Photo: Larry Halverson
122 Total Grant Applications
34 Coastal Region Grant Applications
58 Columbia Region Grant Applications
30 Peace Region Grant Applications
Thanks to everyone who applied for a fish or wildlife grant in fall 2020. Across our Coastal, Columbia and Peace regions we received 122 grant applications for 39 fish and 83 wildlife projects.
We’ve completed our three-stage review and evaluation, and we’ll be notifying all grant applicants in February. For those who are approved for funding, please read our information kit outlining next steps for approved grant applicants.
You can apply anytime for a community engagement grant. Complete and submit our short grant application form.
Our Community Engagement Grant is typically $500 to $1,000 and helps stewardship groups and others take action to benefit local fish and wildlife.
Contact us if you have questions.
Community engagement grantsIf you currently have an FWCP grant, access our online grant management system here.
Refer to our user guides for grant recipients:
User Guide for Submitting a Change Request
User Guide for Submitting a Progress Report
User Guide for Submitting a Progress or Final Statement of Account Task
User Guide for Submitting a Draft Final Report
Contact us if you have questions.
Manage your grantThe Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP) is a partnership between BC Hydro, the Province of B.C, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, First Nations, and public stakeholders to conserve and enhance fish and wildlife in watersheds impacted by existing BC Hydro dams.
The FWCP was established to compensate for impacts to fish, wildlife, and their supporting habitat, resulting from the construction of existing BC Hydro dams.
BC Hydro has water licence obligations in the Columbia and Peace regions, and has made voluntary commitments to address the impacts of dams in the Coastal Region. BC Hydro fulfills the applicable obligations through the work of the FWCP.
The FWCP is funded annually by BC Hydro. The FWCP directs those funds towards projects that address priority actions across its three regions to fulfill its mission, and work towards its vision of thriving fish and wildlife populations in watersheds that are functioning and sustainable.
We fund projects that align with our Action Plans, which reflect regional conservation priorities and priority actions. An independent Board in each region reviews all grant applications and project funding decisions. Our Boards include representatives from BC Hydro, the Province of B.C., Fisheries and Oceans Canada, First Nations and public stakeholders.
Learn more about our grants and projects we fund, subscribe at fwcp.ca/subscribe.
The Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP) conserves and enhances fish and wildlife in watersheds impacted by BC Hydro dams. The FWCP is funded annually by BC Hydro. The FWCP directs those funds towards priority actions across its three regions to fulfill its mission and work towards its vision of thriving fish and wildlife populations in watersheds that are functioning and sustainable.
By funding projects to support fish and wildlife populations in our Coastal, Columbia and Peace Regions, the FWCP is fulfilling BC Hydro’s applicable water licence obligations and voluntary commitments to compensate for fish and wildlife impacts.
We fund and support the following types of actions, which are consistent with our mandate:
We do not fund or support the following activities, which are beyond our mandate:
Our annual intake of grant applications will open again in August 2021. Subscribe and we will let you know when our grant intake opens and closes.
Actions identified in our action plans are eligible for an FWCP grant. Our Action Plans define priority actions for each watershed or sub-region, and reflect our mission, geographic scope, and three strategic objectives:
The action plans also provide important context about hydro-generating facilities, information gaps, limiting factors, and other information to characterize the watershed or sub-region.
Within our action plans, priority actions are grouped by five broad types:
Our action plans also identify how important each action is to us (i.e. priority #1, #2, or #3). A priority #1 action will score higher than a priority #2 or #3 action, when grant applications are evaluated. Actions identified as “directed” are not eligible for a grant. These are projects that our regional Boards will direct through a separate request for proposal process. Do not submit a grant application for a “directed” project. Contact us if you are not sure.
Grant applications for projects that do not clearly address a priority action identified in an action plan will not be considered for an FWCP grant.
If your grant for a proposed project is approved, the project proponents (i.e. project contact) must be able to provide:
1. a WorkSafe BC clearance letter; and
2. proof of commercial general liability.
If you or your group can fulfil both of these requirements, you are eligible to apply for a grant. Examples of eligible grant applicants include: First Nations, consultants, agencies, non-government organizations, individuals, and academic institutions.
Our action plans guide FWCP investments in fish and wildlife projects, and are referenced annually by our regional Boards to track progress toward implementation, set annual priorities, and guide decision-making in setting out and approving the annual operating plan for each region. Actions in our action plans are eligible for FWCP funding and align with our vision, mission, and geographic scope.
Each region has its own set of action plans. If you are applying for a grant in our Peace Region, be sure to review our updated 2020 action plans.
As of 2020, we no longer offer Small Grants. All grant applicants are invited to apply for a Large Grant, regardless of total project cost. All Large Grant applications require a written proposal. We continue to offer a Seed Grant.
Seed Grants are intended to offset costs to fill information gaps, explore project feasibility, and prepare technical information that may be required prior to developing a project proposal for a Large Grant application. Use our Seed Grant to grow your idea into a future Large Grant application. Up to a maximum of $5,000 is available from the FWCP for seed grants.
All grant applicants ready to implement a proposed project should apply for a Large Grant, regardless of the total project cost.
Our Large Grants are available in each of our regions for all proposed projects that align with our regional action plans, regardless of the total project cost. The total project cost includes funding from all sources including, but not limited to, the FWCP, other funders (if any), the total value of all in-kind contributions (if any), and applicable taxes. Regardless of the total project cost, you will be asked to include a written project proposal (maximum six pages) as part of your online grant application.
The next section provides more details on these steps.
A series of action plans define priority actions eligible for an FWCP grant in each of our three regions. We fund projects that align with our action plans.
Please review the action plan(s) in the region(s) of interest to you. Base your grant application for a potential project on any one, or more, of the priority actions recommended in our regional action plans.
Coastal, Columbia, and Peace region action plans are online at:
We’re compiling information about other funding sources and will be sharing these opportunities. Please share your funding sources with us so we can pass them along to others who are working to conserve and enhance fish and wildlife.