The USDA Forest Service Eastern Region is pleased to announce two requests for applications for 2022 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative projects. Through an agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency, the Forest Service anticipates that up to $5 million will be available for reforestation, ecosystem restoration and forest health improvements on non-federal lands in the Great Lakes basin of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Launched in 2010, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) strategically targets the biggest threats to the Great Lakes ecosystem and accelerates progress toward long-term restoration goals. These grants not only support forest restoration, but also provide diverse communities with access to a range of economic and environmental benefits, outcomes and opportunities.

Applicants can be state agencies, sovereign tribal nations, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions and local government agencies working within the Great Lakes basin. Cooperative Weed Management Area (CWMA) funding requests must be submitted through a CWMA or similar organized partnership that manages invasive plants across land ownership boundaries within the Great Lakes basin.

Applications can be submitted through two separate requests for applications:

·        The CWMA Request for Applications funds partnership work to address invasive plant species that pose significant ecological threats in the Great Lakes basin.

·        The Forest Restoration Request for Applications funds projects that mitigate forest insect and disease impacts, reduce runoff from degraded sites through green infrastructure or restore and connect coastal and riparian forest habitats.

All applications must be received in Grants.gov by November 14, 2022. For more information on these funding opportunities, please visit our website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/r9/workingtogether/grants


Related: DNR accepting grant applications for projects associated with Minnesota’s Lake Superior Coastal Program