Prescott Fire Department to Support Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project

Prescott Fire Department has been approved for nearly $83,000 to support Hazardous Fuels Reduction project
The Prescott Fire Department has been approved for a grant in the amount of $82,674 to support the Mountain Club Hazardous Fuels Reduction project.  The grant is administered by the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management.
According to Prescott Fire Chief Dennis Light, City Fire Department Fuels staff submitted the Mountain Club grant request in May of 2018, for the 2018 Arizona Wildland Fire Hazardous Fuels Grant Program.  The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) anticipated providing funding assistance to the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire management for mitigation of fire risk in Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) areas and for the protection of Arizona communities through reduction of hazardous forest and woodland fuels.
The award was administered as a competitive process, with emphasis on hazardous fuel reduction and community protection.   According to Marsha Collier, Fuels Management Coordinator for the City of Prescott, all projects require a minimum of 10% non-federal match contribution (90% grant 10% match).    Funds are dispersed on a reimbursement basis after the recipients incur cost and report accomplishments and expenses to Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management.
Eligible grant recipients include fire departments and fire districts, government organizations, universities and non-profit organizations.  Projects must be on non-federal lands such as state, private and local government.  Awards not to exceed $200,000 of grant funding per project and organizations are limited to one project application for the 2018 cycle.
Collier stated that the projects should be fully achievable within 2 years from the award date.
She went on to say that the area in the Mountain Club was chosen for a project due to the location of the properties, in accordance with the Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CCWP). The U.S. Forest Service is currently working in the same area creating a fuel break along the forest boundary.
According to Prescott Fire Chief Dennis Light, “The Indian Fire in 2002 burned to the area that this grant will address. The fire burned right up to homes and was thankfully stopped,” he said.  “We see this area as a high priority based on location, fuel type and emergency response access.  This area directly borders the City of Prescott.”
The City currently has three other grant projects in the program, including Goldwater Lake, Groom Creek, and Senator Highway.
For more information about this project, and other fuels mitigation efforts in the City of Prescott, call Division Chief Don Devendorf at 928-777-1761.