Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS WY 14 0001
Apply for USDA NRCS WY 14 0001
- The California State Office in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "WY Conservation Innovation Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.912 Environmental Quality Incentives Program.
- This funding opportunity was created on Mar 7, 2014 and posted on Mar 7, 2014.
- Applicants must submit their applications by May 1, 2014. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $150,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $75,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized) Public and State controlled institutions of higher education Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education Special district governments County governments State governments Individuals City or township governments.
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Opportunity Summary:
The WY Conservation Innovation Program is a Wyoming-focused Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) funding opportunity run by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) under the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), CFDA 10.912. Its core purpose is to speed up the real-world adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies that improve environmental outcomes on working agricultural and forest lands, while still supporting productive operations. A key point is that CIG is not a research grant in the traditional sense; proposals that primarily test hypotheses or fund basic research are not eligible. Instead, NRCS is looking for projects that apply, demonstrate, adapt, and verify technologies or approaches that are already sufficiently proven and have a high likelihood of success, with an eye toward transferring the results into NRCS technical guidance (manuals, references, policy tools) or into broader private-sector use.
For FY 2014 in Wyoming, NRCS anticipated up to $150,000 total available funding, with about two expected awards. Individual awards were capped at $75,000, with a minimum award size listed at $10,000. Projects could run from one to three years. The funding instrument type is a cooperative agreement, and there is a cost-sharing or matching requirement, meaning recipients should be prepared to bring non-federal contributions to the table as part of the overall project budget and delivery plan.
Eligibility was broad and included federally recognized Tribal governments, state and local units of government (including counties, cities/townships, and special district governments), public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, qualifying nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) organizations), and even individuals. Applications had to come from Wyoming, and the project work needed to address Wyoming natural resource concerns using innovative conservation technologies, approaches, or both.
The competition used a structured, two-phase statewide process. First, applicants submitted a pre-proposal, which NRCS screened for completeness and compliance; incomplete submissions were removed from consideration. NRCS staff then evaluated eligible pre-proposals based on how well they demonstrated innovative technologies and/or approaches tied to the program’s priority topics. Only applicants selected at this pre-proposal stage were invited to submit a full proposal. Full proposals went through technical peer review using published evaluation criteria, then were forwarded to a Wyoming Review Board for recommendations, with final selection decisions made by the NRCS Wyoming State Conservationist.
The program defined “innovative conservation†in practical, implementation-oriented terms. Competitive projects were expected to cover development, demonstration, evaluation, implementation, and monitoring, and could involve conservation adoption approaches or incentive systems, promising conservation technologies or practices, and environmentally sound methods that protect and enhance natural resources. Strong proposals were expected to show compliance with all applicable federal, state, and local regulations; rely on proven or well-studied technologies; demonstrate environmental effectiveness and field usability (including affordability and practicality); adapt or improve existing conservation systems to drive adoption; introduce successful systems from other regions or sectors; and clearly show that knowledge and methods can be transferred and replicated beyond the pilot site.
Wyoming set eight priority natural resource concern areas for FY 2014, and proposals addressing multiple concerns were given priority. NRCS also highlighted “Market Based Approaches†as a favored direction, meaning projects that develop or test market-driven tools, institutional arrangements, incentive structures, or systems that encourage conservation while aligning with producer economics. The eight priority areas were: (1) Atmospheric Resources, including reducing particulates, odors, VOCs, and greenhouse gases; increasing carbon sequestration; improving air-quality practices at animal operations; and developing monitoring protocols. (2) Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy, including wind/solar/biofuels/micro-hydro, energy audits tied to resource concerns, improving on-farm energy efficiency through conservation practices, and monitoring protocols. (3) Forest Health, including approaches that maintain or restore forest productivity while improving water and air quality, plus monitoring protocols. (4) Grazing Land, including innovative ways to reduce pest and disease impacts on rangeland health and productivity and related monitoring. (5) Organic Agriculture, including continuous cover crops, specialty-crop conservation, lower energy use, soil health outcomes, carbon and nitrogen retention, and improved strategies for timing/rates/sources/methods of organically approved nutrients, along with harvesting techniques that protect quality and reduce pests. (6) Soil Resources, including preventing harmful buildup of nutrients/metals/salts, cropping systems that build soil health and sequester carbon, and erosion reduction in low-residue specialty crops. (7) Water Resources, including water-conserving cropping systems, aquifer recharge and groundwater maintenance, irrigation management, reducing nutrient/pesticide/pathogen transport, salinity or selenium reduction, and sediment transport reduction. (8) Wetlands and Wildlife Habitat, including habitat development for at-risk species on working lands, incentive systems balancing production and species protection, pollinator protection, riparian management and restoration, and monitoring.
