Deadline: 1-Jul-24
The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is announcing the availability of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) State Program funding to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies.
The purpose of CIG is to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies in conjunction with agricultural production in the United States and its territories. CIG projects are expected to lead to the transfer of conservation technologies, management systems, and innovative approaches (such as market-based systems) to agricultural producers, into government technical manuals and guides, or to the private sector. CIG generally funds pilot projects, field demonstrations, and on-farm conservation research. On-farm conservation research is defined as an investigation conducted to answer a specific applied conservation question using a statistically valid design while employing farm-scale equipment on farms, ranches or private forest lands.
The goals and objectives of this program align with the USDA Strategic Plan listed below.
- Use climate-smart management and sound science to enhance the health and productivity of agricultural lands.
- Restore, protect, and conserve watersheds to ensure clean, abundant, and continuous provision of water resources.
- Build resilient food systems, infrastructure, and supply chain.
- Foster agricultural innovation.
CIG Priorities
- Urban and Small Farm Agriculture Conservation
- Food security and knowledge of where food is produced has become an increasing concern, particularly in urban environments. Urban and small farm agriculture has dramatically increased over the years and represents a new customer eligible for conservation technical and financial assistance. The nine-step planning process for planning, developing, implementing, and evaluating individual conservation plans. The plans are used by agriculture and forest producers to protect, conserve, and enhance natural resources within a social and economic perspective. The conservation planning process includes using tools to measure benchmark conditions and address resource concerns in diverse operations and includes urban and community agriculture systems. These tools were developed for application over a large-scale area and may be challenging to apply in the smaller setting commonly found within the urban and small farm agriculture environment.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Expand tools and support for training and technical assistance in urban and small-scale agriculture.
- Provide new tools or methods to aid in urban conservation planning for inventorying and analyzing resource concerns.
- Provide innovative technologies to promote, coordinate, plan and implement urban conservation.
- Promote urban and community agriculture and conservation systems, especially in underserved communities.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Food security and knowledge of where food is produced has become an increasing concern, particularly in urban environments. Urban and small farm agriculture has dramatically increased over the years and represents a new customer eligible for conservation technical and financial assistance. The nine-step planning process for planning, developing, implementing, and evaluating individual conservation plans. The plans are used by agriculture and forest producers to protect, conserve, and enhance natural resources within a social and economic perspective. The conservation planning process includes using tools to measure benchmark conditions and address resource concerns in diverse operations and includes urban and community agriculture systems. These tools were developed for application over a large-scale area and may be challenging to apply in the smaller setting commonly found within the urban and small farm agriculture environment.
- Innovation in agricultural systems, technology, testing, outreach, and partnerships for the Broad-Scale Application of Climate Smart Agriculture.
- Climate smart agriculture conservation practices have documented environmental benefits but also have economical and working lands productivity benefits.
- Examples of topics in which priority will be given are those that:
- Demonstrate innovative use of climate smart conservation practices.
- Develop tools to streamline soil health and climate assessments and monitoring.
- Develop, demonstrate and promote design and implementation of climate smart management systems documenting the ability of conservation practices to sequester carbon, economic viability and effect on soil functions.
- Innovative approach for adopting climate smart practices in arid environments.
- Develop innovative approach for adopting climate smart practices that enhance “effective precipitation” usage by native plant communities of an area total precipitation.
- Demonstrate climate smart principles that maintain cooler soil surface temperatures.
- Demonstrate climate smart principles that regulate Relative Humidity changes and extremes.
- Demonstrate climate smart principles that decrease soil moisture loss to surface evaporation.
- Develop conservation practice and methods to increase (pollen, spores) condensation nuclei particles in air.
- Examples of topics in which priority will be given are those that:
- Climate smart agriculture conservation practices have documented environmental benefits but also have economical and working lands productivity benefits.
- Innovation in natural resource assessment leading to improved conservation planning and application efficiency.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Provide new tools or methods to aid in conservation planning inventory and assessments of soil, water, air, plants, animals, and energy resource concerns.
- Formulate new methods to develop solutions for addressing resource concerns and assist with conservation planning and implementation in emerging agricultural opportunities.
