Request for Proposals: Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley Restoration Fund (US)

Deadline: 6-Apr-23

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) is inviting proposals for the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley Restoration Fund to restore, enhance and maintain bottomland hardwood forests and wetlands, implement conservation practices on working agricultural lands to improve soil health and water quality, and promote aquatic connectivity on private and public lands to improve wildlife habitat and water quality.

Major funding is provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, International Paper’s Forestland Stewards Partnership, the Walton Family Foundation, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Approximately $1.4 million is anticipated to be available for grants in 2023.

Priorities

• The Fund is guided by NFWF’s Business Plan for Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley, which identifies seven strategic priorities to restore and enhance bottomland hardwood wetlands and aquatic habitats. Goals for two species are currently outlined in the business plan: Louisiana black bear (Ursus americanus luteolus) and swamp rabbit (Sylvilagus aquaticus). These species were selected as indicators of healthy bottomland hardwood forests and represent the habitat needs of a broader suite of species dependent upon this system. Additional species that are indicators of healthy bottomland hardwood wetlands and improved aquatic connectivity are under consideration for inclusion in the business plan in the future, including: forest birds, waterfowl and freshwater fish. Projects should seek to benefit at least one of these species or groups. Proposals should also demonstrate how project activities will advance specific goals and objectives of other relevant conservation plans.
• In pursuit of habitat and species restoration goals, applicants are encouraged to prioritize projects that also address co-benefits and engage local communities and historically underserved landowners as outlined below:
  • Conservation Co-Benefits: Projects that will implement habitat restoration or improvement practices that benefit wildlife while also sequestering carbon and/or protecting and improving water quantity or quality are encouraged. Note, there is strong funder interest in tree planting projects. Applicants should reach out to program staff prior to submitting a proposal to discuss projects that will address carbon and water outcomes. Note: NFWF intends to calculate the estimated carbon benefits associated with any given project. These calculations will not be used for carbon credits, but rather for narrative and demonstration of the potential carbon value of any project and conservation practice(s) supported through this program.
  • Community Impact and Engagement: Projects that incorporate outreach to communities, foster community engagement, and pursue collaborative management leading to measurable conservation benefits are encouraged. When possible, projects should be developed through community input and co-design processes ensuring traditional knowledge elevation. Additionally, projects should engage community-level partners (e.g., municipalities, NGOs, community organizations, community leaders, tribes) to help design, implement, and maintain projects to secure maximum benefits for communities, maintenance, and sustainability post-grant award.
• Funding Strategies: Projects should seek to implement one or more of the following strategies to address program habitat priorities and populations of at-risk, listed and other wildlife species, with preference given to projects that benefit the Louisiana black bear, swamp rabbit, forest birds, waterfowl and/or freshwater fish.
  • Bottomland Hardwood Forest Enhancement and Maintenance: Promote and implement the management and enhancement of existing bottomland hardwood forests to improve wildlife habitat and water quality. Applicants are encouraged to include lands enrolled in the NRCS Wetland Reserve Program (WRP) or Agricultural Conservation Easement Program – Wetland Reserve Easements (WRE).
  • Restore, Wetland and Floodplain Hydrology: Improve water quality, natural hydrological function, and wildlife habitat through implementation of practices including, but not limited to, connecting wetlands and water features between adjacent properties, improving wetland habitat and function through vegetation management, managing for moist soil plants, and installation of low-maintenance water control structures, such as flashboard risers, for water management capability.
  • Implement Conservation Practices on Working Agricultural Lands: Reduce runoff and sedimentation, improve soil health, and enhance wildlife habitat through the implementation of conservation practices on working agricultural lands, including, but not limited to, rerouting agricultural runoff to constructed or restored wetlands, rehabilitating or stabilizing ditches and/or gullies, integrating cover crops, no-till, conservation crop rotation, and establishing buffer strips.
  • Bottomland Hardwood Forest Restoration (Planting): Restore bottomland hardwood forests in targeted areas that expand existing bottomland hardwood forests and create corridors between existing blocks of bottomland hardwood forest to promote wildlife dispersal and expansion. For the purposes of the Fund, “restoration” refers to the establishment of new bottomland hardwood forests, including reforestation of harvested sites and afforestation of cropland. Specific strategies may include:
    • Bottomland Hardwood Plantings: Establish new bottomland hardwood stands on public and private lands include site preparation and planting of bottomland hardwood seedlings, including residual stocking/plantings within existing stands.
    • Natural Regeneration: Implement practices that promote natural regeneration of bottomland hardwood forests.
    • Addressing Barriers to Reforestation: Implement strategies that increase seedling availability and address other potential barriers to bottomland hardwood reforestation, including but not limited to, seed collection and storage and expanding seedling nursery capacity. Applicants requesting funds to address reforestation barriers should contact NFWF staff prior to submitting.