Key FY 2014 deadlines were anchored to the two-phase process. Pre-proposals were due by 4:00 p.m. on May 1, 2014. NRCS planned to announce which pre-proposals were selected by May 21, 2014. Invited full proposals were then due by 4:00 p.m. on July 21, 2014. Applications could be submitted via Grants.gov, by email to grant.stumbough@wy.usda.gov, or by mail/courier to NRCS in Casper, Wyoming (with separate addresses for overnight courier versus U.S. Postal Service). The main program contact listed was Grant Stumbough, NRCS Programs Specialist, at (307) 233-6760 and grant.stumbough@wy.usda.gov.
WY Conservation Innovation Program (CIG/EQIP, CFDA 10.912) - FAQs
What is the WY Conservation Innovation Program?
The WY Conservation Innovation Program is a Wyoming-focused Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) funding opportunity run by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) under the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), CFDA 10.912. Its purpose is to accelerate real-world adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies on working agricultural and forest lands in Wyoming while supporting productive operations.
What is the main goal of this grant program?
The core goal is to speed up the adoption of conservation innovations that improve environmental outcomes on working lands. NRCS is looking for projects that can be applied, demonstrated, adapted, and verified in real settings, with results that can be transferred into NRCS technical guidance (manuals, references, policy tools) and/or used more broadly in the private sector.
Is this a research grant?
No. CIG is not a research grant in the traditional sense. Proposals that primarily test hypotheses or fund basic research are not eligible under this opportunity.
What kinds of projects are eligible under this opportunity?
Projects should focus on applying, demonstrating, adapting, and verifying conservation technologies or approaches that are already sufficiently proven and have a high likelihood of success. Competitive projects were expected to include practical elements such as development, demonstration, evaluation, implementation, and monitoring.
What does NRCS mean by "innovative conservation" for this program?
For this opportunity, "innovative conservation" is defined in practical, implementation-oriented terms. Projects may include conservation adoption approaches or incentive systems, promising conservation technologies or practices, and environmentally sound methods that protect and enhance natural resources, with an emphasis on field usability and replicability.
What types of projects are not eligible?
Projects that primarily test hypotheses or support basic research (i.e., research grants in the traditional sense) are not eligible. NRCS is focused on implementation and adoption of already proven or well-studied approaches rather than fundamental research.
How much funding was available for FY 2014 in Wyoming?
For FY 2014 in Wyoming, NRCS anticipated up to $150,000 in total funding, with approximately two expected awards.
What was the minimum and maximum award size?
Individual awards were capped at $75,000, and the minimum award size listed was $10,000.
How long could projects run?
Projects could run from one to three years.
What type of funding instrument was used?
The funding instrument type for this opportunity was a cooperative agreement.
Is there a cost-share or matching requirement?
Yes. This opportunity included a cost-sharing or matching requirement, meaning recipients should be prepared to contribute non-federal resources as part of the overall project budget and delivery plan.
Who was eligible to apply?
Eligibility included federally recognized Tribal governments; state and local units of government (including counties, cities/townships, and special district governments); public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; qualifying nonprofits (including 501(c)(3) organizations); and individuals.
Did the application have to be Wyoming-based?
Yes. Applications had to come from Wyoming, and the project work needed to address Wyoming natural resource concerns using innovative conservation technologies, approaches, or both.
How were applications reviewed and selected?
