Pennsylvania Cheseapeake Bay Conservation Innovation Grants | USDA NRCS PABAY CIG 17 01

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS PABAY CIG 17 01

The Pennsylvania Chesapeake Bay Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) opportunity is a competitive grant program run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Its core goal is to speed up the development and real-world adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies that improve environmental protection while supporting agricultural production. Rather than funding basic, early-stage invention, CIG is aimed at applying, demonstrating, and scaling conservation tools and strategies that are already proven or promising, so they can be used more widely by producers and partners.

A central expectation of funded projects is that they will produce results that can be transferred and adopted beyond the project itself. That transfer might look like getting effective practices into the hands of producers who are eligible for EQIP (the Environmental Quality Incentives Program), integrating new approaches into NRCS technical manuals and guidance, or helping move successful ideas into the private sector. The program also highlights innovative approaches that are not only technical, but also operational or economic, including market-based systems that can incentivize conservation outcomes. Another major emphasis is collaboration and knowledge-sharing, with CIG intended to help communities, governments, universities, nonprofits, and other institutions share skills, technologies, and facilities so that working conservation solutions become accessible to more users.

The types of projects encouraged under this opportunity include on-the-ground conservation innovation such as pilot projects, field demonstrations, and on-farm conservation research. On-farm conservation research has a specific meaning here: it must be designed to answer a defined conservation question using a statistically valid approach, carried out on real farm fields with farm-scale equipment. In practical terms, proposals for on-farm research need an appropriate number of replications and a plan for statistical analysis, not just observational reporting. NRCS indicates it will only fund research through CIG when that research clearly stimulates innovative natural resource management approaches that fit alongside agricultural production.

The notice allows proposals for single-year or multi-year projects, with an overall limit on project length (the summary text notes a cap but does not state the exact number of years). Eligible applicants are broad and include public and private institutions of higher education, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, state and local governments (including counties, cities/townships, and special districts), nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status, individuals, and for-profit entities including small businesses. While the opportunity title references Pennsylvania and the Chesapeake Bay, the notice also states proposals may be submitted by eligible entities from any U.S. state, Washington, DC, and certain U.S. territories and island areas (including Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands).

Applications go through a two-step competitive review process. First, proposals are scored by a technical peer review panel using published proposal evaluation criteria. Second, the full proposals and the first-tier evaluations (along with input from the State Conservationist) move to a Grants Review Board, which makes recommendations to the NRCS Chief. Final funding selections are made by the NRCS Chief.

Administrative details from the posting include that this is a discretionary grant under CFDA 10.912, categorized under agriculture, environment, and natural resources. The funding opportunity number is USDA NRCS PABAY CIG 17 01. The posting lists an award ceiling of $500,000 and an estimated 60 expected awards. The opportunity was created April 4, 2017, with an original application closing date of June 5, 2017.

• The Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service in the agriculture, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Pennsylvania Cheseapeake Bay Conservation Innovation Grants" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.912.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 04, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 05, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 60 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for USDA NRCS PABAY CIG 17 01

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