Measure T-funded programs aim to reduce wildfire risk in the Truckee area through six grants

TRUCKEE, Calif. – Truckee Fire announced the first six recipients of its Measure T community wildfire prevention grant program. This year’s grants will provide $1 million in funding to support forest fuel reduction and community wildfire preparedness projects in high-priority areas within the fire district. 

Grant recipients include two community wildfire preparedness projects on Donner Summit for a state-of-the-art early-fire-detection camera and evacuation improvements. Additionally, four forest fuel reduction projects will be funded, including a 26-acre fuel reduction and hazard tree removal project around the west end of Donner Lake, a 130-acre timber harvest and fuel reduction project in the Royal Gorge area, a 12-acre fuel reduction project near the Pacific Crest Trail crossing over Donner Summit, and the purchase of mastication equipment for Tahoe Donner Forestry’s five-year forest management and maintenance plan which will treat 705 acres.

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Selected applicants are all providing matching contributions. In total, $230,036.87 will be leveraged through this grant program in the form of cash match and in-kind contributions.

“Through this program, we are able to better support our community by sharing resources to implement high-priority projects more quickly. The selected projects provide undeniable positive community benefits that increase our wildfire resiliency as a whole,” said Truckee Fire Registered Professional Forester Dillon Sheedy. “Each of the recipients is prepared to make an immediate and sizable impact on areas that we have deemed critical.”

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The annual grant program is designed to enhance fuels reduction and community preparedness projects, or to support new forest management programs. There were 11 total applications, eight of which met the grant application criteria. A committee composed of representatives from Truckee Fire, Town of Truckee, Nevada County Office of Emergency Services, and The Truckee-Tahoe Community Foundation reviewed and selected the six projects for the 2023/24 fiscal year.

Selections were based on a set of weighted priorities laid out by forest managers so the dollars can make the largest impact on regional wildfire mitigation. Awards and agreements will be made final at the regular July 18 Truckee Fire Board of Directors meeting.

Land owners, managers and Truckee residents can apply again in Spring 2024. Complete information on the grant program requirements can be found at http://www.truckeefire.org/grants.

In 2021, Truckee citizens passed Measure T, a special tax dedicating local funding to wildfire prevention. Under this funding umbrella, Truckee Fire has successfully launched a comprehensive set of programs and initiatives to reduce fuels and improve forest health across its district this year including this grant program, free defensible space inspections, free green waste removal programs, and the comprehensive Community Wildfire Protection Plan. 

For more information on Truckee Fire and Measure T, visit TruckeeFire.org.