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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is this funding opportunity?

This is a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) California Water Science Center (CAWSC) cooperative agreement offered through the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program. The Funding Opportunity Number is 10HQPA0050, and it falls under CFDA 15.808 (USGS Research and Data Collection) in the Science and Technology / Research and Development category.

Who is offering the award?

The award is offered by the USGS California Water Science Center (CAWSC) under the CESU Program mechanism.

What is the project title?

The funded project is titled "Modeling Carbon and Greenhouse Gas Dynamics in Sacramento San Joaquin Delta Wetlands."

What is the main purpose of the project?

The purpose is to use existing monitoring records to improve scientific understanding and predictive capability for greenhouse gas behavior in managed wetlands of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, with an emphasis on process-based explanations of carbon preservation and greenhouse gas emissions.

What scientific problem is USGS trying to address?

USGS is seeking a better process-based understanding of how wetland conditions (such as water depth, vegetation type, plant growth stage, seasonality, temperature, and other biogeochemical drivers) influence carbon storage (sequestration and land surface accretion) and emissions of greenhouse gases, especially methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), as well as carbon dioxide (CO2).

What site or dataset is central to this effort?

A major source of information is the Carbon Farm pilot program on Twitchell Island, where CO2 and methane emissions have been monitored for roughly a decade. The project is intended to leverage these historical datasets along with other available monitoring data.

What model is referenced for the modeling work?

The opportunity references DNDC (Denitrification-Decomposition), a process-based wetland vegetation biogeochemical modeling framework used to simulate carbon and nitrogen cycling and related greenhouse gas fluxes in managed ecosystems.

What does USGS mean by making redox dynamics and decomposition "explicit" in the model?

The project is intended to build and test a model representation that explicitly accounts for redox conditions and carbon decomposition processes. In wetlands, oxygen availability and electron-acceptor sequences help govern whether carbon is mineralized to CO2 or converted to CH4 under more reducing conditions, and they also affect nitrogen pathways related to N2O emissions.

How does this work relate to methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions?

The motivation described is that wetlands can emit CH4 and N2O even while storing carbon. By representing redox dynamics and decomposition, the work aims to support more defensible simulations of carbon decomposition and more reliable predictions of CO2 and CH4 emissions under varying management and environmental conditions, while also acknowledging nitrogen cycling relevance to N2O.

Is this opportunity intended to fund new field monitoring?

The described work elements emphasize assembling, reviewing, and preparing existing datasets (including long-term monitoring records) so they can be used to set up, calibrate, and validate a model. The opportunity is framed as leveraging historical datasets and other available monitoring data.

What are the main tasks expected of the awardee?

The announcement outlines four primary work elements: (1) collect and aggregate existing field data needed to calibrate the DNDC wetland vegetation model in collaboration with USGS CAWSC staff; (2) meet with USGS to obtain and compile existing methane emissions data for model validation; (3) aggregate and format climate data suitable for driving model simulations (for example, daily weather inputs such as temperature and precipitation, and potentially other required variables); and (4) prepare a final report summarizing assessment results and what the assembled data imply for model readiness, calibration, and validation.

What kinds of datasets are expected to be reviewed and synthesized?

The opportunity emphasizes a thorough review and synthesis of observational datasets covering daily weather, hydrology, wetland vegetation, and soil conditions at the Twitchell Island Carbon Farm site.

What is meant by "data synthesis" in this announcement?

Based on the description, data synthesis includes assembling datasets, reviewing them for usability, performing data quality checking, formatting data consistently, and harmonizing records that may have been collected under different protocols or time periods so they can support model setup, calibration, and validation.

What is the role of climate data in the project?

Climate data are needed as model drivers. The awardee is expected to aggregate and format climate inputs suitable for simulations, including daily weather variables such as temperature and precipitation, and potentially other variables needed by the DNDC modeling framework.

How will model validation be supported?

Model validation is intended to use existing methane emissions data, compiled in coordination with USGS, and to compare modeled outputs to the historic monitoring record (including long-term CO2 and methane observations from the Twitchell Island Carbon Farm pilot program).

What are the two technical focus areas highlighted in the opportunity?

The opportunity emphasizes: (1) a thorough review and synthesis of observational datasets (daily weather, hydrology, wetland vegetation, and soil conditions) for Twitchell Island; and (2) characterization of the two dominant vegetation types at the site using biophysical properties relevant to carbon storage and gas exchange.

What does "characterization of the two dominant vegetation types" involve?

The announcement indicates characterization in terms of biophysical properties relevant to carbon storage and gas exchange. Examples implied by the description include traits that influence productivity and decomposition and parameters used by models to represent plant-mediated carbon inputs and methane transport (such as biomass allocation, litter quality, rooting depth, aerenchyma-related transport, phenology, and related model parameters).

What is the expected deliverable?

The final deliverable is a final report summarizing the assessment results, including what datasets were assembled, how they were synthesized, and what the assembled data imply for DNDC model readiness, calibration, and validation.

What is the practical endpoint USGS is trying to achieve with this award?

The opportunity describes a practical endpoint of a DNDC-based modeling setup that is ready to simulate and predict CO2 and CH4 emissions (and potentially related biogeochemical outcomes) for the Twitchell Island wetland system using historical and compiled environmental drivers.

How does this project coordinate with related research?

USGS indicates the work will coordinate closely with a related effort titled "Molecular level Decomposition Studies in Sacramento San Joaquin Delta Wetlands." The modeling and data synthesis supported by this award are intended to complement that more mechanistic or laboratory-focused decomposition research being conducted in parallel.

What is the anticipated award structure and amount?

The government anticipated making a single award with an estimated total funding amount of $50,000.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity states that it does not require cost sharing or matching funds.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is limited to CESU member institutions. The announcement is aimed specifically at one or more universities that are already participating CESU partners.

How many awards did the government anticipate making?

The opportunity states that the government anticipated making a single award.

What are the key dates for this opportunity?

The opportunity was posted on April 26, 2010 and closed on May 6, 2010. It was archived on June 5, 2010.

What does it mean that this is a cooperative agreement?

The announcement identifies the mechanism as a cooperative agreement and notes collaboration with USGS CAWSC staff (for example, working with USGS to collect and aggregate field data and meeting with USGS to obtain and compile methane emissions data for validation).

What greenhouse gases are explicitly discussed?

The opportunity explicitly discusses carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O), with particular emphasis on improving simulations and predictions of CO2 and CH4 emissions in the modeled wetland system.