Surface Water Grants Available

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will award more than $6 million to local groups to protect and improve surface water. Interested and eligible organizations are encouraged to apply for a surface water grant. A pre-application must be submitted by this Sunday (September 15), to compete for a grant in November.

Eligible organizations include counties, municipalities, local government units, lake and sanitary districts, natural resource agencies, tribal governing bodies, colleges and school districts, lake associations, nonprofit conservation organizations, river and surface water management organizations and producer-led groups. Individuals are not eligible for grants but may partner with an eligible organization willing to sponsor a project. Reach out to your local environmental grant specialist to confirm your organization’s eligibility.

Pre-application forms can be found under the “Applying” tab on the DNR’s Surface Water Grants Program webpage. Right-click the link to Surface Water Grant Application Form 8700-284 and download or “save as” to create a copy of the form on your computer. Open the form from your local drive and fill out the sections labeled “pre-application.” Email the form by Sunday (September 15) to DNRSurfaceWaterGrants@wisconsin.gov. The department will be in touch with more information following your submission.