Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA ES 11 005
Apply for RFA ES 11 005
- The National Institutes of Health in the education environment health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Innovative Bioavailability Assays to Assess the Effectiveness of Contaminated Sediment Remediation (R01)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113 Environmental Health 93.143 NIEHS Superfund Hazardous SubstancesBasic Research and Education.
- This funding opportunity was created on Nov 4, 2010 and posted on Nov 4, 2010.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 17, 2011. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $1,160,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $200,000.00 in funding.
- Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification) Private institutions of higher education.
- Other Eligible Applicants include the following Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions Hispanic serving Institutions Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs) .
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Opportunity Summary:
The grant opportunity titled "Innovative Bioavailability Assays to Assess the Effectiveness of Contaminated Sediment Remediation (R01)" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-ES-11-005) was issued by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) within the National Institutes of Health. It sits under the NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP) and is aimed at supporting research that can improve how scientists and remediation practitioners determine whether cleanup actions for contaminated sediments are actually reducing real-world exposure and risk. Instead of focusing only on measuring total chemical concentrations in sediment, the emphasis is on bioavailability, meaning the fraction of contaminants that are accessible to organisms and can be taken up into biological tissues. The overall goal is to push the field toward more informative and practical assays that better reflect what matters for ecological and human health after remediation.
The core research need behind the announcement is that sediment remediation success is often judged by bulk chemistry or general site indicators, which may not reliably indicate whether contaminants remain available to benthic organisms, move through food webs, or continue to pose long-term hazards. NIEHS signaled interest in innovative bioavailability assays that can directly assess the effectiveness of remediation approaches such as capping, dredging, monitored natural recovery, or amendments like activated carbon that are intended to sequester contaminants. In practice, this means developing, improving, or validating measurement tools and testing strategies that can show whether remediation reduces biologically relevant exposure over time, across different sediment types, and for different classes of hazardous substances commonly found at Superfund and other contaminated sites.
This opportunity used the NIH R01 mechanism, described here as an Individual Research Project Grant, which generally supports hypothesis-driven research projects led by a principal investigator at an eligible institution. The funding instrument type is a grant, and the activity categories listed for the announcement are education, environment, and health, reflecting the cross-cutting nature of sediment contamination problems and the SRP mission to generate science that can be used in decision-making. The CFDA numbers associated with the opportunity are 93.113 (Environmental Health) and 93.143 (NIEHS Superfund Hazardous Substances Basic Research and Education), which identify the federal assistance programs under which awards would be made.
In terms of funding scale, the announcement listed an estimated total funding amount of $1,160,000 with an award ceiling of $200,000. Cost sharing or matching was not required, which is typical for many NIH research grants and can make participation easier for academic institutions that may not have discretionary funds to commit as match. While the announcement summary does not detail the number of anticipated awards, the combination of the total estimated funding and the per-award ceiling suggests a small set of competitively selected projects.
Eligibility was focused on domestic institutions of higher education, including public and state-controlled universities as well as private institutions of higher education. The FOA also explicitly included a range of mission-driven and minority-serving institutions as eligible applicants, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs). This emphasis aligns with broader federal goals of expanding participation and strengthening research capacity across diverse institutions while addressing environmental health issues that often disproportionately affect underserved communities.
Key dates show that the announcement was posted and created on November 4, 2010, with an original and current closing date of February 17, 2011, and an archive date of March 20, 2011. In other words, it was a time-limited solicitation rather than an open-ended program announcement, designed to attract applications during a defined window and to concentrate funding on a specific research gap.
The FOA’s technical theme, bioavailability assays for contaminated sediment remediation, points to work that could include developing new laboratory or field-based methods, improving links between chemical measures and biological uptake, and creating assays that are more predictive of exposure than conventional bulk sediment chemistry. Depending on the specific contaminants and remediation scenarios, this might involve approaches that estimate freely dissolved concentrations, measure uptake in representative organisms, integrate passive sampling tools with bioassays, or develop standardized testing frameworks that regulators and site managers can apply consistently. The unifying idea is that better assays can help determine whether a remediation technology is truly reducing exposure pathways, not just lowering measured concentrations in a way that might not translate into reduced risk.
Administrative contact information in the listing directs applicants who have trouble accessing the full announcement or linking to the funding notice to the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) Webmaster via FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV, and the archived full text was available through the NIH grants guide at the provided link.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the name of this grant opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "Innovative Bioavailability Assays to Assess the Effectiveness of Contaminated Sediment Remediation (R01)."
What is the Funding Opportunity Number (FOA number)?
The Funding Opportunity Number is RFA-ES-11-005.
Which federal agency and institute issued this opportunity?
This opportunity was issued by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) within the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
What program is this opportunity associated with?
