Support for Technical Report Preparation and Scoping | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

This grant opportunity, titled Support for Technical Report Preparation and Scoping, was a Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) discretionary grant focused on helping the federal government produce consistent, defensible technical documentation for the Secretary of the Interior's decision-making process in the Klamath River Basin. The underlying context is a long-running, high-stakes conflict over limited water supplies and fisheries restoration in the basin, involving tribes, farmers, fishermen, conservation groups, and multiple state and federal agencies. Since 2003, the United States has invested more than $500 million in Klamath-related efforts including irrigation support, fisheries initiatives, wildlife refuge work, and other resource management actions. At the same time, PacifiCorp (owner of the Klamath River Hydroelectric Project) had pursued hydropower relicensing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), but later entered an agreement in principle with interested parties to consider removal of the lower four hydroelectric dams. That potential dam removal created a need for rigorous scientific and policy documentation to support what is called the Secretarial Determination (SD), the formal decision by the Secretary of the Interior on whether dam removal would advance salmonid fisheries restoration and serve the public interest.

The core purpose of the funded work was not to conduct new field projects, but to strengthen the technical and policy record supporting the SD and related National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents. The SD process required the best available scientific evidence, including biological information and modeling, to estimate the long-term (50-year) outcomes of two alternatives: managing the dams by removing them or retaining them. The time horizon referenced begins in 2020 and runs for 50 years, meaning the analysis needed to look well beyond short-term construction or operational impacts and instead consider long-run fisheries and ecosystem outcomes. Because multiple agencies and bureaus were involved, a major concern was making sure the various documents did not contradict each other or present misaligned policy positions that could undermine credibility, invite legal vulnerability, or weaken the Secretary's ability to rely on the record.

The work was organized into three specific tasks. Task 1 required a technical report review of SD-related documents to ensure technical and policy consistency, first within the Department of the Interior (DOI) and then between DOI and the Department of Commerce (DOC). This reflects the reality that fisheries science and policy responsibilities often cut across Interior bureaus (including FWS) and Commerce entities (notably NOAA Fisheries), and inconsistencies between them can become a major problem during interagency review or litigation. Task 2 required producing a written report that summarized findings from the review and clearly identified any inconsistencies in positions, both within bureaus and across departments. Task 3 required assisting in drafting language to resolve those inconsistencies, essentially helping agencies align terminology, assumptions, conclusions, and stated policy positions so that the SD and NEPA materials read as a coherent and defensible set of documents.

The expected products were straightforward: a consistency review of technical documents used by DOI and DOC, followed by a report documenting the findings, including any cross-bureau or cross-department inconsistencies, along with support to craft revised language that would reconcile those differences. The announcement explicitly emphasized that this work would help ensure SD and NEPA documents were defensible and internally consistent, underscoring that the deliverable was meant to improve the quality and integrity of the administrative record supporting the Secretary's decision.

The work schedule was aggressive and tied to fiscal year 2010 milestones: Task 1 was due July 30, 2010; Task 2 was due August 31, 2010; and Task 3 was due September 30, 2010. The announcement noted that if SD milestones slipped, the effort could extend into FY2011, and that a separate statement of work and funding estimate would be developed if additional work was needed. The overall performance period listed in the opportunity ran from signature through June 30, 2011, which provided flexibility in case the broader SD process encountered delays.

Administratively, this was posted as a notice of intent rather than an open competition. The opportunity had already been awarded to Kearns West under a "Unique Qualifications" authority (505 DM 2.14(4)), and the notice stated that no other applications would be reviewed. The award amount was fixed, with an award floor and ceiling both set at $32,200, and there was no cost-sharing or matching requirement. The funding instrument type was a grant, the activity category was Science and Technology and other Research and Development, and it was associated with CFDA 15.608 (Fish and Wildlife Management Assistance). The posting date and creation date were both July 19, 2010. A contact was provided for access issues: Misty Bradford, Cooperative Agreements Assistant, at 530-842-5763.

In practical terms, the opportunity funded expert support to help the federal government speak with one voice across technical and policy documents at a pivotal moment for the Klamath Basin. By focusing on document review, discrepancy identification, and careful drafting to reconcile differences, the grant aimed to reduce internal contradictions and strengthen the scientific and policy basis the Secretary of the Interior would rely on when deciding whether removing the four dams would improve salmonid restoration outcomes and serve the broader public interest.

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