Conservation Innovation Grant - WY
SUMMARY: The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), an agency under the United States Department of Agriculture, is announcing availability of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies. For fiscal year 2013, funds will be awarded through a statewide competitive grants process. Applications are requested from eligible governmental or non-governmental organizations or individuals for competitive consideration of grant awards for projects between one and three years in duration. This notice identifies the objectives for CIG projects, the eligibility criteria for projects, and associated instructions needed to apply to CIG. Applications will be screened for completeness and compliance with the provisions of this notice. Incomplete applications will be eliminated from competition, and notification of elimination will be mailed to the applicant. APPLICATION DUE DATE AND ADDRESSES: Applications must be received in the WYOMING NRCS State Office by 4:30 p.m., Mountain Standard Time (MST) by June 28, 2013. The address for the U.S. Postal Service, hand-delivered applications, or applications submitted using express mail or overnight courier service is: Cheryl Grapes, Assistant State Conservationist for Programs, Natural Resources Conservation Service, 100 East B Street, Room 3124, PO Box 33124, Casper, WY 82602. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cheryl Grapes, Assistant State Conservationist for Programs, NRCS, 100 East B Street, Room 3124, PO Box 33124, Casper, WY 82602. Phone: (307) 233-6757; facsimile: (307) 233-6753; email: cheryl.grapes@wy.usda.gov or view the Wyoming NRCS web site at http://www.wy.nrcs.usda.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION A. Legislative Authority The Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) Program was authorized as part of the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) [16 U.S.C. 3839aa-8] under Section 2509 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-246). The Secretary of Agriculture delegated the authority for the administration of EQIP and CIG to the Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), who is Vice President of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC). EQIP is funded and administered by NRCS under the authority of the CCC. B. Overview The purpose of CIG is to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies, while leveraging the Federal investment in environmental enhancement and protection in conjunction with agricultural production. CIG projects are expected to lead to the transfer of conservation technologies, management systems, and innovative approaches (such as market-based systems) into NRCS policy, technical manuals, guides, and references or to the private sector. CIG does not fund research projects. Projects intended to formulate hypothesis do not qualify. CIG is to apply proven technology which has been shown to work previously. It is a vehicle to stimulate the development and adoption of conservation approaches or technologies that have been studied sufficiently to indicate a likelihood of success, and to be candidates for eventual technology transfer or institutionalization. CIG promotes sharing of skills, knowledge, technologies, and facilities among communities, governments, and other institutions to ensure that scientific and technological developments are accessible to a wider range of users. CIG funds projects targeting innovative on-the-ground conservation, including pilot projects and field demonstrations. NRCS will accept applications for single or multi-year projects, not to exceed three years, submitted to NRCS from eligible entities including federally recognized Indian tribes, State and local units of government, and non-governmental organizations and individuals. Applications will be evaluated by NRCS staff under the bulleted topics identified by the applicant. Applications will be screened for completeness and compliance with the provisions of this notice. Incomplete applications will be eliminated from competition, and notification of elimination will be mailed to the applicant. Complete applications received by applicable deadlines will be evaluated by a technical peer review panel based on the Criteria for Application Evaluation identified in the application instructions in section V.B. Applications with technically-based recommendations from the peer review group will be forwarded to the NRCS State Conservationist who will make the final selections. C. Innovative Conservation Projects or Activities For the purposes of CIG, the proposed innovative project or activity must encompass the development, field testing, evaluation, implementation, and monitoring of: • Conservation adoption approaches or incentive systems, including market-based systems; or • Promising conservation technologies, practices, systems, procedures, or approaches; and • Environmental soundness with goals of environmental protection and natural resource enhancement. To be given priority consideration, the innovative project or activity should: • Make use of a proven technology or a technology that has been studied sufficiently to indicate a high probability for success; • Demonstrate and verify environmental (soil, water, air, plants, energy use, and animal) effectiveness, utility, affordability, and usability of conservation technology in the field; • Adapt conservation technologies, practices, systems, procedures, approaches, and incentive systems to improve performance and encourage adoption; • Introduce conservation systems, approaches, and procedures from another geographic area or agricultural sector; • Adapt