Deadline: 5-Feb-21
The Community Foundation of Western Nevada is accepting proposals for grants from the Truckee River Fund. Proposals will be considered by the Truckee River Fund Advisory Committee and grant recommendations must be approved both by the TMWA Board and the Board of Trustees of the Community Foundation.
The mission of the Truckee River Fund is to protect and enhance water quality or water resources of the Truckee River or its watershed. To be considered for funding, project proposals must demonstrate measurable impact in accordance with this mission.
Grant Priorities
TMWA recommends that the Advisors give preference to well-prepared and thought out grant requests for projects and programs that mitigate substantial threats to water quality and the watershed, particularly those threats upstream or nearby treatment and hydroelectric plant intakes:
- Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS): Projects/Programs that support the prevention or control of aquatic invasive species in the mainstream Truckee River, Lake Tahoe, other tributaries and water bodies in the Truckee River system.
- Watershed Improvements: Projects that reduce erosion or sediment, suspended solids, or TDS discharges to the River. Projects or programs that are located within 303d (impaired waters) sections of the River should be considered, both in California and Nevada. Innovative techniques should be encouraged.
- Local Stormwater Improvements: Projects that are well designed mitigate stormwater run-off due to urbanization of the local watershed. Priority should be given to those improvement projects in close proximity to TMWA’s water supply intakes and canals and which will improve the reliability and protect the quality of the community’s municipal water supply.
- Re-Forestation and Re-Vegetation Projects: Projects to restore forest and upland areas damaged by fire and historical logging operations, and to improve watershed resiliency in drought situations. Projects/programs in this category should be given a high priority due to urbanization of the watershed and increased susceptibility of the urban and suburban watershed to wildfire.
- Support to Rehabilitation of Local Tributary Creeks and Drainage Courses: Practical projects to support water quality improvement in Gray Creek, Bronco Creek, Mogul Creek, Chalk Creek, Steamboat Creek and the North Truckee Drain.
- Stewardship and Environmental Awareness: Support to Clean-Up programs and the development and implementation of educational programs relative to water, water quality and watershed protection.
- Meet Multiple Objectives: Projects/Programs should identify opportunities to meet multiple water quality and watershed objectives as outlined above with preference given to those achieving multiple benefits. VIII. Leverage Stakeholder Assets and Participation: Projects/Program selection should include an assessment of various stakeholder interests in all aspects of river water quality, watershed protection, source water protection and species enhancement thereby leveraging available funds and other assets.
Eligibility Criteria
- Applicants must be registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit agencies, nonprofit educational institutions, or governmental entities.
Grantee Requirements
To be eligible for funding, grantees must adhere to the following requirements:
- Funds are to be used and/or disbursed exclusively for charitable uses and purposes.
- The Fund shall be used exclusively for projects that protect and enhance water quality or water resources of the Truckee River, or its watershed.
- The Charitable Beneficiaries may include 501(c)(3) organizations and governmental entities. Any grants to governmental entities must be made exclusively for public benefit purposes.
- All grantees will be required to sign a grant agreement stipulating their agreement with all of the terms, conditions, and reporting requirements.
- Organizations or entities sponsoring proposals are prohibited from ex parte communications regarding such proposals with members of the Truckee River Fund Advisory Committee while such proposals are pending before the Committee, and such communications may be grounds for rejecting a proposal.
- To maintain eligibility to receive grant funds, each Charitable Beneficiary must comply at all times with the following requirements:
- Charitable Beneficiaries must be exempt from federal income taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Code;
- Charitable Beneficiaries shall use all Fund distributions toward projects that are appropriate and legal public expenditures;
- Charitable Beneficiaries must provide financial details and/or reports of their organizations upon request;
- Charitable Beneficiaries must not use any Fund distributions for political contributions or political advocacy;
- Charitable Beneficiaries must either implement the projects, activities, and/or programs for which they received Fund distributions within six months of the date in which such distributions are received or by date(s) as agreed upon in the grant acceptance agreement, or must return all such distributions to the Community Foundation forthwith;
- Charitable Beneficiaries must provide the Community Foundation a report detailing the completion of their projects, activities, and/or programs; and
- Charitable Beneficiaries must sign an agreement regarding their compliance with the qualifications hereof.
Project Evaluation
Each proposal will be evaluated on criteria that include but are not limited to:
- Measurable outcomes in accordance with stated grant priorities.
- Readiness of sponsoring organization to undertake and complete project.
- Consistency with established Truckee River operations.
- Impact on other River stakeholders.
- Absence of negative or unintended consequences.
- Solutions to known problems as identified through past research.
- Prior performance on grants from the Truckee River Fund. The Nature Conservancy and Truckee River Watershed Council have conducted assessments of the Truckee River and the Donner Lake watersheds and have presented their findings to the Truckee River Fund advisory committee. The results of these assessments may influence the advisors’ decision-making during proposal review.
For more information, visit https://nevadafund.org/nonprofits/request-for-proposals/