Natural Resources Grants

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Alaska is inviting applications for its Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) grant program. This initiative aims to foster partnerships with state, county, and tribal governments to plan and execute projects for the restoration of forests, rangelands, and watersheds. The GNA program supports activities including the treatment of insect-and disease-infected trees, hazardous fuels reduction, and other efforts to enhance forest, rangeland, and watershed health, inclusive of fish and wildlife habitats. GNA is applicable to Federal and non-Federal lands, as well as lands owned by Indian tribes. Projects that directly benefit BLM-managed lands, even if executed on non-BLM lands, are eligible for funding. Examples of potential projects under this program in Alaska encompass noxious weeds and invasive species treatment, fuels management, community assistance, forest management, rangeland plant restoration, wildlife habitat connectivity, NEPA compliance support, riparian restoration, and targeted grazing. The program is designed to address a wide range of environmental quality and public benefit goals through collaborative, cross-boundary restoration services.

This funding opportunity supports non-governmental organizations and individuals in Montana with water-related projects that provide public benefits, such as septic upgrades and water conservation, requiring a cost-sharing commitment.

The Renewable Resource Grant and Loan Program (RRGL) is designed to support the conservation, management, development, and preservation of Montana's renewable resources. The program offers funding primarily for public facility projects like water, wastewater, and solid waste development, as well as projects related to irrigation rehabilitation, dam repair, and forest enhancement. Eligible applicants are divisions of state government, tribal governments, and other local political subdivisions, with funding available in the form of grants or loans for feasibility studies, construction plans, and implementation efforts.

This program provides funding to local and state entities in Oregon for acquiring land and developing outdoor recreational facilities to enhance public access to parks, forests, and beaches.

Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Section 5135, FEMA will provide grants to capitalize revolving loan funds which may be used to provide loans to finance various types of hazard mitigation projects to reduce risks from natural hazards and disasters. Through the Safeguarding Tomorrow through Ongoing Risk Mitigation Revolving Loan Fund (Safeguarding Tomorrow RLF)program, eligible entities (refer to Section C.1) will use these capitalization grants to establish a revolving loan fund (referred to herein as an entity loan fund) from which they will provide direct loans to local governments for projects and activities that mitigate the impacts of drought, intense heat, severe storms (including hurricanes, tornadoes, windstorms, cyclones, and severe winter storms), wildfires, floods, earthquakes, and other natural hazards. Eligible activities may include the construction or modification of natural or built infrastructure to increase resilience and reduce risk of harm. Entity loan funds will be programmatically and financially administered by the respective entity. FEMA will monitor the administration of the entity loan funds during the period of performance per the reporting requirements, and will continue to monitor administration of the entity loan funds after the capitalization grant closeout via biennial audits and post-closeout reporting. Under 42 U.S.C. ? 5135(h)(3)(C), FEMA may make recommendations for or require specific changes as needed to improve the effectiveness of the funds. Funding for the Safeguarding Tomorrow RLF program is limited. Pursuant to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also more commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), FEMA must award funding through multiple Notices of Funding Opportunity over a 5-year period. The Safeguarding Tomorrow RLF program aligns with the goal of promoting resilience and adaptation in light of current risks, including those posed by climate change, and the 2020-2024 DHS Strategic Plan (https://www.dhs.gov/publication/department-homeland-securitys-strategic-plan-fiscal-years-2020-2024) through Goal 5: Strengthen Preparedness and Resilience. Specifically, Objective 5.1: Build a National Culture of Preparedness has several sub-objectives that the Safeguarding Tomorrow RLF program supports. The Safeguarding Tomorrow RLF program serves primarily to bolster Sub-Objective 5.1.1: Incentivize investments that reduce risk and increase pre-disaster mitigation, including expanding the use of insurance to manage risk through funding hazard mitigation projects, particularly ones that reduce risk to infrastructure. By focusing on increasing resilience and reducing harm to built infrastructure, this program will help members of underserved communities,1 who might be at heightened risk as a result of current hazards, including those associated with climate change. The Safeguarding Tomorrow RLF program complements and supplements FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) grant portfolio to support mitigation projects at the local government level and increase the Nation's resilience to natural hazards and climate change. Entity loan funds can be leveraged differently than other funding opportunities to meet unique funding needs. This program will support entity-led hazard mitigation priorities and allow participating entities to meet their funding needs as described in the entity's Intended Use Plan (see Section D.10.b). Such needs may include but are not limited to: meeting non-Federal cost-share requirements for other grants, upfront project design costs, smaller projects that may not qualify for other HMA grant programs, or projects that do not meet the cost-effectiveness requirements applicable for other programs.

