DNR Accepting Pre-Applications For 2025 Surface Water Grants

MADISON, Wis. –  The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) today announced it will award more than $6 million to local groups to protect and improve surface water.

Interested and eligible organizations are encouraged to apply for a surface water grant. A pre-application must be submitted by Sept. 15, 2024, to compete for a grant in November.

The DNR's Surface Water Grants Program leverages money from the state conservation fund's water resources account to help local communities accelerate water protection and restoration efforts across Wisconsin. The funding can support a wide range of locally driven projects that invest in watersheds and surface waters.

Activities eligible for funding include:

• Organizational capacity building
• Educational programs on surface water
• Data collection and ecological assessments
• Lake and river management planning
• Water quality improvement
• Habitat restoration projects
• Aquatic invasive species prevention and control
• Conservation easements and land acquisition

Who Is Eligible To Apply For Grant Funding?

Eligible organizations include counties, municipalities, local government units, lake and sanitary districts, natural resource agencies, tribal governing bodies, colleges and school districts, lake associations, nonprofit conservation organizations, river and surface water management organizations and producer-led groups. Individuals are not eligible for grants (with a few exceptions) but may partner with an eligible organization willing to sponsor a project. Reach out to your local environmental grant specialist to confirm your organization’s eligibility. 

What Funding Is Available?

The amount of funding available varies by project. For example, education projects are eligible for up to $5,000 in state support, while planning grants are available for up to $10,000, and larger management plan implementation grants can provide up to $200,000 per project. Grants operate on a reimbursement basis and require matching funds from 25% to 33% of the total project cost.

How To Apply

Submit a pre-application by Sept. 15. This will connect you to local assistance and ensure you are eligible to submit a final application by Nov. 15.

Pre-application forms can be found under the “Applying” tab on the DNR’s Surface Water Grants Program webpage. Right-click the link to Surface Water Grant Application Form 8700-284 and download or “save as” to create a copy of the form on your computer. Open the form from your local drive and fill out the sections labeled “pre-application.”

Email the form by Sept. 15 to DNRSurfaceWaterGrants@wisconsin.gov. The department will be in touch with more information following your submission.

For More Information

Visit the DNR’s Surface Water Grants Program webpage for more information on applying for and managing a grant project. 

The DNR Surface Water Grant Applicant Guide is a comprehensive user manual for the program. This document has been updated for the 2024-2025 grant cycle. It is organized chronologically to explain how to navigate the grant program from application to closing. Start by reading Section 1, which contains enough high-level introductory information to get you started. Section 2 summarizes each grant type, and Appendix A includes the corresponding criteria that the ranking teams will use to evaluate submitted applications.