State Of New Hampshire- Department Of Natural And Cultural Resources

State Of New Hampshire- Department Of Natural And Cultural Resources Division Of Forests & Lands (doing business as Forests And Lands, Division Of) is a U.S. state government entity that acts as the prime recipient of federal grants in forest health, wildfire management, invasive species control, and wildlife conservation—substantially all delivered through cooperative agreements and project grants rather than contracts. The entity competes in full-and-open categories with no set-aside designations; it operates as a state agency subordinate to New Hampshire's Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, headquartered in Concord, and performs work in New Hampshire and subordinate locations including the White Mountain National Forest and the Connecticut River corridor.

Forests And Lands' federal grant footprint centers on the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Region 9 (Eastern Region) and the Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service. The organization acts as prime recipient on 207 of 210 recent federal awards (99%), with a modest subrecipient role (three sub-awards) alongside New Hampshire Fish & Game. Recent award volume stands at six to eleven grants per year across 2022–2026, with combined federal obligation of $132.5 million against a combined potential value of $124 thousand—a data anomaly suggesting material obligation against awards initially valued below six figures. The organization has served 18 distinct federal agencies over the source period.

The Department of Agriculture Forest Service R9-Eastern Region dominates the customer base, accounting for 69 awards with a combined potential value of $23 thousand and anchoring the grant portfolio. Representative recent work includes a $1.92 million Cooperative Forestry Assistance (CFDA 10.664) project grant awarded August 22, 2025, funding five core forest health and fire management program areas including technical assistance to private landowners, invasive species biocontrol, urban and community forestry, state wildfire capacity, and volunteer fire department support. A $2 million Forest Health Protection (CFDA 10.680) award from March 17, 2025, targets Eastern Spruce Budworm mitigation across non-federal forests. A $328,040 Cooperative Forestry Assistance grant from December 23, 2025, supports hazardous fuels reduction, forest management planning, invasive species mitigation, and forest disease and insect management across 1.8 million privately owned acres benefiting approximately 32,000 New Hampshire landowners. Additional recent grants fund seedling production infrastructure, temporary water-crossing equipment for forestry operations, and forest legacy land acquisitions under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.

The Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service Region 5 and Region 6 fund endangered and threatened plant species research and monitoring. A January 1, 2026, project grant funds ecological survey and population monitoring of Jesup's milk vetch (federally endangered, found only along the Connecticut River) and small whorled pogonia (federally threatened orchid), with completion scheduled for June 30, 2027. An August 10, 2026, cooperative agreement targets early detection and rapid response for invasive species—particularly orange hawkweed—in the White Mountain National Forest's alpine areas, with performance through December 31, 2028. The EPA Region 1 has funded a wetland floristic quality assessment method development effort aimed at protecting drinking water quality in underserved communities.

Forests And Lands places one minor federal contract: a $10,000 purchase order from the Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service (Region 6) awarded December 27, 2021, for New England Estuarine Field Station bulrush population work, completed December 26, 2022. The organization carries no parent federal contract vehicles (IDIQs, GWACs, BPAs, or schedules). Two awards with completion dates in the next twenty-four months (potential combined value below statement precision) present modest recompete exposure for forest health and invasive species management grants. Sub-recipient relationships with the University of New Hampshire and New Hampshire Fish & Game involve support for urban forestry programs, forest stewardship planning, wildlife action plan implementation, and species of greatest conservation need data management.