CAL FIRE Grants Target Local Wildfire Prevention
More than $310,000 in award offers would expand equipment for projects serving Mariposa and Madera counties.
Two businesses serving Mariposa and Madera counties are among the recipients in a new round of CAL FIRE grants aimed at expanding forest restoration and wildfire prevention work.
Together, the award offers total $310,520, supporting equipment purchases for 3:10 Timber Services Inc. and Absolute Tree Service.
For 3:10 Timber Services, which operates in Mariposa County, the $132,859 award offer would help address an equipment shortage. According to CAL FIRE’s project description, the company completed more than 140 acres of hazardous vegetation treatment in approximately 10 months but had more than 50 acres of funded projects awaiting work.
The grant would support a second vegetation-mulching machine and a compact excavator for steep terrain. Those additions are expected to increase treatment capacity by 100 to 150 acres annually. The project lists Mariposa, Madera, Fresno, Merced and Tuolumne counties.
Absolute Tree Service’s $177,661 award offer, listed for Madera County, would fund a tracked wood chipper. The project aims to expand processing of woody material from wildfire resilience work while supporting forestry employment. Details appear in CAL FIRE’s 2026 grant award offers list.
The local projects are part of $10 million for 17 projects statewide, announced by CAL FIRE on September 22. Funding comes through the agency’s Business and Workforce Development Grants, supported by California Climate Investments.
The statewide awards address several parts of forest management: equipment to complete vegetation treatments, facilities that can put removed wood to use, and training for the people carrying out the work.
Other funded efforts include sawmill modernization, firewood production, redevelopment of a former mill site in Siskiyou County, and training in prescribed fire and forestry. Some projects will also help students explore forestry careers and strengthen Tribal capacity for forest and watershed work.
“The strength of this year’s awards is the diversity of projects they support, from training the next generation of forestry and fire professionals to expanding businesses and facilities that put forest restoration materials to productive use,” said John McCarthy, CAL FIRE assistant chief and Wood Products and Bioenergy Team program manager.
CAL FIRE reports that the program has awarded $129 million to 131 projects over the past five years. For the projects serving Mariposa and Madera counties, this round focuses on a practical step toward getting more work completed: adding equipment to the businesses doing it.
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Feature Photo: A masticator clears vegetation on a steep slope in Tahoe National Forest in December 2025. Newly announced CAL FIRE grants will support additional vegetation-management equipment for projects serving Mariposa and Madera counties.
Photo Credit: USDA Forest Service photo by Lauren Faulkenberry.