Governor Polis & Colorado Parks and Wildlife announce 2023 Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Grant Recipients
DENVER, Colo. (KRDO)-- Governor Jared Polis and Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is announcing the 2023 funding recipients for the Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Community Grant.
According to officials with the Governor’s Office, the grant program will provide funding for local communities, municipalities, as well as businesses and nonprofit organizations working to create innovative ways to reduce human-bear conflict and keep communities safe.
In 2021, Governor Polis signed a bipartisan law titled HB 21-1326 which directed CPW to distribute funding to local communities to help reduce human-bear conflicts and support native species conservation.
SEE RELATED: Colorado Parks and Wildlife Hopes $1 Million Grant Will Reduce Human-Bear Conflicts
The Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Community Grant was created to accomplish this and to support local initiatives working to prevent bear conflicts.
Last summer, Governor Polis and CPW announced the first recipients of the grant program and distributed $997,138 to support the selected projects.
Following that success, CPW extended the program and provided long term sustainable funding to continue to support efforts that reduce human-bear conflicts.
This spring, CPW offered up to $1 million, distributed through a competitive grant process, in order to support more projects that prevent conflicts with bears in local communities.
Around 20 applications for this year's grant funding were received with applicants applying from all four regions of Colorado.
The following 14 projects were selected to receive grant funding:
- Boulder Bear Coalition-Boulder County Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Project: $107,225 awarded
- City of Gunnison-Waste Management Improvements: $69,000 awarded
- Steamboat Springs-Bear Proof Dumpster Enclosure Project
- $162,000 awarded
- Bear Smart Durango-Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Community Project: $90,000 awarded
- Community Fruit Rescue-Fruit Gleaning: $35,000 awarded
- Beulah Fire Department-Community Human-Bear Conflict Resolution Project: $100,000 awarded
- Snowmass Village-Bear-Proof Curbside Container Program: $57,500 awarded
- Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association-Community Bear Prevention Program: $99,149 awarded
- Summit County-Bear Safe Summit Program: $145,000 awarded
- Granby Rec District-Main Street Bear Trash Cans: $8,500 awarded
- Mineral County-Bear-resistant Dumpsters: $46,500 awarded
- Manitou Springs-Bear Can Community Giving Project: $18,000 awarded
- Idaho Springs-Public Trash Can Replacement Program:$50,000 awarded
- Hoaglund Ranch Homeowners Association-Trash Enclosure: $11,879 awarded
