Pollution Prevention & Habitat Conservation and AIS Spread Prevention Grants

Deadline: 27-Oct-20

The Lake Champlain Basin Program, in cooperation with NEIWPCC, is pleased to announce the 2020 Local Implementation Grant programs on Pollution Prevention & Habitat Conservation and AIS Spread Prevention.

Purpose

This grant category supports projects with total budgeted costs up to S20,000. Projects may address any of the priorities identified in Opportunities for Action, such as:

Reducing non-point source inputs of phosphorus;
Reducing toxic substance inputs from urban and/or agricultural areas;
Improvement of wetland, riparian, or aquatic habitat (e.g., riparian plantings or aquatic organism passage projects) to restore and maintain a healthy and diverse fish and aquatic life community;
Implementation of flood resilience practices.

Funding Information

It includes the following groups of grants:

Pollution Prevention & Wildlife Habitat Conservation Grants (up to $20,000 per award);
Aquatic Invasive Species Spread Prevention Grants (up to $15,000 per award).

Eligibility Criteria

Local government entities including municipal boards, commissions, or committees;
Public or private schools or other educational institutions;
Natural Resource Conservation Districts (VT) and Soil and Water Conservation Districts (NY);
Organizations with 501(cX3) nonprofit corporation status, or citizen groups such as watershed or lake associations working in coordination with such an organization, that applies on their behalf and will manage the grant thuds;
Private businesses, individuals, and state government agencies may collaborate with one of the above groups but are not eligible to be the primary applicant under this grant program.

Selection Criteria

An external peer review committee will evaluate applications and make award recommendations to the Lake Champlain Steering Committee. The Lake Champlain Steering Committee will make all final decisions on project awards. Applications will be evaluated according to the following criteria:

(20 points) Demonstrate the need for this pollution prevention or habitat conservation project and identify where the project will be implemented (maps preferred).
(10 points) The extent to which the project addresses any of the applicable pollution prevention or habitat conservation priorities in Opportunities for Action (2017 edition).
(10 points) Describe, if applicable, how the project leverages existing programs and the extent to which you are collaborating with partners (identify partners and include letters of participation if applicable).
(15 points) Demonstrate clear and well thought out tasks (actions) that will achieve measurable pollution prevention or habitat conservation results (outputs and deliverables) outlined in your project goal summary.
(10 points) Inclusion of a detailed timeline explaining the tasks required to complete the pollution reduction or habitat conservation project, including appropriate permits, and reporting to LCBP.
(10 points) Provide justification for the project approach/methods proposed and how they will best achieve pollution reduction or habitat conservation. Include an explanation of your organization’s capacity to successfully complete the project.
(10 points) Explain how this project fits into a long-term management approach for pollution reduction or habitat conservation. Is the project identified in existing management plans? Please include information about any public-facing project informational signage or materials that include education and outreach about the project with the community.
(5 points) Incorporation of a long-term plan for the project beyond the life of the grant (e.g., a long-term maintenance plan for an implementation project).
(10 points) Appropriateness of task-based budget and budget justification, describing how the funds awarded will be used to produce the set of deliverables described.