Friday, October 19, 2018

Montana: Application Period Opens for WHIP Grants

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is accepting applications for Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program grants. The purpose of WHIP is to accomplish large-scale restoration of private and publicly owned, high priority wildlife habitats through noxious weed management.

The program can annually allocate up to $2 million of federal Wildlife Restoration Act (Pittman-Robertson) funds to support restoration work. Grant expenditures are limited to herbicide, mechanical, biocontrol, and re-seeding treatments, specifically to restore wildlife habitat functions. The program can also pay for range infrastructure to improve livestock grazing management for restoring native wildlife habitats and reducing susceptibility to noxious weed invasion.

Grant awards are based on eligibility and competitive ranking. To qualify for funding, projects must:

  • enhance ecologically important wildlife habitat through control or management of noxious weeds that directly threaten habitat functions
  • use a landscape scale approach
  • have a reasonable probability of treatment effectiveness
  • include a minimum 25 percent non-federal cash match

Ranking criteria also includes number of funding partners and amount of contributions, number of landowners involved, and accessibility of participating lands for public hunting. Awarded grants can be structured to provide funding for up to five years.

Grant applications must be received no later than Dec. 15 to be considered for funding in 2019. For additional information and application materials, please visit the WHIP page on FWP’s website:http://fwp.mt.gov/fishAndWildlife/habitat/wildlife/programs/whip/

If you have questions about applying for a WHIP grant or have any problems with the application forms, contact WHIP Coordinator Kim Antonick, kim.antonick@mt.gov or 406-444-7291.