Deadline: 07-Feb-2025
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service (USDA) is open for entries for its Aquatic and Watershed Restoration Program.
USDA Forest Service is looking to address aquatic and watershed restoration needs and empower local communities and partners to assist with implementation of activities. Partnerships will help to address restoration needs through projects that support watershed restoration to improve water quality, improve aquatic organism passage, or improve efficiencies for aquatic restoration activities on lands managed by USDA Forest Service. The agency seeks to actively involve both new and current partners in restoration efforts.
Objective
- This outreach of interest (OOI) functions as an outreach mechanism to cultivate relationships and connect with potential partners. This OOI is intended to solicit responses to explore future projects meeting the needs and interests of potential partners through partnership agreements within legislative authority with USDA Forest Service.
Priorities
- USDA Forest Service is interested in the following areas/efforts:
- Improve fish and aquatic organism passage (Stream Simulation Guidance) and migration connectivity.
- Improve water quality and quantity; utilize the Watershed Condition Framework to guide watershed restoration.
- Aquatic and watershed restoration to assist with the Wildfire Crisis Strategy (Wildfire Crisis Implementation Plan).
- Restoring climate resilient landscapes; aquatic organism passage, road decommissioning, floodplain restoration, and low tech processed-based restoration all are important climate adaptation measures to improve watershed resilience, ecological integrity and transportation infrastructure resilience (USFS Climate Adaptation Plan).
- Support the conservation of native aquatic species.
- Support, benefit, or engage communities that are historically underserved, marginalized, and adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality (pursuant to Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government).
Eligible Activities
- Aquatic Organism Passage (AOP) Restoration
- Stream Simulation Culvert and Bridge Projects
- Irrigation Diversion Replacement or Relocation and Screen Installation or Replacement
- Stream and Habitat Restoration
- Large Wood (LW), Boulder, and Gravel Placement
- Large Wood and Boulder Projects
- Porous Boulder Weirs and Vanes
- Engineered Log Jams (ELJ)
- Constructed Riffles
- Gravel Augmentation
- Tree Removal for Large Wood (LW) Projects
- Legacy Structure Removal
- Off- and Side-Channel Habitat Restoration
- Streambank and Floodplain Restoration
- Set-back or Removal of Existing Berms, Dikes, and Levees
- Reduction/Relocation of Recreation Impacts
- Livestock Fencing, Stream Crossings, and Off-Channel Livestock Watering
- Road and Trail Erosion Control and Decommissioning:
- Riparian Vegetative Planting
- Beaver Habitat Restoration
- Removal or mitigation of aquatic invasive species
- Large Wood (LW), Boulder, and Gravel Placement
Duration
- Awards under this announcement are typically 1 to 5 years in length. Projects of greater complexity may be awarded for a longer period, not to exceed 5 years.
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible responders include for profit; non-profits; institutions of higher education; federal, state, local, and Native American tribal governments; organizations and special purpose districts (public utility districts, fire districts, conservation districts, school districts, and ports.)
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
