Wetlands Reserve Program Restoration

The summary for the Wetlands Reserve Program Restoration grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the New York State Office, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Wetlands Reserve Program Restoration: The Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) is a voluntary program offering landowners the opportunity to protect, restore, and enhance wetlands on their property. The NRCS obtains conservation easements from participating landowners and provides funding for easement, closing and wetland restoration. There are presently 43,000 acres in New York enrolled in the WRP. The purpose of WRP easements is to provide habitat for migration birds and other wetland dependent wildlife; restore and protect the functions and values of wetlands in the agricultural landscape; help achieve the national goal of no net loss of wetlands; and improve the general environment of the country. The acres in this announcement are located in Madison and Oswego Counties. Applicants will be responsible for assisting NRCS in providing technical assistance necessary to provide restoration of the Wetlands Reserve Program. Categories include: Hydrology & Vegetative restoration of Wetlands Reserve Program sites in Madison and Oswego Counties, New York. NRCS anticipates being substantially involved in carrying out the work covered by resulting cooperative agreement(s). Evaluation Criteria: 1. Organizational capabilities. The adequacy of organizational resources and experience to successfully design and install wetland restoration projects. Share in a common mission that supports the natural resource conservation efforts with private landowners. 2. Project personnel. The reasonableness and feasibility of the applicants approach and expertise for successfully achieving the objectives of the project by September 30, 2006. 3. Understanding the intent of WRP. The applicants recognition of the value and need of the project and the full understanding of the intent of WRP. 4. Ability to demonstrate successful past history and credibility of working with private landowners. One or more cooperative agreements may be awarded for a one-year project period for technical assistance to restoration of the Wetlands Reserve Program. Cooperative agreements have been determined to be the appropriate funding instrument because of the substantial involvement of NRCS in providing program and technical oversight, coordination and time frames of projects. Cooperative agreements will be awarded for a one-year project. It is anticipated that approximately $500,000 will be available for this program in FY2005 with an estimated total program funding over 3 years of $1,500,000. The available funding for subsequent years is not fixed and may vary considerably. Amendments to agreement(s) may be developed upon availability of funding in follow-on years (approximately a three-year period).