NRCS is announcing the availability of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) State Program funding to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies.
Donor Name: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Territory: Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 04/23/2023
Size of the Grant: $100,000
Grant Duration: 3 years
Details:
Purpose of the Program
The purpose of CIG is to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies in conjunction with agricultural production. CIG projects are expected to lead to the transfer of conservation technologies, management systems, and innovative approaches (such as market-based systems) to agricultural producers, into government technical manuals and guides, or to the private sector. CIG generally funds pilot projects, field demonstrations, and on-farm conservation research. On-farm conservation research is defined as an investigation conducted to answer a specific applied conservation question using a statistically valid design while employing farm-scale equipment on farms, ranches or private forest lands.
CIG Priorities for FY 2023
For FY 2023, NRCS is only accepting proposals that address one or more of the priorities listed below. Each proposal must clearly identify a primary priority.
Priority 1: Water Quality
Water Quality in the Caribbean continues to be a priority resource concern as most major public water sources have been identified with some level of impairment with agriculture and confined animal operations being identified as pollution sources in some of them. Water quantity uncertainties caused by climate change also exacerbate the need for clean water sources in the islands.
Proposals must address one or more of the following sub-priorities:
- Field testing of conservation practices
- Community-level or landscape-level strategies
- Development of innovative or repurposed planning tools, guidance documents, or conservation practices/scenarios
- Field testing of innovative production techniques
- Leveraging of community resources
Priority 2: Climate-Smart Agriculture
Producer adaptation to extreme weather events– As climate change intensifies, agricultural producers are facing new obstacles to producing food and fiber while maintaining or improving their natural resource base. The increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and their indirect effects – such as emergence of new pests, disease outbreaks, increases in soil salinity, severe changes in rainfall patterns, increase water levels/flooding potential, and reduced availability of accessible fuels – have created new challenges.
Proposals must address one or more of the following sub-priorities:
- Development of innovative or repurposed planning tools, guidance documents, or conservation practices/scenarios
- Field testing of innovative production techniques
- Field testing of conservation practices
- Community-level or landscape-level strategies
- Communication tools and strategies that help producers interpret local climate related risks
Building resilience through emerging production systems for climate smart agriculture- The resilience of traditional agricultural operations in parts of the Caribbean is being challenged by increased intensity and frequency of extreme weather events caused and exacerbated by climate change. Innovative management systems and practices, including non-traditional crops or unconventional management practices requiring fewer inputs/resources, are needed to offer producers options for increasing the resiliency of their operations into the future.
Proposals must address one or more of the following sub priorities:
- Introduction of new cropping systems or non-traditional crops
- Introduction of new grazing management systems
- Introduction of new forestry management systems
- Improved operation management
- Leveraging of community resources
- Integration of traditional farming knowledge
Priority 3: Conservation in Urban Agricultural Systems
It is estimated that 83 percent of the U.S. population lives in urban areas. In recent years, demand and supply of urban farming has increased along with interest in local foods and resilient food systems. With this increase in urban food production comes conservation challenges and opportunities.
Proposals must address one or more of the following sub priorities:
- Demonstration of the natural resource impacts or economic benefits
- Projects that show conservation benefits with the implementation of multistory cropping systems, urban forestry systems, or integrated systems
- Development and evaluation of the effectiveness of innovative management systems or emerging and innovative technologies Interpreting existing conservation practices
- Projects within this sub-priority may:
- demonstrate how to improve conservation planning in urban or small acreage settings, or
- demonstrate how to modify or adjust conservation practices in urban or small acreage settings.
Priority 4: Invasive Species Control
Combating invasive species is a complex, multi-scale challenge for the Caribbean producers and landowners. For example, the increase in herbicide-resistant invasive weeds in tropical settings, forest pests, and unwanted overgrow has resulted in some producers reverting to conventional practices that are energy and chemical intense, consequently losing ground on the expansion of no-till farming and other sustainable agricultural methods. Grasslands are being lost to woody encroachment and invasives such as Prosopis, and Mimosa, and Paspalum fasciculatum (Venezolana grass), impacting productive lands, changing nutrient and hydrological cycles, and increasing risks to wildlife. Invasions are exacerbated by the impacts of climate changes such as drought, changes in weather patterns, or extreme weather events, altering fire and drought cycles throughout the Caribbean.
Each project must fit into at least one of the following three sub priorities:
- Innovative strategic approaches
- Reimagination of existing strategies
- Early Detection and Rapid Response (EDRR)
Innovative Conservation Projects or Activities
CIG funds the development and field testing, on-farm research and demonstration, evaluation, or implementation of:
- Approaches to incentivizing conservation adoption, including market-based and conservation finance approaches; and
- Conservation technologies, practices, and systems.
Projects or activities under CIG must comply with all applicable federal, tribal, state, and local laws and regulations throughout the duration of the project; and
- Use a technology or approach that was studied sufficiently to indicate a high probability for success;
- Demonstrate, evaluate, and verify the effectiveness, utility, affordability, and usability of natural resource conservation technologies and approaches in the field;
- Adapt and transfer conservation technologies, management, practices, systems, approaches, and incentive systems to improve performance and encourage adoption;
- Introduce proven conservation technologies and approaches to a geographic area or agricultural sector where that technology or approach is not currently in use.
Technologies and approaches that are eligible for funding in a project’s geographic area using an EQIP contract for an established conservation practice standard are ineligible for CIG funding, except where the use of those technologies and approaches demonstrates clear innovation.
Funding Information
- Estimated Funding Amount: $500,000
- Maximum Funding Amount: $100,000
- Minimum Funding Amount: $25,000
- Project Period: 1-3 years
Proposed projects must be performed in Puerto Rico and/or U.S. Virgin Islands.
Eligible Applicants
All U.S. domestic, non-Federal entities and individuals are eligible to apply for projects carried out in the Caribbean Area (Puerto Rico and/or U.S. Virgin Islands). U.S. Federal agencies are not eligible to apply to this opportunity or impart their work to non-federal portion of the budget.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
