CESU Colorado River District (CRD) Monitoring Project | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the CESU Colorado River District (CRD) Monitoring Project?

The CESU Colorado River District (CRD) Monitoring Project is a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) cooperative agreement opportunity focused on hands-on rangeland and vegetation monitoring on public land grazing allotments within the Colorado River District. The effort emphasizes collecting consistent, defensible monitoring data and ensuring the results are usable in day-to-day grazing and allotment management decisions.

Who is offering this grant opportunity?

The opportunity is issued by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and is offered through the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESU) Network, specifically the Desert Southwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (DSCESU).

What is the CESU Network, and why is it used for this project?

CESU is a national partnership (roughly 300 partners) that connects federal agencies with universities, tribes, state and local governments, and conservation organizations. It supports applied research, technical assistance, and education tied directly to on-the-ground resource stewardship. For this project, BLM is using CESU to select a partner that can work closely with BLM field staff and local grazing permittees to strengthen rangeland monitoring and the practical use of monitoring results.

Where will the monitoring work take place?

The work is centered on public land grazing allotments within the Colorado River District, specifically within the Kingman Field Office and Yuma Field Office areas.

What types of activities are included in the project?

The project includes field monitoring and related data management work. Activities include working alongside BLM personnel (and where relevant, permittees and lessees) to conduct vegetation and rangeland monitoring studies, and compiling and documenting monitoring information into the proper files and databases so it can be used for BLM decision-making and shared as current information for the interested public.

What is the field monitoring scope for this opportunity?

The monitoring scope includes assessing rangeland condition and trend over time, completing ecological site inventories, and conducting invasive or noxious weed inventories at the grazing allotment level.

Is this primarily a research project or an operations/management support project?

Based on the stated objective, it is practical and management-oriented. The emphasis is on collecting and analyzing up-to-date monitoring data and ensuring that monitoring results are directly relevant to grazing management and allotment-level decisions.

Who is the intended partner for this project?

BLM is looking for a CESU partner able to work in a highly collaborative, field-based setting, closely with BLM field staff and local grazing permittees, and capable of applying approved BLM methods and protocols consistently.

What does it mean that the award instrument is a cooperative agreement?

The instrument type is a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates substantial involvement by the federal agency during performance. In this opportunity, that aligns with the expectation that the selected partner will work side by side with BLM personnel throughout field monitoring and related tasks.

How will the monitoring data be used?

The data are intended to support BLM decision-making and day-to-day management, including recommending best management practices and responding to information requests with current, well-documented monitoring results. The data are also intended to be available as current information for the interested public.

Does the opportunity involve working with grazing permittees or lessees?

Yes. The project description states the selected partner would work with BLM personnel and, where relevant, with permittees and lessees. The monitoring results are intended to be directly relevant to grazing management and allotment-level decisions.

Does this project relate to any existing agreements or ongoing monitoring efforts?

Yes. The opportunity builds on a long-running monitoring effort that began in 2003 under an earlier University of Arizona assistance agreement, focused on collecting vegetation monitoring data on allotments where Rangeland Health Assessments were being implemented. It also supports objectives tied to an existing memorandum of understanding between BLM and the Public Lands Council related to allotment monitoring.

What is the stated objective of the project?

The stated objective is to help BLM, landowners, and grazing lease holders (including both State of Arizona and BLM leases) manage rangelands in ways that maintain or improve sustainability while supporting economically viable grazing operations, using up-to-date vegetation monitoring data across CRD rangelands.

What are the administrative identifiers for this funding opportunity?

The Funding Opportunity Number is L14AS00150. The CFDA program listed is 15.237, Rangeland Resource Management.

How much funding is available under this opportunity?

The opportunity anticipated a single award with an estimated total funding amount of $500,000. The award ceiling was $500,000 and the award floor was $68,000.

How many awards were anticipated?

The opportunity anticipated a single award.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity states there was no cost sharing or matching requirement.

Who was eligible to apply?

Eligibility was limited to CESU members. While the listing may note "unrestricted" in a general sense, the eligibility section clarifies that applicants must be CESU members.

Which CESU unit is associated with this opportunity?

This opportunity is issued through the Desert Southwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (DSCESU).

When was the application due, and how were applications submitted?

The application deadline was July 23, 2014, by 5:00 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. Applications were to be submitted via Grants.gov.

Are late applications accepted?

No. Late submissions were not considered.

Who is the point of contact for this opportunity?

The listed point of contact was Eddie W. Bell Jr., Grants Management Officer. Phone: 602-417-9268. Email: ebell@blm.gov.

What is the overall focus of the work BLM expects from the selected partner?

BLM expects a partner that can perform hands-on monitoring using approved BLM methods and protocols, collaborate closely with BLM field staff and relevant grazing operators, and ensure that both new and existing monitoring data are compiled, organized, documented, and stored properly so they can support agency decisions and public information needs.