Opportunity Information: Apply for EPA G2015 ORD D1
Apply for EPA G2015 ORD D1
- The Environmental Protection Agency in the environment sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "National Priorities Life Cycle Costs of Water Infrastructure Alternatives" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 66.511 Office of Research and Development Consolidated Research/Training/Fellowships.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jun 30, 2015 and posted on May 19, 2015.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 6, 2015 Please refer to the full announcement, including Section IV, for additional information on submission methods and due dates.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $3,900,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,950,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
- See Section III of the announcement for additional eligibility information.
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Opportunity Summary:
National Priorities Life Cycle Costs of Water Infrastructure Alternatives is an EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD) funding opportunity focused on helping communities make better, more defensible decisions about stormwater management investments as water infrastructure ages and regulatory expectations continue to evolve. The core problem it targets is stormwater runoff, a long-standing national priority that became even more prominent after the 1987 Clean Water Act amendments expanded attention to stormwater discharges. Those amendments helped establish the modern stormwater regulatory framework, including the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), which governs point-source discharges from systems such as pipes and sewers into surface waters. In practical terms, cities and utilities face ongoing pressure to meet permit requirements while also dealing with limited budgets, ratepayer concerns, and the reality that much of their existing water infrastructure is at or beyond its intended service life.
The opportunity emphasizes the need for research that supports life cycle cost evaluation of water infrastructure alternatives, especially in the stormwater context. It is framed around the growing interest in green infrastructure as an emerging approach with the potential to complement or reduce reliance on conventional "grey" infrastructure (for example, pipes, tunnels, storage basins, and treatment expansions). The EPA is looking for work that can help communities assess whether green infrastructure is a sound investment when considering costs over time, not just upfront construction expenses. This includes investigating how green infrastructure can reduce the volume of stormwater entering combined or separate sewer systems, potentially lowering the scale and cost of grey infrastructure upgrades. It also includes the idea of treating stormwater as a resource rather than purely a waste stream, such as through infiltration, groundwater recharge, reuse, or other approaches that can support water supply resilience in places where water scarcity is a concern.
This grant builds on prior EPA-supported research on the performance and effectiveness of green infrastructure, and it points applicants toward the ORD National Center for Environmental Research (NCER) as a source for current and past projects. The implied goal is not simply to demonstrate that green practices can work, but to strengthen the evidence base communities need to compare alternatives using consistent, rigorous life cycle cost methods and to understand tradeoffs across different strategies for meeting stormwater requirements.
Administratively, this is a discretionary EPA funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number EPA-G2015-ORD-D1) offered through grants and/or cooperative agreements under CFDA 66.511 (Office of Research and Development Consolidated Research/Training/Fellowships). EPA anticipated making two awards with an estimated total funding amount of $3.9 million and an award ceiling of $1.95 million per award. The announcement indicates a cost sharing or matching requirement, meaning recipients were expected to contribute non-federal resources toward the project; the specific expectations and how they could be met would be detailed in the full announcement (particularly the sections that define eligibility and application requirements). Eligibility is described broadly as "Others" with additional clarification deferred to Section III of the full solicitation, which is typical when agencies allow applications from a range of organizations but place boundaries around which types qualify (for example, universities, nonprofits, state or local governments, tribal entities, or certain private organizations).
Key timeline details show the opportunity was posted May 19, 2015, with an original closing date of July 2, 2015, later extended to July 6, 2015, and archived August 1, 2015. For applicants at the time, the notice stresses that submission methods, required forms, and due date specifics were contained in Section IV of the full announcement. The listing also provides direct points of contact: a technical contact (Pasky Pascual), an eligibility contact (Ron Josephson), and an electronic submissions contact (Debra M. Jones), each with email and phone information, which is consistent with an ORD research solicitation where prospective applicants often need to clarify technical fit, applicant eligibility categories, and electronic submission logistics.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the “National Priorities Life Cycle Costs of Water Infrastructure Alternatives” opportunity?
It is an EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD) discretionary funding opportunity focused on research that helps communities make stronger, more defensible stormwater management investment decisions by evaluating the life cycle costs of different water infrastructure alternatives.
Which EPA office is offering this funding opportunity?
The opportunity is offered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Research and Development (ORD).
What problem is this opportunity trying to address?
The primary problem is stormwater runoff and the growing challenge communities face in meeting evolving regulatory expectations while managing aging water infrastructure, limited budgets, and ratepayer concerns.
Why is stormwater considered a national priority in this program?
Stormwater has been a long-standing national priority and became even more prominent after the 1987 Clean Water Act amendments expanded attention to stormwater discharges and helped establish the modern regulatory framework for stormwater.
