Puget Sound Scientific Studies and Technical Investigations Assistance
Request for Applications
The application period is closed. Applications were due on March 9, 2010.
On this page:
Notes and Changes:
- June 17th update: We are continuing to evaluate applications. We expect to begin contacting applicants in late July which will take several weeks.
- May 5th update: We received a huge number of applications for this RFA. The evaluation of those applications is running about a month behind schedule. We now expect to begin contacting applicants with the results in mid-June. We expect this process to require at least a few weeks to complete.
- February 24th updates: The Request for Appliations (RFA) was modified as of February 22, 2010 due to the large number of applications received. Please see the first page of the RFA for a summary of those modifications.
- If you will be delivering your proposal by hand (in person), the delivery location has changed. See page 17 of the updated RFA for hand delivery instructions
- Federal agencies submitting applications do not need to include the following forms that are requested of applicants in the RFA at Page 18 :
- Certification regarding lobbying
- Standard Form LLL, Pre-Award Disclosure of Lobbying Activities
- EPA Form 4700-4, Pre-Award Compliance Review Report for All Applicants Requesting Federal Financial Assistance.
- The RFA notes at Page 29 that costs must be allowable under 2 C.F.R. Part 225. This is correct for State, Tribal and local government applicants. Applications from Institutions of Higher Education must use 2 C.F.R. Part 220 to determine allowable costs. Similarly, non profit organizations must use 2 C.F.R. Part 230 to determine allowable costs.
- The RFA erroneously refers to a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document. An FAQ was not prepared for this solicitation.
- Question: Should the application include a list of literature cited (by the narrative) and, if so, would that list be counted against the 12 page limit on the length of the narrative? Answer: Yes, the application should include a list of literature cited by the narrative as an attachment to the application. We will not count the pages required for that list against the 12 page limit on the length of the narrative.
Summary and Contact Information:
Purpose: Support technical studies to help guide and evaluate implementation of the Puget Sound Action Agenda
Eligible Applicants: Federal government and Washington state agencies, public and private institutions of higher education located in the United States, public interest entities located within the greater Puget Sound Basin including nonprofit entities, units of local government and Federally recognized Indian Tribes or any consortium of these tribes.
Estimated Funds: $4,500,000
Grant Amount: $200,000 - $700,000 federal funds
Match Required: None
Project Length: 2-4 years
EPA Contact: Dan Steinborn (steinborn.daniel@epa.gov)
Request for Applications (applications were due on March 9)
Region 10 is soliciting applications for focused scientific studies and technical investigations that will assist with developing, monitoring, evaluating, or informing key programs or strategies for implementing the Action Agenda to restore and protect the greater Puget Sound ecosystem.
The Request for Applications (PDF) (37pp. 262K) seeks studies or investigations that will directly assist or support the attainment of priority environmental outcomes necessary for protecting and restoring the greater Puget Sound ecosystem.
In 2009, EPA approved the Puget Sound Action Agenda, Washington State’s renewed commitment to clean up, restore, and protect Puget Sound by 2020. The Action Agenda is approved as the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) for Puget Sound under the National Estuary Program described in §320 of the Clean Water Act.
This solicitation seeks to support the 2009-2011 Biennial Science Work Plan for Puget Sound which identifies some of the high-priority science activities needed to effectively implement, evaluate, and track the progression of the Action Agenda toward achievement of specific protection and restoration goals.
Relevant goals to address include both short term environmental targets already identified and also longer term environmental targets and outcomes that still need to be identified and tracked through 2020.
Eligible Applicants
State and federal agencies, institutions of higher learning, tribal governments and technical consortia, units of local government, special purpose districts, conservation districts, watershed planning units, local management boards, salmon recovery lead entities, regional fisheries enhancement groups, and non-profit entities are eligible to apply.
Technical Investigations that Support the Restoration and Protection of Puget Sound
The scientific studies and technical investigations sought through the anticipated Request for Applications (RFA) will:
- Support the implementation of key science priorities and activities.
- Assist with the identification and scaling of specific environmental targets and projected longer term restoration and protection outcomes.
- Assist with development of monitoring and evaluation approaches for assessing effectiveness of implementation activities and overall progress toward identified goals.
Eligible Activities
The solicitation will encourage multifaceted applications that support identification and achievement of priority environmental outcomes including but not limited to:
- Protecting and restoring water quality in shellfish growing areas.
- Remediating contaminated sites or preventing sources of toxic pollution.
- Restoring or protecting important wetland, floodplain and nearshore habitats.
- Reducing nutrient loads to both freshwaters and sensitive marine waters.
Therefore, a wide range of studies and investigations will be eligible for funding under the RFA including, but not limited to, those that address:
- Maintaining natural hydrological patterns and processes of local watersheds.
- Evaluating deposition and dispersal of pollutants and their respective impacts.
- Developing monitoring and measurement indicators to evaluate Puget Sound restoration and protection efforts at appropriate scales.
- Assisting with the development of interagency monitoring approaches to assess conditions and trends of water quality and aquatic resources.
- Developing and applying analytical tools, information and/or technical approaches that will support regulatory decisions and advance measurable outcomes.
- Identifying, developing and helping to test fiscal, regulatory, or other incentives to help protect and restore watershed processes and functions.
Specific examples of eligible activities include:
- Designing, piloting and supporting watershed-wide pollutant loading and effects studies associated with surface water runoff or other sources of pollution.
- Identifying and evaluating key stressors affecting the pelagic food web with the potential to affect forage fish restoration.
- Assessing corrective actions to improve water quality in areas where shellfish bed closures or harvest area downgrades are occurring or are likely to occur.
- Integrating flood hazard management plans with information and approaches for identifying, evaluating, and incorporating environmental restoration opportunities.
- Improving our understanding of the impacts of stormwater runoff on aquatic resources and the effectiveness of different management practices.
- Identifying, evaluating, prioritizing, and helping to demonstrate source control actions for nutrient and toxic pollution.
Evaluation of Applications
All applications determined eligible based on a threshold eligibility review will be evaluated against specific criteria described in the full RFA. In general, successful applications will:
- Demonstrate a strong, well-documented need for the proposed work within the broad scope of Puget Sound protection and restoration efforts.
- Demonstrate how the proposed scientific studies and technical investigations support priority ecosystem protection and restoration goals.
- Match proposed studies and investigations to the appropriate scale and context to ensure that activities will support specific environmental results.
- Employ institutional partnerships to produce useful scientific products in support of major initiatives and decisions.