This grant provides funding to state and local governments in Montana for professional services to develop projects that conserve and manage the state's renewable resources.

Naval Auxiliary Landing Field San Clemente Island (SCI) is designated as an Area of Special Biological Significance and under Executive Order 13158, all Areas of Special Biological Significance were deemed National Marine Protected Areas. The Marine Life Protection Act Amendments of 2004 required the effectiveness of all National Marine Protected Areas, California State Marine Protected Areas, and Areas of Special Biological Significance to be reevaluated to design new Marine Protected Areas that together function as a statewide network. The 1999 and 2004 amendments of the Marine Life Protection Act (Chapter 10.5 of the California Fish and Game Code, 2850-2863) directed the state to reevaluate and redesign Californias system of Marine Protected Areas and requires monitoring of those Marine Protected Areas. All of the Channel Islands, including SCI, were considered for designation of Marine Protected Areas. In 2010, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) established permanent safety zones (Federal Register Vol. 75, No. 97) off the shore of SCI in order to conduct training essential to successfully accomplishing U.S. Navy missions relating to military operations and national security. The safety zones are intended to protect the public from hazardous, live-fire, and testing operations, and to ensure operations proceed as scheduled. With the establishment of safety zones, the Navy withdrew such areas from unrestricted public use in favor of utilizing these areas for military training. To achieve compliance with the SCI Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan (INRMP), Executive Order 13158, and to avoid designation of a state Marine Protected Area, the SCI INRMP boundary was extended to align with the safety zone boundaries established by USCG. As agreed with the State and the INRMP, these safety zones act as defacto Marine Protected Areas and are monitored similarly to the South Coast Marine Protected Areas. In 2012/2013, baseline Remotely Operated Vehicle surveys and bathymetric mapping efforts were conducted at SCI to support safety zone monitoring. The work under this proposed Cooperative Agreement will build on the baseline 2012/2013 Remotely Operated Vehicle surveys and 2019/2020 continued long-term monitoring efforts to continue to evaluate changes to fishes and invertebrates inside and outside no-take safety zones. The objective of this project is to continue long-term monitoring of fishes and invertebrates in order to evaluate the ecological changes within the SCI safety zones with a focus on evaluating differences between the no-take safety zones and those that are open to fishing consistent with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Marine Protected Area Monitoring Action Plan (California Department of Fish and Wildlife and California Ocean Protection Council, 2018; https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/MPAs/Management/Monitoring/Action-Plan). Brief Description of the Anticipated Work: This Cooperative Agreement includes three Base Tasks. The first base task is to conduct subtidal, imagery-based habitat surveys for fishes and selected invertebrates based on species observed in 2024/2025. The second base task is to conduct spatial analyses (including, but not limited to, habitat suitability models) on the fish and invertebrate data combined with existing bathymetric maps of the seafloor. The third base task is to develop a preliminary report with a summary of the surveys. The specific requirements for each Base Task are described below. 1. Survey Subtidal Habitat for Demersal Fishes and Invertebrates: The Recipient shall conduct imagery-based subtidal surveys for fishes and selected invertebrates with protocols approved by the Cooperative Agreement Technical Representative (CATR). Surveys shall focus on, but are not limited to, species identified in the 2012 2015 and 2019/2020 Remotely Operated Vehicle surveys and to the best extent practicable sample at previously surveyed sites. The Recipient shall be responsible for scheduling and coordinating field activities such as surveying with the CATR, and other necessary island personnel. The Recipient shall be responsible for providing information necessary to obtain security passes for all personnel and vehicles requiring access to the Navy installations at least one month prior to surveys. The Recipient shall submit the information necessary to obtain the security passes at least one month in advance of initial access. The CATR will assist in obtaining the security passes. 2. Conduct Comprehensive Spatial Analyses of Patterns in the Distribution of Demersal Fishes and Invertebrates: The Recipient shall conduct comprehensive spatial analyses of imagery-derived data, combined with habitat classification maps of the subtidal environment. Analyses shall be conducted using the current best practices and the appropriate software for such analyses. 3. Draft and Final Technical Report: The draft and final preliminary report shall be submitted in accordance with Section J. Submittals and Schedules. The report shall be in scientific format and include the following: 1) Title page showing title, date, cooperative agreement number, Pacific Fleet Representative and Cooperative Agreement Technical Representative contact information; 2) Sub-title page showing title, prepared by and for listings, date and recommended citation; 3) Table of contents; 4) Abstract or Executive Summary; 5) Introduction; 6) Methods; 7) Results; 8) Discussion; 9) Conclusions (to include synthesis with previous work and recommendations for future study); 10) Legible copies of the field notes, data forms and other information. Please see enclosure 1 for full scope of work and enclosure 2 for applicable terms and conditions.

