The forest stewardship program provides assistance to non-industrial private forest owners, including rural lands and wildland urban interface zones with existing tree cover, or suitable for growing…

The Department of Agriculture Forest Service Research Service Rocky Mountain Research Station awarded the Utah Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry, Fire, & State Lands $4.774 million on August 24, 2026, under the Cooperative Forestry Assistance program (CFDA 10.664).

The award funds forest stewardship, forest health management, urban and community forestry, and state fire assistance activities across Utah's non-federal forest, range, and watershed lands. Work includes technical and financial assistance to non-industrial private forest owners; detection and evaluation of forest insect and disease issues; promotion and management of sustainable trees in Utah's cities and towns; and prevention of wildfire origin and spread in rural and wildland areas. The Division delivers fire management and protection services across approximately 15 million acres of non-federal lands in Utah and provides technical and financial assistance to county and local governments, rural fire departments, and special service districts.

The period of performance runs from August 24, 2026, through June 30, 2031. All work is performed in Utah. The Division operates as Utah's lead state agency for forest stewardship and fire management, partnering with local governments, tribal organizations, private landowners, and conservation groups to deliver on-the-ground forest management and wildfire mitigation services statewide on non-federal lands and cooperatively on federal National Forest System and Bureau of Land Management lands.

The forest stewardship program provides assistance to non-industrial private forest owners, including rural lands and wildland urban interface zones with existing tree cover, or suitable for growing trees, that is owned or leased long-term by any private individual, group, association, corporation, tribe or other private legal entities. The purpose of the forest health program is to provide, through the state forester, the necessary technical and financial assistance for the detection and evaluation of forest insect and disease issues and to recommend appropriate actions necessary to manage, suppress or prevent significant insect or disease outbreaks. The purpose of the urban and community forestry program is to promote and provide for the initiation, establishment, and management of sustainable trees throughout utah's cities and towns. The urban and community forestry program also provides advice and assistance to businesses and industry professionals on the selection, establishment, and maintenance of trees in communities. The purpose of the state fire assistance program is to prevent the origin and spread of wildfires in rural and wildland areas. The division provides technical and financial assistance to county and local governments, rural fire departments, and special service districts. Through partnerships with federal land management agencies, local government, and other institutions, the state fire assistance program supports state firefighting capacity which supports aggressively suppressing wildfires consistent with values-at-risk, training that addresses fire fighter safety, a variety of pre-suppression needs including: statewide prevention and mitigation education, assistance with community wildfire preparedness plans, wildfire risk assessments, and hazardous fuels reduction. The division provides fire management and protection services on approximately 15 million acres of non federal forest, range, and watershed lands in utah. The purpose of utah's conservation education is to connect adults and children with the land by providing them with knowledge and tools to make informed decisions about sustaining natural and cultural resources.