2026 Reclamation and Development (RDGP) Project Grant

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DNRC Reclamation and Development Grants Program - Project Grant Application 

General Information

The Reclamation and Development Grants Program (RDGP) is a state-funded grant program designed to fund projects that protect Montana citizens from the effects of mineral development on public resources, and that meet other crucial state needs, serve the public interest, and benefit the total environment of the people of Montana. The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) administers the program.

Program Purpose

The purposes of the RDGP are:

  • To repair, reclaim, and mitigate environmental damage to public resources from non‑renewable resource extraction; 
  • To develop and ensure the quality of public resources for the benefit of all Montana citizens.

Eligible Applicants

Any department, agency, board, commission, or other division of state government, city, county, or other division of local government, or tribal government within the state may apply. Private persons, private companies, non-profits, and federal agencies are not eligible for RDGP funding.

Eligible Projects

Proposed projects must provide benefits in one of two categories: (1) mineral development (reclamation of impacts from non-renewable resource extraction, also called reclamation projects) or (2) crucial state need. Mineral development impacts and crucial state need projects will be given equal preference in the ranking process. Projects not fitting into either of these categories will not be eligible for RDGP funding. DNRC will conduct a review and screening of all applications to determine eligibility under these two categories.

Reclamation (Mineral Development) 

To be considered a reclamation project, the project goals and objectives must achieve at least one of the following:

  1.  Reclaim land, water or other resources adversely affected by mineral development.
  2.  Mitigate damage to public resources caused by mineral development.
  3.  Research, demonstrate, or provide technical assistance to promote the wise use of Montana minerals, including efforts to make processing more environmentally compatible.
  4.  Investigate and remediate sites where hazardous wastes or regulated substances threaten public health or the environment.
  5.  Research to assess existing or potential environmental damage resulting from mineral development.

Crucial State Need

Projects that meet a crucial state need must prevent or eliminate severe and unacceptable damage to natural resources or capture extraordinary public benefit that would otherwise be lost. They must have a regional or statewide importance. Public benefit from implementation of this type of project must directly relate to natural resources. The critical and urgent nature of the proposed project must be clearly demonstrated in the application. Crucial state need projects must fit into one of the following categories:

  1.  Drought Mitigation:  Projects that address drought as the main purpose of the project and have been identified in an existing plan such as a drought management plan or watershed management plan that ties the need for the project to a specific watershed or region of the state. 
  2.  High Hazard Dams: High hazard dam (Montana Dam Safety Act, MCA 85-15-106) projects that will mitigate damage to natural resources as a result of failure. 
  3.  Other Crucial State Need:  Other projects that meet the criteria of a crucial state need project as described above. Projects must clearly be identified in an existing plan that identifies the need for this project to a specific watershed or region of the state, or include a letter of support from a knowledgeable and authoritative source, preferably a state agency, describing the need for this project for a specific watershed or region of the state. 

Grant Amount 

DNRC can recommend up to $500,000 for projects. Projects must clearly demonstrate the significant natural resource benefits, the financial need, and unavailability of other funds to complete the project. The Legislature may choose to award a lower amount. An applicant proposing more than one project must submit a separate application for each. There is no minimum funding requirement.

Application Evaluation, Scoring, and Ranking

DNRC solicits, evaluates, and ranks each application submitted to the RDGP and forwards its recommendations for funding to the Governor’s Office before each regular legislative session. With the Governor’s approval, these recommendations are submitted to the Legislature. DNRC will prepare a report and submit it to the Legislature to document the approved ranking and recommendations. The Legislature makes the final decision on which projects will be funded. DNRC will provide updates to the applicant throughout this process. Contracting of projects cannot begin until the bill authorizing funding for the projects becomes effective and funding becomes available for the project and all DNRC start-up conditions are submitted.

 For an outline of the ranking criteria, please see page 4 of the Project Grant Overview and Application Instructions.

Submittal Instructions

DNRC will only be accepting applications online through the Submittable application platform. Applications must be submitted online at https://grants.dnrc.mt.gov no later than 5 PM May 15, 2026.

Submitted Online:  Online application at https://grants.dnrc.mt.gov 

Program Overview and Application Instructions:

Project Grant Overview and Application Instructions

Questions?  Please contact:

Samantha Treu | Program Manager

Reclamation and Development Grants Program

Conservation and Resource Development Division

Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation 

1539 11th Avenue, Helena, MT 59601

MOBILE: 406-422-3369 EMAIL: samantha.treu@mt.gov  

We use Submittable to accept and review our submissions.
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