conservation technology, management, or incentive systems to improve performance; and • Demonstrate transferability of knowledge. D. Natural Resource Concerns Applications must demonstrate the use of innovative technologies, approaches, or both to address a natural resource concern or concerns. Eight natural resource concerns have been identified for possible funding through the FY2013 Wyoming Conservation Innovation Grants State competition. Applications that benefit multiple resource concerns will receive priority for funding, as well as applications that focus on Market Based Approaches. The objective of this approach is to develop, implement, and/or evaluate processes, technology tools, institutional arrangements, or systems that are “market-based” in nature and address one of the priority resource concerns below: 1.) Atmospheric Resources The objective of this conservation concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance air quality and atmospheric resources through agricultural and forest practices while sustaining productivity. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Manage agricultural primary and precursor emissions of particulates, odors, volatile organic compounds, and greenhouse gases to limit on-site and/or off-site effects from emission; • Demonstrate innovative approaches to decrease atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases by increasing carbon sequestration (e.g.: increasing soil carbon) and/or by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture operations; • Identify management practices for air quality and atmospheric change concerns at animal operations and quantify the effect of the practices on all applicable resource concerns; and • Development of monitoring protocol. 2.) Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy Sources The objective of this conservation concern is to demonstrate new energy-related technologies and approaches, and alternate energy sources to reduce energy consumption in agricultural systems. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Renewable energy sources such as wind, solar or bio-based fuels; micro hydro power; • Energy audit of activities related to natural resource concerns (soil, water, air, plants and animals) on agriculture lands. • Improving the energy efficiency of land-based agriculture production through conservation practices and activities. • Development of Monitoring protocol 3.) Forest Health The objective of this conservation concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance forest health while sustaining productivity. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Improving water and air quality while maintaining forest health and productivity. • Development of monitoring protocol. 4.) Grazing Land The objective of this conservation concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance grazing land while sustaining productivity. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • New and innovative approaches and methods to reduce the effects of pests and diseases on grazing land; land quality, health and productivity. • Development of monitoring protocol. 5.) Organic Agriculture The objective of this conservation concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance organic agriculture. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Demonstration of continuous cover crops. • Conservation practices for specialty crops. • Lower energy use. • Organic agriculture effect on soil health. • Retention of carbon and nitrogen in organic plots. Organic approved nutrient (timing, rates, sources, and methods) – determine the proper source, rate, timing, and method(s) of application for organically approved nutrient amendments. • Harvesting time and techniques for commodities quality and pest control – determine harvesting times and techniques that may minimize pest damage for the planned commodity. 6.) Soil Resources The objective of this conservation concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance soil resources associated with agricultural and forest land uses while sustaining productivity. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Accumulation of harmful levels of constituents in soils, including nutrients, metals, and salts; • Cropping systems to improve soil health and sequester carbon; and • Erosion reduction in low residue specialty crops (potatoes, vegetables, etc.), cropping systems. 7.) Water Resources The objective of this conservation resource concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches to maintain, restore, or enhance water quality and/or quantity in watersheds with significant agricultural land uses while sustaining productivity. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Alternate water conservation cropping systems and/or crops for economic or environmental stability. • Aquifer recharge/maintenance of groundwater supplies. • Irrigation management for water conservation. • Nutrient, pesticide, and pathogen transport to surface water and groundwater. • Salinity or selenium reduction. • Sediment transport to surface water. 8.) Wetlands and Wildlife Habitat The objective of this conservation concern is to implement new technologies and/or approaches for the development of wildlife habitat for at-risk species on agricultural working lands while maintaining agricultural productivity. Subtopics include but are not limited to: • Incentive systems that promote the conservation of species at-risk and agricultural production equally. • Monitoring protocols. • Pollinator species protection. • Riparian area management and restoration.
Office: Natural Resources Conservation Service
Phone 307-233-6757