The competition used a structured, two-phase statewide process. Applicants first submitted a pre-proposal that NRCS screened for completeness and compliance; incomplete submissions were removed. NRCS staff evaluated eligible pre-proposals based on innovation and alignment with priority topics. Only selected applicants were invited to submit a full proposal. Full proposals were reviewed through technical peer review using published evaluation criteria, then forwarded to a Wyoming Review Board for recommendations, with final selection decisions made by the NRCS Wyoming State Conservationist.
What happens if my pre-proposal is incomplete?
NRCS screened pre-proposals for completeness and compliance, and incomplete submissions were removed from consideration.
Do I need to be invited to submit a full proposal?
Yes. Only applicants selected at the pre-proposal stage were invited to submit a full proposal.
Who made the final funding decision?
The final selection decisions were made by the NRCS Wyoming State Conservationist, after technical peer review and recommendations from a Wyoming Review Board.
What were Wyoming's priority natural resource concern areas for FY 2014?
Wyoming set eight priority areas: (1) Atmospheric Resources, (2) Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy, (3) Forest Health, (4) Grazing Land, (5) Organic Agriculture, (6) Soil Resources, (7) Water Resources, and (8) Wetlands and Wildlife Habitat.
Were proposals addressing multiple priority areas favored?
Yes. Proposals addressing multiple natural resource concerns were given priority.
What are "Market Based Approaches" in the context of this opportunity?
NRCS highlighted "Market Based Approaches" as a favored direction. These are projects that develop or test market-driven tools, institutional arrangements, incentive structures, or systems that encourage conservation while aligning with producer economics.
What types of activities were included under the Atmospheric Resources priority?
Examples included reducing particulates, odors, VOCs, and greenhouse gases; increasing carbon sequestration; improving air-quality practices at animal operations; and developing monitoring protocols.
What types of activities were included under the Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy priority?
Examples included wind/solar/biofuels/micro-hydro; energy audits tied to resource concerns; improving on-farm energy efficiency through conservation practices; and monitoring protocols.
What types of activities were included under the Forest Health priority?
Examples included approaches that maintain or restore forest productivity while improving water and air quality, plus monitoring protocols.
What types of activities were included under the Grazing Land priority?
Examples included innovative ways to reduce pest and disease impacts on rangeland health and productivity and related monitoring.
What types of activities were included under the Organic Agriculture priority?
Examples included continuous cover crops; specialty-crop conservation; lower energy use; soil health outcomes; carbon and nitrogen retention; improved strategies for timing/rates/sources/methods of organically approved nutrients; and harvesting techniques that protect quality and reduce pests.
What types of activities were included under the Soil Resources priority?
Examples included preventing harmful buildup of nutrients/metals/salts; cropping systems that build soil health and sequester carbon; and erosion reduction in low-residue specialty crops.
What types of activities were included under the Water Resources priority?
Examples included water-conserving cropping systems; aquifer recharge and groundwater maintenance; irrigation management; reducing nutrient/pesticide/pathogen transport; salinity or selenium reduction; and sediment transport reduction.
What types of activities were included under the Wetlands and Wildlife Habitat priority?
Examples included habitat development for at-risk species on working lands; incentive systems balancing production and species protection; pollinator protection; riparian management and restoration; and monitoring.
What qualities did NRCS expect strong proposals to demonstrate?
Strong proposals were expected to show compliance with applicable federal, state, and local regulations; rely on proven or well-studied technologies; demonstrate environmental effectiveness and field usability (including affordability and practicality); adapt or improve existing conservation systems to drive adoption; introduce successful systems from other regions or sectors; and show that knowledge and methods can be transferred and replicated beyond the pilot site.
What were the key FY 2014 deadlines?
Pre-proposals were due by 4:00 p.m. on May 1, 2014. NRCS planned to announce selected pre-proposals by May 21, 2014. Invited full proposals were due by 4:00 p.m. on July 21, 2014.
How could applications be submitted?
Applications could be submitted via Grants.gov, by email to grant.stumbough@wy.usda.gov, or by mail/courier to NRCS in Casper, Wyoming (with separate addresses for overnight courier versus U.S. Postal Service).
Who is the main contact for this opportunity?
The main program contact listed was Grant Stumbough, NRCS Programs Specialist, at (307) 233-6760 and grant.stumbough@wy.usda.gov.
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