Create Fire-Adapted Communities: Human populations and infrastructure can withstand a wildfire without loss of life and property.
• Improve Wildfire Response: All jurisdictions participate in making and implementing safe, effective, efficient risk-based wildfire management decisions.

The grants are intended to help at-risk communities become better prepared and more resilient to wildfire risks. For Hawai‘i, where over the past decade greater than 1,000 wildfires have burned an average of more than 17,000-acres each year, and where the wildfire season is year-round, this opportunity can help communities across the state.

Applicants can contact Michael Walker at [email protected] for more information.

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RESOURCES

(All images/video courtesy: DLNR)

HD video – Leilani fire ground operations and aerials (August 11, 2022)

https://vimeo.com/738793085

Kuaokalā Guarantee Fire (June 1, 2022)
https://vimeo.com/716458526

Photographs – Leilani Wildfire (August 12- 3 p.m. update)

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/xxalejckgnnwixg/AAAlZs1HitipIvB_qM2x_O1Ia?dl=0

Kuaokalā Guarantee Fire (June 1, 2022)
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/fiy882clkhc9h7o/AABv4uC3PeX2Lz8zkguEH_aWa?dl=0

Application materials and information –

Council of Western State Foresters CWDG webpage (Application)

https://www.westernforesters.org/community-wildfire-defense-grant

Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network CWDG Primer: Preparing to Apply for Community Wildfire Defense Grants

https://fireadaptednetwork.org/cwdg-primer/

Wildfirerisk.org Eligibility and Prioritization Data

https://wildfirerisk.org/download/

Media Contact:

Ryan Aguilar

Communications Specialist

Hawai’i Dept. of Land and Natural Resources

[email protected]