How does the Clean Water Act relate to this opportunity?
The opportunity is framed within the stormwater regulatory context shaped by the Clean Water Act amendments and the associated permitting and compliance pressures that communities face.
What is NPDES and why is it relevant here?
NPDES stands for the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System. It governs point-source discharges into surface waters from systems such as pipes and sewers. The grant opportunity highlights the need for research that supports decisions communities make to meet permit requirements under frameworks like NPDES.
What types of research does EPA want under this opportunity?
EPA is emphasizing research that supports life cycle cost evaluation of water infrastructure alternatives, particularly in the stormwater context. The intent is to improve the evidence base and methods communities use to compare options consistently and rigorously over time.
What does “life cycle cost evaluation” mean in the context of this program?
In this opportunity, life cycle cost evaluation refers to assessing costs over time, not only upfront construction expenses, to help communities compare stormwater management alternatives in a more comprehensive way.
Is the opportunity focused on green infrastructure or conventional infrastructure?
It highlights growing interest in green infrastructure as an emerging approach that may complement or reduce reliance on conventional “grey” infrastructure. The focus is on generating research that enables better comparisons among alternatives using life cycle cost methods.
What does EPA mean by “grey” infrastructure in this announcement?
The announcement uses “grey” infrastructure examples such as pipes, tunnels, storage basins, and treatment expansions.
How is green infrastructure expected to fit into stormwater compliance strategies?
The opportunity notes that green infrastructure may reduce the volume of stormwater entering combined or separate sewer systems, which could reduce the scale and cost of grey infrastructure upgrades needed to meet stormwater requirements.
Does the opportunity address combined sewer and separate sewer systems?
Yes. It specifically references the potential for green infrastructure to reduce stormwater volumes entering combined or separate sewer systems.
Does the program consider stormwater as a usable resource?
Yes. The opportunity includes the concept of treating stormwater as a resource rather than only a waste stream, including approaches such as infiltration, groundwater recharge, reuse, or other methods that may support water supply resilience where water scarcity is a concern.
Is this opportunity meant to prove green infrastructure works?
The description suggests the goal is not simply to demonstrate that green practices can work. Instead, it emphasizes strengthening the evidence base needed for communities to compare alternatives with consistent, rigorous life cycle cost methods and understand tradeoffs across strategies.
Does this grant build on previous EPA research?
Yes. It builds on prior EPA-supported research on the performance and effectiveness of green infrastructure.
Where can applicants look for examples of prior or current related projects?
The announcement points applicants to the ORD National Center for Environmental Research (NCER) as a source for current and past projects.
What is the Funding Opportunity Number for this solicitation?
The Funding Opportunity Number is EPA-G2015-ORD-D1.
What is the CFDA number and program name associated with this opportunity?
The opportunity is listed under CFDA 66.511, titled Office of Research and Development Consolidated Research/Training/Fellowships.
What type of funding instrument is EPA using?
The opportunity is offered through grants and/or cooperative agreements.
How many awards did EPA anticipate making, and what was the total estimated funding?
EPA anticipated making two awards with an estimated total funding amount of $3.9 million.
What was the maximum funding amount per award?
The award ceiling was $1.95 million per award.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
Yes. The announcement indicates there was a cost sharing or matching requirement, meaning recipients were expected to contribute non-federal resources. The specific expectations were to be detailed in the full announcement.
Where would the detailed cost share/match requirements be described?
The notice indicates that specifics on cost sharing and how requirements could be met would be provided in the full announcement, particularly in sections describing eligibility and application requirements.
Who was eligible to apply?
Eligibility is described broadly as “Others,” with additional clarification deferred to Section III of the full solicitation. This is commonly used when a range of organization types may be eligible, subject to boundaries set in the full announcement.
Where would applicants find the definitive eligibility rules?
The definitive eligibility information was to be found in Section III of the full solicitation.
When was the opportunity posted and when did it close?
It was posted on May 19, 2015. The original closing date was July 2, 2015, and it was later extended to July 6, 2015.
When was the opportunity archived?
The listing indicates it was archived on August 1, 2015.
Where were the submission method and required forms specified?
The notice states that the submission methods, required forms, and due date specifics were contained in Section IV of the full announcement.
Who were the points of contact listed for this opportunity?
The listing provides a technical contact (Pasky Pascual), an eligibility contact (Ron Josephson), and an electronic submissions contact (Debra M. Jones), along with email and phone information.
Which contact should be used for technical questions about research fit?
The technical contact listed is Pasky Pascual.
Which contact should be used for questions about eligibility?
The eligibility contact listed is Ron Josephson.
Which contact should be used for electronic submission issues?
The electronic submissions contact listed is Debra M. Jones.
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