Baker-Polito administration awards volunteer fire assistance grants
Boston — The Baker-Polito administration announced Tuesday that the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) has awarded 38 communities a total of $63,528 in grant funding from the Cooperative Fire Protection Volunteer Fire Assistance program (VFA), a competitive grant program offered to all nonprofit rural call or volunteer fire departments that provide service primarily to communities with populations of 10,000 people or less.
In support of the administration’s commitment to public safety and the preservation of the state’s natural resources, the grants are designed to assist municipalities with smaller populations by aiding community volunteer fire departments in management efforts, supply and equipment purchases, and the enhancement of their ability to protect forest resources across the Commonwealth.
The VFA program is authorized by the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978, which, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service, is administered by the DCR on a 50 percent reimbursement basis (reimbursement amounts provide a maximum of $2,000 per community). In order to be considered, fire departments must be made up of at least 80 percent call or volunteer firefighters, be recognized as a fire department under state law, and comply with the National Incident Management System.
Eligible proposed projects fall within the categories of firefighter safety, technology transfer and rural fire defense. Communities considered for a VFA program grant include high-risk towns adjacent to federal lands, those working in partnership with federal firefighting agencies in responding to wildland fires, and high-risk towns within the state not associated with federal lands.
The Berkshire towns that received awards are Becket ($2,000), Clarksburg ($1,823), Dalton ($1,997.50), Great Barrington ($2,000), Monterey ($2,000), New Ashford ($1,093.92), Otis ($1,997.87), Windsor ($1,765.37) and Williamstown ($659).
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Nick Diller comments on cold temperatures
Great Barrington — Edge weather adviser Nick Diller has released the following comment on last night’s ( Dec. 15) cold temperatures and what the area can expect weather-wise in the next few days:
“For the first time in more than 10 years, a below zero reading in December. This morning, it was 1 below, colder in some other spots in GB. That is the first time since the ’05 when we had record cold. But take heart, it will moderate with snow changing to rain over the weekend and CBS6 weatherman Steve LaPointe says moderate temps for the next few weeks.”
