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DEC Preparing to Release More Than $46 Million To
Boost Tree Production and Forest Products Sector
Published: March 22, 2026 at
11:15 a.m.
By: Press Release
from NYS DEC
DEC Preparing to Release More Than $46 Million To
Boost Tree Production and Forest Products Sector
Grants Will Support Tree Nurseries, Seed Collection
Entities, Private Forest Landowners and Managers, Wood Processors, and
Other Forest Product Producers
Applications Open in Late Spring; Applicants
Encouraged to Enroll with USDA Now to
Obtain Farm ID
The New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has previewed a new
grant program that will soon make more than $46 million available to
support tree production, forest management, and forest product industries.
The Advancing Forest Markets (AFM) Grant Program is in the final stages of
development and will be instrumental in supporting Governor Kathy Hochul’s
25 Million Trees initiative and open space
conservation goals. This program is expected to offer a variety of funding
opportunities to entities that enroll with the United States Department of
Agriculture Farm Service Agency and obtain a Farm ID.
“To plant 25
million trees and expand and maintain healthy, resilient forests in New
York State, new collaborations are needed to support the reforestation
supply chain and sustainable forest management,” DEC Commissioner
Amanda Lefton said. “This novel grant program will ensure that the
trees available to New Yorkers are affordable, accessible, and high quality
and also help incentivize tree growers and forest producers to meaningfully
expand operational and production capacity.”
Eligible
applicants include state agencies, municipalities, soil and water
conservation districts, for-profit businesses, not-for-profit
organizations, Indian Nations or Tribes, individual private landowners, and
others that qualify to and enroll with the United States Department of
Agriculture Farm Service Agency. Applicants must engage in the
following Forest Market Areas:
- Collect, process, store, and sell tree seeds;
- Produce and sell tree seedlings;
- Harvest, process, and sell wood products;
- Produce and sell other forestry products like
nuts and maple syrup; or
- Conduct forest management planning and
related activities.
When the grant
opportunity opens, applicants may apply for funding to increase their stock
of native, New York-grown trees and tree seeds; make tree seedlings and
saplings more affordable to retail customers; or increase forest-based
operational capacity to produce or sell forest products. Examples of
potential qualifying actions include but are not limited to proposals that:
- Hire additional staff;
- Increase operational capacity;
- Increase marketing for new products or
markets, such as mass timber, wood residue-based renewable fuels,
nanocellulose, and/or biochar;
- Increase information sharing, sector
collaboration, and networks related to tree seed collection,
processing and storage, tree production, reforestation, silviculture,
or forest products;
- Expand the availability of trainings,
workshops, and workforce development programs related to tree
seed collection, tree production, reforestation, silviculture,
harvesting best practices; and
- Increase development and dissemination of
related educational and guidance materials.
Due to the
limited timeframe of the grant period, funding may not be used for direct
implementation of forestry projects that break ground or disturb site
vegetation.
Additional
details on these opportunities will be described when DEC releases the
Guidelines and Bid Instructions in late spring. All work undertaken
as part of the program must be completed by January 2028. Visit DEC’s website for
more information.
These programs
support Governor Kathy Hochul’s ‘25 Million Trees by 2033’
initiative to recognize the importance of trees and forests for community
health. DEC encourages all New Yorkers to record trees they plant in the
public Tree Tracker. DEC’s 25 Million Trees webpages also provide valuable
resources for planting, community planting events, and other resources to
support the initiative and DEC’s partners.
This material is
based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under
agreement number NR233A750004G035.
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