ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Two local conservation efforts are receiving nearly $395,000 in grants from the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina.
The foundation recently approved two Natural Resources grants totaling $394,811.
The largest grant, $296,811 over three years, will go to the UNC Asheville Foundation to continue the Community Lumber Project through the UNC Asheville STEAM Studio.
The project began after Tropical Storm Helene with a simple goal: Put storm-felled trees to use while clearing debris and reducing wildfire risk.
The Community Lumber Project removes and repurposes trees blown down by storms, providing lumber for rebuilding projects and for use by STEAM Studio students.
Because the project operates as a nonprofit, it can accept smaller quantities of salvaged lumber that other sawmills might turn away because processing it isn’t cost-effective.
More than 100 storm-felled trees were milled for rebuilding efforts, serving six community organizations and 30 individuals, according to the foundation.
“Over the next 3 years, the CLP expects to transition into a self-sustaining social enterprise developing a replicable framework to responsibly utilize urban and storm-felled trees,” Community Foundation Vice President for Programs Tara Scholtz said in a news release.
The project also gives UNC Asheville students hands-on experience in sustainable forestry and the lumber industry, including operations, finances, product development and ecological management.
Several charitable funds contributed to the grant, including the Trillium Fund, Fenton Family WNC Fund, Dogwood Charitable Endowment Fund, Walnut Fund, Terrence Lee One Love Fund, Oliver Family Fund and two anonymous funds.
The second grant, $98,000, will go to Wildlands Network as the fiscal sponsor for the Safe Passage Coalition.
The money will support advocacy, communications, technical assistance and partnership-building aimed at improving wildlife connectivity and transportation safety.
Roads can make it difficult for wildlife to move between habitats, while also contributing to thousands of wildlife-vehicle collisions across North Carolina each year.
The Safe Passage Coalition works to provide science-based guidance to help the North Carolina Department of Transportation identify and design wildlife crossings that provide both conservation and public safety benefits.
The coalition recently helped secure a $10.2 million recurring appropriation for wildlife crossings statewide in the newly passed state budget, according to the foundation.
That follows a $2 million wildlife-crossing appropriation in 2023, which Safe Passage also advocated for. As of July 2026, North Carolina leads the nation in recurring funding for wildlife crossings, according to the foundation.
The Gretchen Batra Fund, Nicholas R. Henderson Charitable Fund, Trillium Fund, Minigowin Fund and Rachel Helen Silver Sunshine Fund contributed to the Safe Passage grant.
The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina works with families, businesses and nonprofits through charitable funds and grantmaking. It provides discretionary funding in education, cultural resources, human services and natural resources.
The foundation manages more than 1,300 funds and distributed $37.7 million in grants last year. Since its founding in 1978, it has distributed more than $494 million.