Overview: Island-wide population assessments support compliance with the San Clemente Island (SCI) Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan (INRMP), and also provide a benefit to the black abalone species as required under section 4(a)(3)(B) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) (16 U.S.C. 35). The SCI INRMP main objective for black abalone is to continue to monitor and support the recovery of the black abalone population in suitable rocky intertidal habitat to increase the population at SCI, which specifically calls for efforts to continue to refine knowledge of, and monitor, the black abalone population and density at SCI. Endangered black abalone are currently present on SCI, managed under the SCI INRMP, and continued critical habitat exemption is still crucial to support the Navys mission on SCI. Thus, it is imperative that the present black abalone population size and density estimates are investigated. Details of the location, abundance, and habitat suitability for endangered black abalone on SCI will assist natural resource managers in conservation of the species, aid in recovery efforts for the species on SCI, and will support ongoing and future Navy operations to support the Mission. Please see the statement of Objectives, provided as a separate document, for a full description of the project.

The US Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District (USACE) intends to enter into a cooperative agreement with a non-Federal public entity or nonprofit organization for land stewardship and restoration services on USACE land at the Bonneville Lock and Dam in Skamania County, WA and Multnomah County, OR. This cooperative agreement will assist Portland District in fulfilling environmental stewardship responsibilities consisting of restoration and management of native and historic landscapes and wildlife habitat while providing education and training opportunities to the recipients participants in the local communities around Bonneville Lock and Dam. These education and training opportunities exist through the need for natural resource and maintenance services on public lands within Bonneville Lock and Dams jurisdiction. The goals and objectives of this cooperative agreement are for the implementation of best natural resources management practices with regards to environmental stewardship, high and low density recreation areas, and operations/facilities maintenance. Environmental and maintenance training opportunities include but are not limited to: Vegetation Management Vegetation PlantingPark and Trail MaintenanceLitter RemovalTrail Construction and Maintenance This cooperative agreement will be awarded pursuant to 33 USC 2339 Conservation and Recreation Management. The recipient for this cooperative agreement must be a qualified non-Federal public entity or nonprofit organization that serves low security inmates and/or individuals executing community service sentences within the Skamania County, WA, Clark County, WA, Hood River, OR and/or Multnomah County, OR correctional system, and has experience in land stewardship and restoration using small work crews supervised by experienced leaders so that ecological concepts can be accurately conveyed to work crew and leaders.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) received FY2023 funding from Congress for the sole purpose of managing and improving the understanding of submerged aquatic invasive grasses with focus on Hydrilla, Milfoil, and Elodea. The Northeast Region is managing $250,000 of these funds. The Service is seeking proposals that address Hydrilla infestations in the Connecticut River.Hydrilla was first detected in the Connecticut River in 2016. The Connecticut River stretches from the Canadian border through New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, finally emptying into Long Island Sound. With 38 main tributaries, the watershed plays an important role in New Englands identity. Funds made available through this grant opportunity will support the following priority goals:Prevention of further spread of hydrilla into inland and tributary watersExpansion of surveillance in the Connecticut River and to tributaries and nearby watersEarly detection surveillance in tributaries and nearby waters.Rapid response efforts supporting control and eradication of new infestationsManagement and containment of existing populationsImprove awareness and affect behavior of water users through education and outreach initiatives.

This grant provides financial support to citrus growers in select California counties to implement sustainable farming practices that improve soil health, enhance climate resilience, and promote environmental stewardship, with a focus on assisting socially disadvantaged farmers, women, and veterans.

This grant provides financial support to individuals, businesses, and organizations in Denver to create projects that promote active living, such as improving walkability and bikeability in their neighborhoods.

Walla Walla DistrictThis announcement represents an opportunity to enter into a cooperative agreement with an organization for outdoor education and training while accomplishing maintenance on public lands consisting of park maintenance, vegetation management, prescribed burns, landscaping, and similar services. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is seeking organizations that offer challenging education and job-training experience that helps young adults develop the skills they need to lead full and productive lives and offer opportunity for aid with formal post high school education. Statutory Authority: Water Resources Development Act of 2000, Title 33, Part 2339, Section 213(a), Public Law 106-106-541, 114 Stat. 2593 (codified as amended at 33 U.S.C. 2339).

To combat wildlife trafficking and other natural resource crime in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

This program provides financial assistance to eligible governmental organizations, non-profits, and Indian Tribes in Arizona for repairing infrastructure damaged by wildfires or fire suppression activities since July 1, 2020, with a focus on those most significantly impacted and lacking other funding sources.

This funding opportunity supports landowners, watershed groups, and nonprofits in Montana to improve fish habitats and populations by restoring natural stream channels, enhancing fish passage, and protecting essential spawning areas.

The FY25 Conservation Partnership Grant, overseen by the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA), supports qualified 501(c)(3) organizations and conservation districts in acquiring conservation or recreation land within Massachusetts. The grant encourages projects that conserve natural resources, offer recreational opportunities, and address climate resilience aligned with Executive Order 569. Funding is aimed at land purchases or conservation restrictions, with due diligence costs eligible for gifts of land. This reimbursement grant emphasizes protecting strategic open spaces that provide public access and maintain ecological value.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks accepts applications twice annually from landowners, watershed groups, and other nonprofits for the Future Fisheries Improvement Program. This program aims to fund habitat projects that benefit Montana's wild fish, focusing on improving or maintaining fish passage, restoring or protecting natural stream channels, riparian areas, essential habitats for spawning, and enhancing stream flow. Applicants must demonstrate public benefits and alignment with specific goals to improve fishing and protect wild fish populations. Preference is given to projects restoring habitats for native fishes. Funding covers design/build, construction, and maintenance costs, excluding administration and other indirect costs. Grant renewed every year. Grant Annual Summer deadline: May 15th

This funding opportunity supports nonprofits and government agencies in specific Virginia counties and cities to implement projects that improve water quality, conserve land, and promote environmental education.

The Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD) offers Irrigation Modernization Funding to enhance water use efficiency in existing agricultural irrigation systems. This initiative focuses on improving the operational efficiency of irrigation methods and infrastructure on currently irrigated agricultural lands. Eligible projects include piping, lining, installing sprinkler or microirrigation systems, upgrading existing infrastructure such as flumes or pipes, and integrating technology like SCADA systems and irrigation scheduling software. Projects are required to meet public economic, environmental, and social/cultural benefits to be eligible for funding.