  • Target Outreach, Education and Assistance to Private Landowners, Forest Practitioners and Other Key Constituencies: NFWF seeks to invest in strategies to expand engagement with willing landowners and producers, and knowledgeable practitioners, and increase landowner and producer adoption of conservation practices, including enrollment in Farm Bill programs. The Fund desires to support projects that include outreach and technical assistance to, and enhanced participation of minority and underserved landowners and producers, including USDA’s historically underserved farmers and ranchers. Projects that address landowner barriers to participation in forestry and conservation programs, such as heirs’ property title issues, will be considered.
    • Outreach, Education and Technical Assistance: Strategies may include:
      • Capacity: Hiring new and/or support of existing staff or contractors to plan and implement outreach, education and technical assistance to private landowners/producers.
      • Landowner/producer outreach and education: Targeting outreach and education to landowners/producers to expand landowner implementation of conservation practices. Collaborating with NRCS to prioritize, plan and deliver NRCS financial assistance.
      • Increase forest practitioner technical capacity: Investments to improve forest practitioners’ technical knowledge of management treatments that will achieve desired forest conditions for wildlife through peer-to-peer learning, workshops, and field days.
      • Public engagement to minimize human-bear conflicts: Capacity for outreach, education, training, technical assistance, and implementation of practices to promote human-bear coexistence and improve perceptions towards Louisiana black bears in the LMAV. Engagement with the public to increase awareness of and support for Louisiana black bear recovery, such as workshops and outreach events that reduce opposition to Louisiana black bear recolonization.
    • Advance new market-based solutions or incentives: Pilot innovative, market-oriented solutions or incentives that stimulate landowner participation in bottomland forest and wetland restoration, enhancement, and protection practices and/or conservation practices on agricultural lands. Projects should effectively align with other existing private landowner initiatives or programs, such as US Fish & Wildlife Partners for Fish & Wildlife Program and USDA’s Working Lands for Wildlife.
    • Increase participation in third-party forest certification: Increase participation in third-party forest certification programs to encourage third-party verification of sustainable forest management practices for bottomland hardwood forests and associated wildlife.
  • Bottomland Hardwood Forest Habitat Conservation (Easements): Funding is available for staff capacity and/or due diligence/transaction costs to facilitate conservation easements that protect existing, high quality bottomland hardwood habitat, or key sites targeted for bottomland hardwood restoration and/or enhancement that are part of a broader restoration proposal. In limited instances, high leverage projects may be considered for conservation easement acquisition costs. Please contact NFWF program staff to discuss specific land conservation projects.
  • Improve Aquatic Connectivity: Remove or retrofit water conveyance structures, such as dikes and levees, to improve flows between rivers and side channels to increase habitat connectivity for fish and other aquatic species. Projects that implement proof-of-concept approaches to increase the frequency and duration of oxbow connection to the Mississippi River main stem are of interest. To be competitive, each aquatic connectivity proposal and/or aquatic habitat improvement proposal should include a section detailing the pre- and post-intervention freshwater fish monitoring at the site to be conducted either by the applicant or a named partner/subcontractor.
  • Restoration Response Monitoring: Develop and implement monitoring protocols to measure Louisiana black bear, swamp rabbit, forest bird, waterfowl and freshwater fish response to habitat restoration and enhancement. Where baseline data is not available, monitoring proposals should establish a baseline measurement. This baseline should then be used to measure change over time as restoration activities are undertaken. Monitoring projects may be paired with other monitoring work that federal and state agencies are performing. Preference will be given to monitoring proposals that include habitat restoration and/or enhancement activities or monitor species response to habitat restoration and/or enhancement work funded through another NFWF Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley Restoration Fund project. Monitoring for Louisiana black bear and swamp rabbit should track progress towards species outcomes included in Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley business plan. Applicants are encouraged to contact NFWF program staff prior to submitting a proposal to discuss projects that include species monitoring.

Funding Information

• The Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley Restoration Fund anticipates awarding approximately $1.4 million in grants in FY 2023. Grant awards are expected to range from $100,000 to $500,000, depending on the overall scale of the project. Applicants considering proposals outside of this funding range are encouraged to contact NFWF prior to submitting. This program has one annual application cycle.
• Project Period: Anticipated completion time for funded projects typically will be 24-36 months following finalization of a grant agreement.

Geographical Focus

• The Fund will award grants within the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV) region of Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee, with preference given to projects located within focal geographies.

Eligibility Criteria

• Eligible and Ineligible Entities
  • Eligible applicants include non-profit 501(c) organizations, state government agencies, local governments, municipal governments, Tribal Governments and Organizations, and educational institutions.
  • Ineligible applicants include U.S. Federal agencies, businesses, unincorporated individuals and international organizations.

For more information, visit National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.