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P.E.I. boosts funding for small forestry businesses and woodlot owners
October 13, 2023 By Government of P.E.I.
Photo: Government of P.E.I. Funding is now available in Prince Edward Island to assist with clearing Fiona-felled trees on essential forest access roads and on small woodlots that may pose a fire risk to nearby urban areas and infrastructure.
The Hurricane Fiona Forestry Recovery Program is open to small forestry businesses and woodlot owners who were not eligible for assistance under previous programs. The program is supported by investments by $125,000 from the Government of Prince Edward Island and a $975,000 investment from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), through the Government of Canada’s Hurricane Fiona Recovery Fund.
Financial assistance is available for small woodlot owners (larger than 1 acre but less than 2.5 acres) where land is excluded from the Forest Enhancement Program, but where land intersects with urban and wildland areas and may pose a fire risk.
Financial assistance is also available for land where the forestry road is deemed necessary for sustainable forest management and fire suppression i.e., no other access roads are nearby, or where the road provides access to forest land near infrastructure.
“We know that our province’s forests were hit hard by extreme weather, and we need to continue to reduce our forest fire risk. We are here to help Islanders dealing with the continued impacts of Fiona and to do what we can to maintain our forested areas for the long term,” said Steven Myers, P.E.I.’s minister of environment, energy and climate action.
“The Government of Canada, through the Hurricane Fiona Recovery Fund, continues to work closely with communities, businesses and organizations to help them recover and rebuild from Fiona’s aftermath. This program for woodlot owners will help protect forests and surrounding areas against further damage, increasing the region’s resilience to climate-induced weather events in the future,” added Gudie Hutchings, minister of rural economic development and minister responsible for ACOA.
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