TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV) — The Forestry Division of the DNR has awarded portions of a total $1.5 million in grant funding across nine Hoosier communities, and a Terre Haute organization is getting a portion of the funds.
According to a release from the DNR, the funding will be put towards supporting tree planting, education, tree inventory projects, and workforce development.
One of the organizations receiving a portion of the funds is TREES, Inc. in Terre Haute. The Forestry Division of the DNR donated $75,000 to TREES, Inc. so the organization can plant more trees.
“Forests aren’t just isolated to big swaths of lands or rural areas,” said Jacob Roos, urban forestry director for DNR. “Indiana’s cities and towns are home to urban tree canopies that provide us all with clean air, better drainage, wildlife habitats, and an elevated quality of life. I look forward to witnessing the positive impact this grant creates for each of these communities.”
The full list of other communities and organizations who received a portion of the USDA funds which are designed to support disadvantaged and underserved areas, as well as what the funds will be used for is as follows:
- Canopy Bloomington | $239,399 | education and maintenance
- City of Jeffersonville | $63,500 | inventory and planting
- City of New Albany | $250,000 | tree planting and education
- City of Noblesville | $106,150 | tree planting
- Regreening Greenfield | $50,000 | tree planting
- Evansville Forest Alliance | $249,616 | inventory, planting, and education
- Indiana Arborist Association | $250,000 | workforce development
- Keep Indianapolis Beautiful | $239,457 | workforce development
- TREES, Inc. | $75,000 | tree planting
According to the release, the two organizations receiving funding for workforce development, with one being “an arborist apprenticeship program that will train at least 15 individuals from underserved northwest Indiana communities for a career in urban forestry” and the second project “ will work with students to develop their urban forestry skills by maintaining and caring for more than 6,000 trees throughout Indianapolis.”
For more information on the DNR Division of Forestry’s program, visit the DNR: Division of Forestry webpage, email the Forestry Department, or call 317-234-6741.