It sits under the NIEHS Superfund Research Program (SRP).
What is the main purpose of the funding?
The purpose is to support research that improves how scientists and remediation practitioners determine whether contaminated sediment cleanup actions are actually reducing real-world exposure and risk.
What problem is the FOA trying to address?
The FOA is responding to a core gap in how remediation success is often judged. Cleanup is frequently evaluated using bulk (total) sediment chemistry or general site indicators, which may not reliably show whether contaminants remain biologically available to organisms, move through food webs, or continue to pose long-term hazards.
What does "bioavailability" mean in the context of this FOA?
Bioavailability refers to the fraction of contaminants that are accessible to organisms and can be taken up into biological tissues. The FOA emphasizes measuring what is actually available for uptake, rather than focusing only on total chemical concentrations in sediment.
Why is the FOA emphasizing bioavailability instead of total concentration?
The announcement highlights that total concentrations in sediment do not necessarily reflect biologically relevant exposure. A remediation action might reduce measured concentrations or alter sediment conditions, but contaminants could still remain available to benthic organisms or continue to move into food webs. Bioavailability-focused assays are intended to better reflect what matters for ecological and human health after remediation.
What types of remediation approaches are specifically mentioned?
The FOA notes interest in assays that can assess effectiveness for remediation approaches such as capping, dredging, monitored natural recovery, and amendments like activated carbon intended to sequester contaminants.
What kind of research activities does the FOA appear to encourage?
Based on the description provided, the FOA encourages developing, improving, or validating measurement tools and testing strategies that can show whether remediation reduces biologically relevant exposure over time, across different sediment types, and for different classes of hazardous substances commonly found at Superfund and other contaminated sites.
Does the opportunity focus on laboratory methods, field methods, or both?
The theme points to work that could include developing new laboratory or field-based methods, as well as improving links between chemical measures and biological uptake.
What are examples of assay concepts mentioned in the description?
The description mentions approaches that might estimate freely dissolved concentrations, measure uptake in representative organisms, integrate passive sampling tools with bioassays, or develop standardized testing frameworks that regulators and site managers can apply consistently.
What is the overall outcome the FOA is trying to drive?
The stated overall goal is to push the field toward more informative and practical assays that better reflect whether a remediation technology is truly reducing exposure pathways, not just changing measured concentrations in ways that may not translate into reduced risk.
What is the funding mechanism?
The opportunity uses the NIH R01 mechanism, described here as an Individual Research Project Grant.
What does the R01 mechanism generally support (as described in the listing)?
It generally supports hypothesis-driven research projects led by a principal investigator at an eligible institution.
What is the funding instrument type?
The funding instrument type is a grant.
What activity categories are associated with this opportunity?
The activity categories listed are education, environment, and health.
What are the CFDA numbers associated with this opportunity?
The CFDA numbers are 93.113 (Environmental Health) and 93.143 (NIEHS Superfund Hazardous Substances Basic Research and Education).
How much total funding was estimated for this FOA?
The estimated total funding amount listed is $1,160,000.
What is the award ceiling?
The award ceiling is $200,000.
Was cost sharing or matching required?
No. The listing states that cost sharing or matching was not required.
Does the summary specify how many awards would be made?
No. The summary does not detail the number of anticipated awards. It suggests a small set of competitively selected projects based on the combination of total estimated funding and the per-award ceiling, but it does not provide a specific number.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility was focused on domestic institutions of higher education, including public and state-controlled universities and private institutions of higher education.
Are minority-serving and mission-driven institutions included as eligible applicants?
Yes. The FOA explicitly includes Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), and other eligible institutions listed in the description provided.
Is this opportunity open-ended or time-limited?
It was a time-limited solicitation with a defined application window rather than an open-ended program announcement.
When was the FOA posted/created?
The announcement was posted and created on November 4, 2010.
What was the closing date?
The original and current closing date listed is February 17, 2011.
When was the opportunity archived?
The archive date listed is March 20, 2011.
What should someone do if they cannot access the full announcement or have trouble with links?
The listing directs people to contact the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) Webmaster at FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV for issues accessing the full announcement or linking to the funding notice.
Where was the archived full text available?
The description states the archived full text was available through the NIH grants guide at the provided link (as referenced in the listing).
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Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (RFA ES 11 005) also looked into and applied for these:
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| Limited Competition Fogarty International Research Collaboration Basic Biomedical (FIRCA BB) Research Award (R03) Apply for PAR 11 037 Funding Number: PAR 11 037 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Environment Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
| Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (NRSA) for Individual Senior Fellows (Parent F33) Apply for PA 11 114 Funding Number: PA 11 114 Agency: National Institutes of Health Category: Education Environment Health Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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