---
kind: "section"
citation: "16 U.S.C. § 582a–8"
title: "16"
title_heading: "Conservation"
number: "582a–8"
heading: "Competitive forestry, natural resources, and environmental grants program"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/16/582a-8"
units:
  - "Chapter 3 — Forests; Forest Service; Reforestation; Management"
  - "Subchapter III — Research Programs"
---

# §582a–8. Competitive forestry, natural resources, and environmental grants program

- (a) **Establishment—** The [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3) of Agriculture (hereafter referred to in this section as the “[Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3)”) shall establish a competitive forestry, natural resources, and environmental grant program to award grants for the conduct of research or forest restoration as described in [subsection (c)](#c).
- (b) **Eligible entities—** To be eligible to receive a grant under [subsection (a)](#a), an entity shall—
  - (1) be a [State](/usc/16/590q.md?p=a) agricultural experiment station, a college or university, a research institution or organization, a Federal agency, a private organization, or a corporation that has a demonstrable capacity to conduct forestry, natural resources, and environmental research as determined by the [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3); and
  - (2) prepare and submit to the [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3), an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3) shall require, including the proposed use of the amounts that may be received under a grant.
- (c) **Priorities—**
  - (1) **Research—** In awarding the initial grants under [subsection (a)](#a) the [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3) shall give priority to applicants who will use such grants for research concerning—
    - (A) the biology of forest organisms, including physiology, genetic mechanisms, and biotechnology;
    - (B) ecosystem function and management, including forest ecosystem research, biodiversity, forest productivity, pest management, water resources, and alternative silvicultural systems;
    - (C) wood as a raw material, including forest products and harvesting;
    - (D) human forest interactions, including outdoor recreation, public policy formulation, economics, sociology, and administrative behavior;
    - (E) international trade, competition, and cooperation related to forest products;
    - (F) alternative [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) crops, products, and services that can be produced from renewable natural resources associated with privately held [forest lands](/usc/16/544.md?p=f);
    - (G) viable economic production and marketing systems for alternative natural resource products and services;
    - (H) economic and environmental benefits of various conservation practices on [forest lands](/usc/16/544.md?p=f);
    - (I) genetic tree improvement; and
    - (J) market expansion.
  - (2) **Forest restoration—** Grants may be used to support programs that restore forest tree species [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) to American forests that may have suffered severe levels of mortality caused by non-[native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) insects, plant pathogens, or others pests.
    - (A) **Required component of forest restoration strategy—** To receive a grant under this subsection, an eligible institution shall demonstrate that it offers a program with a forest restoration strategy that incorporates not less than one of the following components:
      - (i) Collection and conservation of [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) tree genetic material.
      - (ii) Production of propagules of [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) trees in numbers large enough for landscape scale restoration.
      - (iii) Site preparation of former of [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) tree habitat.
      - (iv) Planting of [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) tree seedlings.
      - (v) Post-planting maintenance of [native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) trees.
    - (B) **Award of grants—** The [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3) shall award competitive grants under this subsection based on the degree to which the applicant addresses the following criteria:
      - (i) Risk posed to the forests of that [State](/usc/16/590q.md?p=a) by non-[native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) pests, as measured by such factors as the number of such pests present in the [State](/usc/16/590q.md?p=a).
      - (ii) The proportion of the [State](/usc/16/590q.md?p=a)’s forest composed of species vulnerable to non-[native](/usc/16/3102.md?p=16) pests present in the United States.
      - (iii) The pests’ rate of spread via natural or human-assisted means.
- (d) **Facilities and equipment—**
  - (1) **Authority—** Grants made under this section may be used to update research facilities and equipment available to facilitate the conduct of [state](/usc/16/590q.md?p=a)-of-the-art research in forestry, natural resources, and the environment.
  - (2) **Priorities and criteria—** The [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3), in consultation with the Cooperative Forestry Research Council appointed under [section 582a–4(b) of this title](/usc/16/582a–4.md?p=b), may develop criteria and priorities for the awarding of grants for use under [paragraph (1)](#d-1).
- (e) **Recommendations—** The [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3) shall request the Cooperative Forestry Research Council referred to in [subsection (d)(2)](#d-2) to provide recommendations regarding grant priorities.
- (f) **Term—** The [Secretary](/usc/16/580p.md?p=3) may make grants under this section for periods of not to exceed 5 years.
- (g) **Authorization of appropriations—** There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.

## Source credit

(Pub. L. 101–624, title XII, § 1232, Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 3543; Pub. L. 115–334, title VIII, § 8708, Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4882.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### Codification

Section was enacted as part of the Forest Stewardship Act of 1990 and as part of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, and not as part of the McIntire-Stennis Act of 1962 which comprises this subchapter.

### Amendments

2018—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8708(1), inserted “or forest restoration” after “research”.

Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 115–334, § 8708(2), amended subsec. (c) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (c) related to applicant priority based on use of grants for certain research areas.