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Forest CORE Fund (Mountain Valley Pipeline Region)

The Forest CORE (Community Opportunities for Restoration and Enhancement) Fund for the Mountain Valley Pipeline region was established under VOF’s TERRA Program in June 2018 using $15 million from a mitigation agreement between the Commonwealth of Virginia and Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC. The Fund’s purpose is to mitigate forest fragmentation that results from the clearing and grubbing activities along the pipeline’s 303-mile right-of-way through Virginia. Grants will be used for projects that compensate for forest fragmentation by preserving, connecting and enhancing forest resources.

Grant Information

To provide mitigation of forest fragmentation through:

  • Avoided deforestation.
  • Establishment of forest land.
  • Restoration/enhancement of forest land.

Projects that result in avoided deforestation such as:

    • Purchase of conservation/open-space easements on properties that will include requirements for forest management and prohibition of conversion of forest land.
    • Purchase of additional limiting terms on land under conservation easement to prohibit conversion of forest land.
    • Fee-simple acquisition of forest land with prohibition of conversion of forest land.

Projects that establish new forest land such as:

    • Afforestation of un-forested lands.

Projects that restore or enhance forestland such as:

    • Timber stand improvement to create healthy native forest composition and structure.
    • Controlled burning to restore and maintain fire regimes.
    • Invasive-exotic species control.

VOF completed its first grant round of $3.6 million in December 2018. A second grant round was announced in April 2019 with a deadline for applications of June 28, 2019. Check back at this page for future updates and announcements.

The project area for this fund includes localities within the thick black border in the map below. The FERC-approved route for the Mountain Valley Pipeline is shown in red. To view a version of this map that shows additional GIS layers such as watersheds and conserved lands, visit our map room at http://vof.maps.arcgis.com/home/index.html.
  • State and federal agencies, localities, public bodies, park authorities, planning district commissions, regional public access authorities, tribal councils, and soil and water conservation districts.
  • Charitable corporations, associations, or trusts declared exempt from taxation pursuant to 26 U. S. C. A. 501 (c) (3).

Any forest land preserved, established, or enhanced using funding from this grant program must be:

  • Protected from conversion in perpetuity.
  • Managed for the health of the forest ecosystem, which includes restrictions on timber harvesting.

The second round of grants was announced in April 2019 and the application deadline was June 28, 2019. Future grant rounds will be announced on this page.

Scroll down to the Downloads section to obtain a PDF version of the grant manual and supporting documentation.

Questions about grants from Forest CORE Fund should be sent to Emily White, ewhite@vofonline.org.

Downloads

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