Deadline: 13-Jan-22
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, is seeking applications proposing research to develop cost-benefit tools to support Enhanced Aquifer Recharge (EAR) as a viable, safe, and cost-effective water management strategy.
Research Areas
The proposed project should address the following research areas:
- Research Area 1: Identification of Priority Research and Development Needs to Support EAR
- Literature review:
- Summarize available methodologies for quantifying costs and benefits of different water management and supply options.
- Identify and characterize costs and treatment needs associated with different methods of EAR such as injection and spreading grounds using sources of water and different hydrological settings.
- Identify costs associated with EAR conveyance and treatment needs to protect groundwater quality. This can include both conveyance to a treatment facility before injection / infiltration as well as conveyance to an injection or infiltration site.
- Summarize methods for quantifying full life-cycle costs and benefits of EAR, taking into account energy costs and other environmental costs and benefits.
- Evaluate and summarize regulatory and organizational/institutional approaches and issues associated with EAR in the U.S.
- Evaluate and summarize the state of understanding of geochemical and physical considerations for EAR.
- EAR Stakeholder/Proponent Engagement Design and implement a process to engage water managers, EAR stakeholders, including tribes, and project proponents to identify the highest research priorities and frameworks for EAR implementation.
- Based on the literature review and EAR stakeholder/proponent engagement, develop a research framework for identified data gaps.
- Literature review:
- Research Area 2: Development of Tools, Models, and Frameworks to Support EAR Implementation
- Develop methods for addressing priority needs identified under Research Area 1, including, for example, economic models, and / or life-cycle cost frameworks to assist in planning and comparing / contrasting different EAR operations in different settings, including varying source water quality, subsurface conditions, impacts to the receiving aquifer, recharge rates, operation and maintenance, and end-uses.
- Develop tools to help water resource managers identify and implement planning strategies and best management practices for EAR to address the following end user goals to ultimately provide secure and clean sources of drinking water. Examples may include:
- Clean drinking water
- Municipal water supply
- Saline water intrusion barriers
- Ecological restoration
- Other end user goals that supply water for non-potable uses to conserve other sources and help ensure access to drinking water such as:
- Agri cultural or landscape irrigation
- Livestock water
- Indu strialuses
- Develop relevant cost and benefit tools that include different drivers and co-benefits of EAR. Examples may include:
- Water supply augmentation and resiliency
- Potential impacts to groundwater quality
- Protection of existing water supplies (eg, through a saline water intrusion barrier)
- Management of stormwater and / or wastewater discharges and associated water quality benefits
- Co-benefits of multiple benefit project approaches
- Energy use and greenhouse gas emissions
- Aquifer recharge credits
- Case Studies: The development of tools should incorporate the use of case studies to validate the research approach and demonstrate how the tools can be used by utilities and other regional water management entities in a practical scenario.
Funding Information
It is anticipated that a total of approximately $ 2,000,000 will be awarded under this announcement, depending on the availability of funds, quality of applications received and other applicable considerations. The EPA anticipates funding approximately one award under this RFA. Requests for amounts in excess of a total of $ 2,000,000, including direct and indirect costs, will not be considered. The total project period requested in an application submitted for this RFA may not exceed 3 years.
Outputs: Outputs expected from the award under this solicitation may include publications of research results in peer-reviewed journals, guidance documents, decision support tools, models, demonstrations and case studies, reports, and presentations related to EAR analysis and strategies.
Outcomes
The expected outcomes from the award include an improved understanding of the life-cycle analysis of EAR so that state, local and other decision-makers understand the costs and benefits of pursuing EAR strategies. The economic models and / or life-cycle cost frameworks, planning strategies, and best management practices developed under this award should:
- Empow er decision-makers to make informed water management decisions that incorporate the environmental and social costs and benefits of different EAR applications.
- Include climate change considerations, such as atmospheric influences on groundwater levels and how changes in surface temperature can impact groundwater chemistry and water quality.
- Enable adaptive decision-making to account for how increasing demand will combine with decreased supply exacerbated by drier and warmer climate patterns.
Eligibility Criteria
- Public and private nonprofit institutions / organizations, public and private institutions of higher education (IHEs), and hospitals located in the US and its territories or possessions; state and local governments; Federally Recognized Indian Tribal Governments; and US territories or possessions are eligible to apply. Profit-making firms and individuals are not eligible to apply.
- Non-profit organization, means any corporation, trust, association, cooperative or other organization, not including IHEs, that:
- is operated primarily for scientific, educational, service, charitable or similar purposes in the public interest;
- is not organized primarily for profit; and
- uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the operations of the organization.
- While not considered to be a non-profit organization (s), public or nonprofit Institutions of Higher Education are, nevertheless, eligible to submit applications under this RFA. Hospitals operated by state, tribal, or local governments or that meet the definition of nonprofit are also eligible to apply as nonprofits or as instrumentalities of the unit of government depending on the applicable law. For-profit colleges, universities, trade schools, and hospitals are ineligible. Nonprofit organizations described in Section 501 (c) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code that lobby are not eligible to apply.
- Foreign governments, international organizations, and non-governmental international organizations / institutions are not eligible to apply.
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=336302