Notice of Intent | USGS 17 FA 0064

Opportunity Information: Apply for USGS 17 FA 0064

The Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) issued a Notice of Intent for a discretionary funding opportunity titled "Accelerating Aquifer Storage and Recovery Study." This announcement indicates the agency's plan to make a single award to support work in the natural resources area, specifically focused on aquifer storage and recovery (ASR). ASR generally refers to the practice of storing water in an aquifer during times of surplus (such as wet seasons or high-flow periods) and recovering it later when demand is higher or supplies are constrained. By emphasizing "accelerating" ASR, the opportunity signals an interest in speeding up the understanding, evaluation, or deployment of ASR approaches, which are often used to improve water supply reliability, reduce vulnerability to drought, and optimize management of groundwater and surface water resources.

The funding opportunity is identified by Funding Opportunity Number USGS 17 FA 0064 and is offered as a cooperative agreement. A cooperative agreement typically means the project is expected to involve substantial involvement by the federal agency during the performance period, such as collaboration on study design, data collection, technical review, modeling approaches, or dissemination of results. In practical terms, applicants should expect the USGS to play an active role beyond simply providing funds, and the selected recipient may be working closely with USGS scientists or program staff throughout the project.

This opportunity falls under the Natural Resources funding activity category and is associated with CFDA number 15.808, which is a USGS assistance listing commonly tied to cooperative research and related scientific work. The competition is categorized as discretionary, meaning awards are made through a competitive or merit-based selection process rather than by formula. The notice was created on February 8, 2017, with an original closing date of February 22, 2017, reflecting a relatively short application window. That short timeline often suggests the agency may have had a specific project scope or partner profile in mind, or that it was building on ongoing work where proposals could be developed quickly by well-positioned applicants.

The award information indicates an award ceiling of $140,900 and an expectation of one award. With a single anticipated award at this funding level, the project is likely intended to be targeted in scope, such as a focused field study, a data synthesis and analysis effort, development or refinement of a modeling framework, evaluation of ASR feasibility in a specific hydrogeologic setting, or an applied study intended to inform near-term management decisions. The budget ceiling also implies that proposals would need to be tightly structured around achievable objectives, clear deliverables, and a defined set of methods that can produce meaningful results within the available funding.

Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others," with the note that applicants should consult the additional eligibility clarification referenced in the full announcement. In federal grant language, "Others" can include entities such as universities, nonprofits, state or local governments, tribal governments, water districts, research institutes, or other organizations depending on the specific eligibility statement in the full notice. Because the eligibility field points to additional text for clarification, any prospective applicant would need to confirm whether they qualify directly or whether the USGS intended to limit eligibility to a narrower class of institutions (for example, specific types of research organizations or regional partners).

Overall, this Notice of Intent communicates that the USGS planned to support a single cooperative, science-oriented effort to advance or speed up aquifer storage and recovery study work. The key takeaways are the agency (USGS within DOI), the instrument type (cooperative agreement with active federal involvement), the topic focus (accelerating ASR study in the natural resources/water resources space), the scale (up to $140,900), the number of expected awards (one), and the timing (February 2017 with a two-week window between posting and closing).

• The Department of the Interior, Geological Survey in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Notice of Intent" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.808.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 08, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 22, 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 $140,900.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for USGS 17 FA 0064

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