- Assist with evaluating the success of conservation practice implementation.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Coastal conservation and aquaculture.
- Coastal ecosystems include many different types of habitats and provide both direct and indirect ecosystem services for humans, such as nutrient cycling, water filtration, carbon sequestration, erosion buffers and fish and wildlife habitat. These ecosystems are vulnerable to various natural disturbances. When these ecosystems are damaged or destroyed there can be serious consequences for the marine and upland species that depend upon these ecosystems.
- Aquaculture is the production of aquatic organisms under controlled or semi-controlled conditions throughout part or all their lifecycle. U.S. aquaculture production is growing because demands for healthy seafood products are increasing. The Texas aquaculture industry is a major player in the U.S. aquaculture production sector. Texas aquaculture has recently been authorized to include native oysters as a potential livestock for production. Aquaculture producers as well as NRCS conservationist are not as closely connected as other agricultural industries or agricultural ecosystems.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Develop, demonstrate, and promote innovative conservation practices benefiting coastal resiliency. Document the practice or practices’ ability to develop and/or improve fish and wildlife habitat, water quality improvements, erosion control and storm resiliency.
- Connect public agencies to develop a solution-oriented strategy for broadscale design and installation of living shorelines.
- Develop Innovative use of conservation practices to design and install living shorelines.
- Develop innovative use of conservation practices to design and install aquaculture production systems.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Social Science to implement watershed scale conservation buffer program in Texas Conservation buffers have been proven to be an effective practice in treating erosion, improving water quality, and providing wildlife habitat. Although these practices have proven success, most agriculture producers do not adopt these practices. More information and/or tools are needed to understand why buffers are not being adopted and how NRCS can have success in getting producers to adopt these practices.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
- Develop innovative use of practices that include conservation buffer installation in natural settings for various resource concerns and human concerns.
- Example of topics which Priority will be given are those that:
Funding Information
- Estimated Funding: NRCS Texas expects to award approximately $1,000,000 through this opportunity. However, the agency retains the discretion to award a larger or lesser amount.
- Award Ceiling: $300,000
- Award Floor: $50,000
- Start Dates and Performance Periods: Projects may be between one and three years in duration. Applicants should plan their projects based on an estimated project start date of September 30, 2024.
- Number of Awards: The agency expects to make 6 awards.
Innovative Conservation Projects or Activities
- CIG funds the development and field testing, on-farm research and demonstration, evaluation, or implementation of:
- Innovative approaches to incentivizing conservation adoption, including market-based and conservation finance approaches; and
- Innovative conservation technologies, practices, and systems.
- Projects or activities under CIG must comply with all applicable federal, tribal, state, and local laws and regulations throughout the duration of the project; and
- Use a technology or approach that was studied sufficiently to indicate a high probability for success;
- Demonstrate, evaluate, and verify the effectiveness, utility, affordability, and usability of natural resource conservation technologies and approaches in the field;
- Adapt and transfer conservation technologies, management, practices, systems, approaches, and incentive systems to improve performance and encourage adoption;
- Introduce proven conservation technologies and approaches to a geographic area or agricultural sector where that technology or approach is not currently in use.
- Technologies and approaches that are eligible for funding in a project’s geographic area using an EQIP contract for an established conservation practice standard are ineligible for CIG funding, except where the use of those technologies and approaches demonstrates clear innovation.
Eligibility Criteria
- Applicants and applications must meet eligibility criteria by the application deadline to be considered for award. Eligible applicant type is determined by the implementing program statute. Applicant entities identified in the SAM.gov exclusions database as ineligible, prohibited/restricted, or excluded from receiving Federal contracts and certain Federal assistance and benefits will not be considered for Federal funding, as applicable to the funding being requested under this Federal program (2 CFR 200.206(d)).
- All U.S. non-Foreign, non-Federal entities and individuals are eligible to apply for projects carried out in Texas. US Federal agencies are not eligible to apply to this opportunity or impart their work to non-federal portion of the budget.
- Individuals that are business owner/operators cannot apply as individuals.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
