Texas A&M Forest Service Prescribed Fire Grants

The Texas A&M Forest Service Prescribed Fire Grants program provides financial assistance for prescribed burning projects on private lands throughout Texas. This initiative supports various targeted grants designed to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires, facilitate ecosystem restoration, and improve water quality and wildlife habitat through the strategic use of prescribed fires. The grants are specifically aimed at supporting:

1. Communities threatened by wildland fires through the reduction of hazardous fuels in and around these areas, especially those adjacent to priority communities at high risk for loss during Southern Plains Wildfire Outbreak events.
2. Projects within 10 miles of a National Forest boundary aimed at protecting high-risk communities and forest resources.
3. Efforts in Central and East Texas that focus on private property in counties with a Community Wildfire Protection Plan, seeking to protect communities and aid in ecosystem recovery.
4. The Neches River and Cypress Basin Watersheds Restoration Program, which focuses on using prescribed fire for ecological improvement, improvement of water quality and quantity, control of invasive species, and enhancement of wildlife habitat in specified watershed areas.

Priority for these grants is given to projects that effectively protect high-risk communities, contribute to ecosystem restoration, and are backed by strategic planning documents and assessments, such as the Texas Wildfire Risk Assessment Portal (TxWRAP), Community Wildfire Protection Plans (CWPP), and proximity to Firewise communities or public lands.