The Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry’s Municipal Planning Assistance Program seeks applications for a new round of Coastal Community Grants.

Fiscal year 2023 CCG details and the program statement are found on the program website at maine.gov. Grant applications are due by 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14, according to a news release from the Augusta-based department.

Open to counties, municipalities, unorganized territories, tribal governments, and regional planning organizations in Maine’s coastal zone, CCG competitive grants include projects in Maine’s coastal zone (see map at maine.gov), with a focus on the following priority coastal issues, as identified by the Maine Coastal Program and the Maine Climate Council’s Maine Won’t Wait: A Four-Year Plan for Climate Action:

• Building community resiliency to adapt to a changing climate;
• Planning for green infrastructure;
• Preparing for flooding, sea level rise, coastal storms and storm surge, and shoreline erosion; and
• Land use activity impacts on water quality.

The grants are an important element of the program’s mission to foster innovative and effective approaches to land use management by providing technical and financial assistance to Maine municipalities.

The program anticipates making multiple grant awards ranging from $20,000 to $50,000. Total funds available for the FY 2023 program are approximately $150,000. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration provides funding for these grants in cooperation with the Maine Department of Marine Resources Maine Coastal Program.

This statement is being released to coincide with the second round of Community Action Grants from the Community Resilience Partnership in the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future. CCG applicants are encouraged to examine opportunities for coordinating these two grant programs to maximize project scope and efficiencies. As non-federal funding, CCGs provide an eligible match for the federal Coastal Community Grant opportunity.

For more information, contact Joan Walton at joan.walton@maine.gov or 207-419-8661.

 

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