Carson National Forest to host workshop on forest restoration project grants

Carson National Forest officials will host a workshop about grant writing to assist individuals and organizations interested in submitting grant proposals for the “Collaborative Forest Restoration Program,” or CFRP.

The CFRP was signed into law in 2000 to establish a program in New Mexico to provide cost-share grants of up to $360,000 to stakeholders for projects on public, tribal and land grant lands that reduce the threat of wildfire, improve watershed conditions and provide jobs and training to local communities.

The program provides grant opportunities to individuals and organizations that will complete projects that restore forests on public or tribal lands and improve the use of small-diameter forest product, say officials.

In addition to assisting landowners with meeting forest restoration efforts, reducing the threat of wildfire and improving watershed conditions, CFRP projects have also provided jobs and training to local communities.

For example, say officials, in 2009, the Carson National Forest worked with the residents of Taos Pines Ranch, a private mountain community near Flechado Pass, on a CFRP grant to implement a 100-acre fuel break on the Carson National Forest along the property boundary, creating a fire-safe environment for residents.

The workshop is scheduled to take place Jan. 4 from 9-11 a.m. at the Carson National Forest supervisor’s office in the large conference room. The office is located at 208 Cruz Alta Road in Taos. For more information on CFRP grant opportunities on the Carson National Forest or to register for the course, contact Raul E. Hurtado at (575) 758-6344 or email rehurtado@fs.fed.us.