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61 °F Forecast | Road Cams Sunday, September 19, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend January 7, 2004 Coalition seeks grant for fire prevention By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune With snow heavy on the mountains and rain soaking the valleys, a wildfire is the last thing on the minds of most rural residents in Jackson and Josephine counties. But Applegate Valley community activist Jack Shipley is already fired up about summer wildfires. "This is the best time to get prepared, the best time to plan," explained Shipley, chairman of the Applegate Partnership, a coalition of Applegate Valley residents formed in 1992 to work together to preserve the watershed’s ecology and economy. The partnership, representatives of Applegate Fire District No. 9 and others are meeting next week in the Applegate Valley to begin planning a proposal for a National Fire Plan grant for federal fiscal year 2005. Never mind that the money won’t be available until Oct. 1 of this year. Advertisement The U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service are seeking grant applications now for the $6 million to $8 million in grants expected to be available for 2005. Deadline for applying is Feb. 13. The National Fire Plan was created by Congress after the devastating 2000 fire season. The plan allocates money for community efforts to reduce threats of catastrophic fires. The four programs eligible for funding include wildland/urban interface fuels reduction, fuels utilization and marketing, education and prevention and community planning for risk assessment and mitigation. The focus on the four programs is to increase interagency and community coordination and encourage grassroots solutions to reduce wildfire threats, said Karen Gillespie, spokeswoman for the BLM’s Medford District. It costs less to prevent or halt the spread of a wildfire than to fight it, officials note. The combined effort by rural residents is expected to affect the behavior of an approaching wildfire, reducing its momentum, they add. Since the project began in 2001, more than $4.9 million in grants has been awarded in Jackson and Josephine counties. Much of that has been awarded through fire districts, watershed councils and other community groups. The funding has been distributed from the Cascade Range for the Friends of Green Springs to the Illinois Valley Forest Action Committee. Although most of the work has been clearing brush and small trees, it also has allowed the development of small-diameter wood products. The majority of the funds require the cost of the work to be shared with private landowners, Gillespie said. Most of the money awarded will be for proposals that are less than $250,000, she added. A century of fighting wildfires has left much of the region with abnormally thick vegetation, creating the potential for catastrophic fires, according to wildfire experts. "This is a wonderful opportunity for folks to move forward, to make changes," Shipley said of reducing wildfires in the urban interface. "This is something we can plan for right now." Eligibility requirements and project evaluation criteria along with grant application forms are available on the Internet at www.nwfireplan.gov For further information, contact local grant coordinator Paul Galloway at 552-2921 after Jan. 13. Applications can be sent via regular mail to: Attn: Lauren Maloney, National Fire Plan Program, Bureau of Land Management, Fire and Aviation Management, P.O. Box 2965, Portland, OR 97208-2965 They also can be e-mailed to [email protected] Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities