California Natural Resources Grants

This funding opportunity provides financial support for projects that restore and protect salmon habitats in the Klamath River Watershed, specifically targeting collaboration with local Tribes and landowners to enhance resilience against drought and climate change.

This funding program provides financial assistance to small community water systems and public water systems serving disadvantaged communities to help them improve their drinking water infrastructure and ensure safe, clean water access.

This program provides funding to public and private landowners in California's Central Valley for projects that conserve and restore wetlands and habitats to support various bird populations.

This funding opportunity supports habitat restoration and public access projects across California, particularly benefiting historically underserved communities affected by environmental challenges.

This funding opportunity is designed to support projects that enhance climate resilience, protect wildlife habitats, and improve water management in California's communities.

This grant provides funding for research and monitoring projects aimed at understanding and managing the impacts of ocean acidification, hypoxia, and harmful algal blooms on California's marine ecosystems and public health.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to California Native American tribes for projects that promote environmental stewardship and climate resilience through nature-based solutions.

This grant provides financial assistance to small businesses in California for upgrading, removing, or replacing underground storage tanks to meet safety regulations.

This funding program provides financial assistance to community water systems in California for constructing and improving water infrastructure to ensure safe and clean drinking water for residents, particularly those in need.

History/Background: Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (MCAS Miramar) has been an active installation since the 1940s, focusing on providing services, material support, and training venues that promote combat readiness. Since, its inception and the establishment of the Sikes Act in 1960, MCAS Miramar has actively been monitoring the effects of military land use on the overall condition of natural resources. In 1994, the Center for Earth Systems Analysis Research, a shared educational and research center located at San Diego State University, established a long term monitoring protocol to provide the mechanism for documenting the effects of military operations and training on vegetation native to MCAS Miramar. This protocol provided a continuous database of which to assist in altering land management actions to ensure long-term availability of natural areas for training and conservation. Brief Description of Anticipated Work: The project is to develop and implement a work plan for the current iteration of this monitoring effort, re-survey 82 permanently established monitoring plots according to MCAS Miramars standardized ecosystem monitoring program that inventories and monitors the condition of training lands and natural resources, identify and describe any ecological trends developing as indicated by the previous and current survey efforts for the monitoring plots, provide detailed site descriptions and information on disturbance and erosion, provide individual summaries of the composition, structure and site characteristics of the 82 plots surveyed in the 2003 LTEM report, provide contrast of summaries of the individual plots that comprise each major vegetation type for the three survey efforts, provide evaluation and discussion of management implications, provide photographic documentation of the plots, and submit draft and final reports along with all associated Geographical Information System (GIS) deliverables and maps for this monitoring effort that integrates all years efforts, results, analyses, evaluates the effectiveness of this effort. Please see enclosure 1 for full scope of work and enclosure 2 for applicable terms and conditions.

This grant provides funding to local public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions in California to enhance boating safety education and training programs.

This funding opportunity is designed for California-based organizations with expertise in shorebird monitoring to conduct research on endangered beach-nesting birds at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, supporting conservation efforts and environmental stewardship.

The Conservancy may fund activities within or benefitting the Delta and Suisun Marsh as defined in Public Resources Code section 85058 (a map can be found at this link: https://www.deltacouncil.ca.gov/pdf/delta-plan/figure-1-1-delta-boundaries.pdf). The Conservancy may fund an action outside the Delta and Suisun Marsh if the Board makes all the findings described in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009 (CWC, div. 35, §§ 85000 – 85350). The Conservancy will fund planning projects, which include pilot projects. Allowable activities for planning projects include, but are not limited to, project scoping (partnership development, outreach to impacted parties, stakeholder coordination, negotiation of site access or land tenure); planning and design (engineering design, identifying appropriate best management practices); and environmental compliance (permitting, California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) activities, Delta Plan consistency). The Conservancy will fund implementation projects, which include acquisition projects. Implementation projects are specific, on-the-ground projects that result in the construction, improvement, or acquisition of a capital asset that will be maintained for a minimum of 15 years. Implementation projects are "shovel-ready" projects. Applicants must submit a concept proposal, as found on the Conservancy’s website, before submitting a full proposal. Partnerships are encouraged but not required. There are no limitations on number of submissions by organizations. Applications are received via email for concept proposals and by uploading files to a designated site for full proposals. Awards are announced at a Board Meeting and applicants are informed with a letter.

This funding opportunity provides up to $30 million for projects that develop publicly accessible hydrogen refueling and charging infrastructure for medium- and heavy-duty zero-emission vehicles in disadvantaged and low-income communities along key highway corridors in California.

This program provides funding to community organizations and local governments in Santa Cruz County to support projects that improve environmental health, enhance public access to parks, and promote community resilience.

The Projects for Organizations grant opportunity, offered by the Idaho Commission on the Arts, aims to support public projects and events by nonprofit organizations, informal arts groups applying through fiscal agents, and arts-in-education projects within schools and school districts. This grant aligns with the Commission's mission to foster arts and culture within Idaho by directly funding initiatives that engage the public and promote arts education. The program specifically targets organizations operating in Idaho for at least one year with a valid 501(c)(3) status or governmental units including schools. The primary beneficiaries of this grant are the citizens of Idaho, who benefit from increased access to public arts projects and events, and students within the state, who gain from enhanced arts-in-education programming. The impact goals include enriching community life through cultural offerings and fostering artistic development and appreciation. The grant prioritizes projects that compensate professional artists and meet specific eligibility criteria, ensuring a high standard of artistic endeavor and professional practice. Funding information indicates that grants are up to $1,100 and require a 1:1 match (cash or in-kind), funding up to 50% of projected expenses. This demonstrates a strategic priority to leverage additional resources and encourage community investment in arts projects. While specific measurable results beyond successful project completion and financial accountability are not explicitly detailed, the focus on public projects and arts-in-education implies expected outcomes such as increased community engagement in the arts and improved arts literacy among students. The Idaho Commission on the Arts' strategic priority, as reflected in this grant, is to provide accessible funding for a diverse range of artistic and cultural projects across all counties in Idaho. Their theory of change appears to be that by providing financial support and setting clear eligibility and project guidelines, they can empower local organizations and schools to deliver high-quality arts experiences, thereby enriching communities and fostering a vibrant arts ecosystem throughout the state. The requirement for final reports for past grants also indicates a commitment to accountability and continuous improvement within their funding programs.

This funding opportunity supports projects that promote sustainable pest management practices to protect human health and the environment, particularly in underserved communities and agricultural areas near schools.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for projects that advance the conservation of California's coastal waters, particularly benefiting local agencies, universities, nonprofits, and Native American tribes.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to government entities, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations in California for projects aimed at reducing wildfire risks and enhancing community resilience through fuels management and fire prevention education.

The Effectiveness Monitoring Committee (EMC) is seeking project proposals that: (1)   Address one or more of the EMC’s Research Themes and Critical Monitoring Questions and; (2)   Address natural resource protection issues that are important for California forestlands. The critical monitoring questions are organized under 12 Research Themes. Four prioritized critical questions were determined by vote amongst the current EMC members at the beginning of each calendar year:  Are the FPRs and associated regulations effective in...  Question 1h: managing WLPZs to reduce or minimize potential fire behavior and rate of spread? Question 6c:  managing fuel loads, vegetation patterns and fuel breaks for fire hazard reduction? Question 6d: managing forest structure and stocking standards to promote wildfire resilience? Question 12a: improving overall forest wildfire resilience and the ability of forests to respond to climate change (e.g., in response to drought or bark beetle; reducing plant water stress) and variability, and extreme weather events (evaluate ecosystem functional response to fuel reduction and forest health treatments)? I.       FUNDING AVAILABILITY. Funding available for newly proposed projects is anticipated as follows: $973,392 over three FYs beginning in 2024/25, comprising: $173,232 in FY 2024/25; $375,160 in FY 2025/26; and $425,000 in FY 2025/26. II.     AWARD LIMITATIONS. Applicants requesting more than the stated annual amount available for funding will not be considered. In the case that EMC funding for the full three years is awarded to one new project, project solicitation may not occur in the subsequent two FYs. While the EMC may choose to fund projects that span multiple FYs up to the annual funding cap, the EMC generally prefers to fund multiple research projects annually. Proposers should keep this in mind when developing their project and annual budget requests. Longer-term projects (greater than three years) may re-apply for funding for additional years through the competitive grants process advertised in the EMC’s Request for Proposals. Annual allocations are dependent upon demonstrated progress towards project completion pursuant to the project schedule and workplan.  a.      ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES. Eligible projects will test one or more specific FPRs or other rule or regulation under the Board’s jurisdiction and which addresses one or more of the EMC’s Research Themes and Critical Monitoring Questions. Proposed projects must clearly apply to management activities on private timberlands in California. Projects on public land may be eligible for EMC funding provided they clearly apply to the activities and systems that also exist on non-federal timberland. b.      ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATIONS. Eligible applicants are local, state, and federal agencies including federal land management agencies; institutions of higher education; special purpose districts (e.g., public utilities districts, fire districts, conservation districts, and ports); Native American tribes; private landowners; for-profit entities; and non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations.