The Natural Resources Conservation Service 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: Natural Resources Conservation Service
States: Alaska
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 05/22/2023
Size of the Grant: $479,250
Grant Duration: 3 years
Details:
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.
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.
CIG Priorities for 2023
- Priority: Energy
- The objective of this priority is to demonstrate innovative approaches and/or technologies to address energy resource concerns on the agricultural operation.
- Energy resource concerns include: Energy Efficiency of Equipment and Facilities (improve energy efficiency of stationary equipment and facilities to reduce energy use) and Energy Efficiency of Field Operations (improve energy efficiency of mobile farming, ranching, forestry practices and field operations to reduce energy use).
- The final report must include a detailed calculation of the: baseline energy use, post-innovation development energy use and energy savings.
- Possible Subtopics Include:
- Develop innovative energy production technologies which utilize existing biomass from forests that are at risk for wildfires.
- Demonstrate small-scale energy production using heat recovery from existing heat sources and testing the effectiveness to generate energy.
- Proposed projects must be performed in Alaska.
- Priority: Arctic Agriculture
- The objective of this priority is to demonstrate innovative approaches, methods, and/or new technologies of agriculture in high latitude northern climates (i.e. north of the Brooks Range) which will improve localized food security within Alaska and determine how it relates to ecosystem sustainability, natural resource management and land use, sustainable soil management, biodiversity, and environmental impact.
- Arctic Agriculture resource concerns include Degraded Plant Condition related to plant productivity, health, plant structure, and composition as well as Soil Quality Limitations such as aggregate instability, compaction, concentration of salts or other chemicals, organic matter depletion, and soil organism habitat loss or degradation.
- Proposed projects must be performed in high latitude climates within Alaska.
Funding Information
- The estimated funding floor for this opportunity is $5,000, and the estimated funding ceiling is $479,250.
- Projects may be between 1 and 3 years in duration.
Eligibility Criteria
All U.S. domestic, non-Federal entities and individuals are eligible to apply for projects carried out in Alaska. US 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.
