Urban and Community Forestry Grants

DANR Announces Dec. 17 Deadline for Urban and Community Forestry grants

PIERRE, S.D. – Funding for new community forestry projects is available through the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR) 2021 Urban and Community Forestry Comprehensive Challenge Grant program.

The application deadline is December 17, 2021.

The Challenge Grant program helps recipients solve specific community forestry problems or demonstrate the importance of trees and urban forests in our communities. Grant funds must be used for trees or tree management on public land or in public right of ways. Funds can also be used for professional services, tree inventories and assessments, existing tree care and maintenance, training and education, and new tree plantings.

Communities, tribes, and non-profit organizations are eligible to apply. Projects must follow the guidelines for Community Forestry Challenge Grants. These guidelines, the grant application, and a guided scoring system to assist applicants are available online at:

https://danr.sd.gov/Conservation/Forestry/ UrbanandCommunityForestry/ ComprehensiveChallengeGrants/default.aspx

Communities must provide equivalent match for all funds awarded. Match may be cash or in-kind contributions.

DANR’s Urban and Community Forestry Comprehensive Challenge Grant is an ongoing program. During the previous grant cycle DANR awarded $20,000 for 8 projects across the state.

For more information, please contact John Hartland at 605.362.2830 or John.Hartland@state.sd.us. ■

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Plan ahead for 3g Phase out

PIERRE, S.D. – The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission wants South Dakotans to be aware that all major mobile carriers, including AT&T, verizon and T-Mobile, plan to phase out their 3G networks in 2022. The decommissioning of 3G networks, which rely on older technology, is part of a larger plan that will allow providers to focus more of their resources on building out newer networks, like 5G, to meet consumer demands instead of maintaining an older one. As a result of this change, older phones that require 3G networks to operate will lose service.

“If you have an older mobile phone, you may need to upgrade your device before mobile carriers shut down their 3G network to avoid losing service. Once your carrier makes this change, older phones, including 3G mobile phones, will be unable to use data services and make or receive calls and texts, including calls to 911,” explained PUC Chairman Chris Nelson. “Some older 4G mobile phones that don’t support faster technology may also be affected,” Nelson continued.

Specific deadlines for this transition vary by company. Sprint, which is owned by T-Mobile, has announced that it will shut down its 3G network by Jan. 1, 2022. AT&T will follow suit phasing out 3G by February 2022. verizon will end 3G service by Dec. 31, 2022. T-Mobile also plans to phase out its 2G and 3G networks, but has not yet announced a deadline.

For more information on the planned phase out of 3G cellular networks, see the FCC’s guide “Plan Ahead for Phase Out of 3G Cellular Networks and Service” at fcc.gov/telephone. ■

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