The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Division of Lands and Forests is pleased to announce available Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) funding for Urban and Community Forestry (UCF) grants for Tree Planting OR Tree Maintenance.
Donor Name: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
State: New York
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 08/16/2023
Size of the Grant:
- Large Community Grants: up to $100,000
- Small Community Grants: up to $75,000
Grant Duration: 2 years
Details:
This reimbursement grant program focuses on partnerships, volunteers, community groups, professionals and outreach and education because these are components of strong and sustainable community forestry programs. Eligible project categories include tree inventories, management plans, tree planting, maintenance, and education programming for those who care for community trees. Some categories require a 25% match. Grant funds are available from the NYS Environmental Protection Fund and are managed and allocated by DEC.
Grant proposals are evaluated for cost effectiveness, projected benefits, use of recommended standards in implementation, community outreach and education, local support, and regional impact. Appropriate consideration is given to under-served neighborhoods, as well as environmental issues that could be addressed with green solutions. DEC foresters can provide technical assistance to applicants and assist with tree lists for planting grants.
Project Types
- Tree Planting – Urban and Community Forestry 2
- The goal of the planting project is to increase long-term tree canopy by using best management practices for proper site/tree selection, site preparation, planting and young tree care.
- Plantings should be supervised by professionals (trained DPW staff, ISA certified Arborist, Nursery and Landscape professional
- Planting applications must include a 5-year planting and maintenance plan to ensure trees are planted correctly and that the plantings will be successful in the long-term (e.g. right tree/right place, inspection of roots and trees on receipt, planting depth, regular inspections, watering, structural pruning, stake removal, etc.)
- Applicants must use only non-invasive species
- Any questions regarding tree planting standards or appropriate professionals for tree list approval should be directed to the urban forester in your DEC Regional Office
- If volunteers are participating in tree planting, they must be provided training
- Trees may be removed in order to facilitate planting as part of this project, but removal may not be more than 20% of the total grant amount. Do not include removal or maintenance in the project title.
- Tree planting projects require a minimum survival rate of 95% at the time of DEC forester inspection prior to final reimbursement
- A 1-year warranty for trees/plantings by contractors is recommended.
- Tree Maintenance – Urban and Community Forestry 2
- A professional Tree Inventory that is at least 95% accurate, contains ranked maintenance recommendations, and completed within the last 8 years and actively maintained is a prerequisite for a Tree Maintenance project.
- The purpose of the Tree Maintenance project is to improve the health of the existing community forest for resiliency, long-term benefits and to reduce potential risk and liability.
- Examples of maintenance projects include:
- Tree removal or pruning, including stump removal. Invasive plant control, including removing and chipping, may be a portion but not more than 30% of the project.
- Young tree care, including pruning, watering, adding tree guards, etc.
- All pruning must be done or supervised by an ISA Certified Arborist.
- All projects should use staff or contractors professionally trained in best management practices for tree maintenance according to the International Society of Arboriculture.
- Priority should be given to highest priority trees and work identified in the tree inventory and management plan.
- Trees may be planted, following Recommended Minimum Standards for NYS DEC Tree Planting Projects, in priority areas where trees were removed (e.g. in front of a school) as part of this project but may not be more than 20% of the total grant amount.
Funding Information
- Approximately $3,000,000 in total is available for the UCF Grant (Round 16), approximately $1,500,000 for UCF2. Should newly-appropriated funding become available, DEC may award additional applications received in this round.
- Funding for this grant opportunity is provided from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund
- Applicants should request the amount of funding they can show is appropriate and reasonable for their project and supported in their application
- The minimum for all requests is $10,000
- Large Community Grants: Applicants may request up to $100,000
- Small Community Grants: Applicants may request up to $75,000
- “Large Community” for the purposes of this grant includes all cities, towns, and villages with a population of 65,000 or more.
- For applicants other than cities, towns and villages, the size of the maximum grant amount allowed is determined by the size of the community in which the project will take place
- At least $1,000,000 will be awarded to applications in Large Communities
- This is a reimbursement grant program. Awardees must submit reimbursement requests after the work is complete and contractors have been paid
- Grant Period: 2-year grant to help start, plan and advance strong, self-sustainable UCF programs which enhance the quality of life for all New Yorkers.
Eligible Project Locations
- Projects must be implemented in New York State and on non-state-owned properties (municipal public property, i.e., street and park trees), privately owned parkland that is open to the public (e.g. cemeteries) or alongside a state-owned roadway in a city, town, or village in a location where they provide a public benefit. Projects may be implemented further from a public roadway if within 10 feet either side of a paved or maintained multiple use trail. Schools with trees: trees on school property may be included in municipal applications if the property is owned by the municipality or if there is a written agreement that asserts the municipality manages the trees. Upload the agreement. Applicants must include a clear map of the project area in this application.
- Any work conducted by a municipality on private property, other than parklands providing public access, must be no more than ten feet beyond the municipal right-of-way. Beyond the municipal right-of-way refers to privately-owned lands that are adjacent to public lands. State law authorizes the use of public resources on private property if a public benefit is primarily served by that expenditure. Work may occur on property beyond the right-of-way to benefit the general public even though private parties would receive an incidental benefit. The local municipality must enact a local law authorizing work beyond the right-of-way. Such laws typically identify specific types of work that can be conducted beyond the right-of-way and establish ground rules to govern such work.
Eligibility Criteria
For the purposes of this grant program, the following entities are considered eligible applicants:
- New York State government entities, municipalities, and quasi-governmental entities including, but not limited to, counties, cities, towns, villages, or public benefit corporations, public authorities, municipal corporations, soil and water conservation districts, and community colleges.
- Indian nations or tribes recognized by the State or the United States with a reservation wholly or partly within the boundaries of New York State, or any combination thereof.
- 501(c)(3) not-for-profit (NFP) corporations whose projects are located within the eligible geographic boundaries defined in this Request for Applications (RFA). NFP applicants must possess the knowledge, skills, and/or track record to successfully implement the project.
For more information, visit NYDEC.
