EPA expects to announce a new, competitive funding opportunity within the next month under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The opportunity will be for up to $4 million to support phosphorus reduction efforts in the western Lake Erie basin through farmer outreach and technical assistance. This preliminary announcement is intended to alert potential applicants of this upcoming funding opportunity. Once the full funding opportunity is formally announced by EPA, applicants are expected have between 45 to 60 days to apply.
The primary objective of this funding opportunity will be to increase the resources available to help farmers improve their nutrient management. EPA will plan to support projects that do one or more of the following:
- Provide technical assistance to prevent overapplication and loss of fertilizers from farm fields, particularly manure.
- Build capacity of Soil and Water Conservation Districts to provide engineering services, administrative support, and establish relationships with their community.
- Support direct outreach and farmer education by extensions, industry, and farm bureaus.
- Incentivize retailers, conservation agronomists, and certified crop advisors to promote minimal fertilizer application, precision technology, and subsurface placement of nutrients.
Projects will be required to be located within the western Lake Erie watershed within these hydrologic unit code boundaries:
- 04100001 Ottawa
- 04100002 River Raisin
- 04100003 St. Joseph
- 04100004 St. Marys
- 04100005 Upper Maumee
- 04100006 Tiffin
- 04100007 Auglaize
- 04100008 Blanchard
- 04100009 Lower Maumee
- 04100010 Cedar-Portage
Eligibility
Qualified non-federal entities eligible to apply for grants include non-federal governmental entities: State agencies; any agency or instrumentality of local government; interstate agencies; and federally recognized tribes and tribal organizations. Institutions of Higher Education and non-profit organizations are also eligible to apply. Non-profit organizations described in Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that engage in lobbying activities as defined in Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 are not eligible applicants as provided in the Lobbying Disclosure Act, 2 U.S.C. 1611. ‘For profit’ organizations, federal agencies, foreign entities, and individuals are not eligible applicants.
Projected Timeline
EPA anticipates issuing this funding opportunity on www.grants.gov by the end of September 2024. More details will be available in the formal notice.