#05-260 December 5, 2005

POWER For Wildlife Program Application Deadline Is Jan. 31

A statewide program designed to create and maintain wildlife habitat beneath electrical transmission lines is successfully completing its seventh year, and the application deadline for taking part in the program is Jan. 31, 2006.

POWER (Protecting Our Wildlife at Every Right-of-Way) for Wildlife program is funded by participating utility companies and electric cooperatives in South Carolina and offers cash grants for wildlife habitat enhancement on eligible utility corridors. Recipients must agree to maintain practices for at least five years and will receive up to $1,000 over the five-year period.

If you own or lease eligible lands and would like to participate in this program, contact your local U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service or Soil and Water Conservation District office located in each county, a Resource Conservation and Development office, or the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Small Game Project in Columbia at (803) 734-3609. Applications must be received by Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2006, to be eligible for the 2006 funding period.

Grant recipients must agree to follow wildlife habitat enhancement and vegetation management practices outlined in a management plan that will be developed by the landowner and specialists from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, DNR, and other organizations. Wildlife management practices include mechanical or chemical brush control, and permanent or annual wildlife plantings.

Since 1999, more than 325 applications have been approved, and more than 2,000 acres have been enrolled in the POWER for Wildlife Program.

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