We are pleased to announce the FY 2025 Request for Proposals.

The Vermont Water Resources and Lake Studies Center welcomes graduate student research and faculty research proposals focusing on critical water resources science and management needs in Vermont, including the Connecticut River basin and the Lake Champlain basin, from investigators based at an institute of higher education in Vermont. The Vermont Water Center especially welcomes proposals from professionals who identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color and from early-career professionals.

The 104b program will consider proposals to support research, outreach, education, training, and other information-transfer activities focused on physical, biological, chemical, social (equity), or engineering aspects of water quality or quantity. Water equity research examines the causes and impacts of water-related disparities, develops or evaluates tools or strategies to improve water equity, or provides scientific information to benefit underserved communities. All proposals should justify project plans based on current needs, as documented in national, regional, and especially state science and technology overviews, and they should describe how results will be disseminated to water managers and the public, inclusive of economically disadvantaged and diverse populations. Proposals that address issues in historically marginalized or underserved communities are highly encouraged.

Projects are supported on an annual basis, with the possibility of adding subsequent years on an annual basis.

Please note that the total funding and the official start date for awards are both dependent on Congressional and federal actions. However, we expect the funding to be available this year for the project year September 1, 2025–August 31, 2026.

Friday, December 6, 2024: Deadline to send intent to submit proposals by emailing the Vermont Water Center (vwrlsc@uvm.edu).

Monday, February 3, 2025: Deadline for proposal submission to the Vermont Water Center (vwrlsc@uvm.edu).

Download the budget forms (XLSX) and the budget justification form (DOCX). Contact gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu with questions.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) 104g opportunity is a national, competitive grants program; it differs in important ways from the long-running state-based 104b.

The USGS, in collaboration with the National Institutes for Water Resources, has issued a call for proposals for its National Competitive Grants (104g) program for research on the following priorities:

• National-scale evaluation of water budget: Retrospective or predictive analyses using hydroclimate-forcing data sets, with emphasis on CONUS404, which was developed in a USGS- NCAR collaboration. Additional guidance includes: emphasis on prediction of water-budget components through a variety of interpretive approaches; incorporation of how uncertainty in hydroclimate-forcing propagates to water budget components; and consideration of both retrospective and projected conditions.
• Socieoeconomics: Integrate ongoing USGS research and data collection in order to assess socioeconomic and ecological vulnerability to compounding extreme events and develop adaptation measures. This proposed project should undertake new research (e.g., Water Use and Social and Economic Drivers Program) to understand the vulnerability of urban (e.g., trans-basin diversions), agricultural (e.g., reservoir management), and ecological (e.g., endangered species) water-use sectors to drought and compounding hazards such as wildfire.

Proposals may be for up to $310,000 for one to three years of work beginning January 1. 2024, and they require one-to-one matching with non-federal funds. Proposals involving substantial collaboration between the USGS and university scientists are encouraged.

Any investigator at an accredited institution of higher learning in the United States is eligible to apply but must apply to a Water Research Institute or Center established under the provisions of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984, as amended, including researchers at the University of Vermont.

Proposals are due by May 30, 2024 to the Vermont Water Center (vwrlsc@uvm.edu, cc gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu). Please let Gretchen Nareff know if you intend to apply and direct all communications to her at gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu.

Resources

• USGS FY2024 104g Opportunity
• USGS Water Resources Research Act Program
• Instructional webinar recording (MP4) and presentation slides (PDF) from March 9, 2023 workshop on proposal preparation guidance

The challenges and opportunities of understanding the impact of per-and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) substances on water resources are poorly understood despite the real and growing impact of this group of human-made substances on water quality. Proposals are sought on the following specific areas of inquiry:

• Media-specific methods: Enhanced methods for detection on specific media, with a clear indication of new or different compounds, new or different methodological approaches, lower detection levels for specific media or compounds, especially with respect to EPA health guidelines for PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic Acid) and PFOS (Perfluorooctane Sulfonate). Media of interest include (in ranked order) (1) Tissues/plasma, (2) sediment, (3) air or interfaces, (4) water.
• Atmospheric sources: Improved understanding of atmospheric exchange in PFAS distribution and fate. This may include methods to determine transport of PFAS to the atmosphere and to subsequent receiving waters, such as a water method that determines "new" compounds based on their likelihood to occur in the atmosphere.
• Processes oriented at molecular level: Process-oriented research of PFAS fate, transport, and effects, with emphasis on molecular-level understanding of PFAS precursor transformation, sorption dynamics, or mechanisms of bioaccumulation and(or) biological/ecological effects.

Proposals may be for up to $310,000 for one to three years of work, and they require one-to-one matching with non-federal funds. Proposals involving substantial collaboration between the USGS and university scientists are encouraged.

Any investigator at an accredited institution of higher learning in the United States is eligible to apply but must apply to a Water Research Institute or Center established under the provisions of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984, as amended, including the University of Vermont.

Proposals are due by May 30, 2024 to the Vermont Water Center (vwrlsc@uvm.edu, cc gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu). Please let Gretchen Nareff know if you intend to apply, and please direct communications to her at gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu.

Resources

• Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) Substances Competitive Grants FY 2024 Opportunity
• Instructional webinar recording (MP4) and presentation slides (PDF) from March 9, 2023 workshop on proposal preparation guidance.

The challenges and opportunities that link aquatic invasive species and water resources are poorly understood, despite the real and growing effect of numerous aquatic invasive species on water quality, water quantity, and aquatic ecosystems. Research is needed to better identify and understand these interactions and to guide management decisions that will help to improve invasive species management and thus reduce effects of invasive species on water resources and aquatic ecosystems at local, regional, and national scales.

Proposals are sought on the following specific areas of inquiry (levels of priority are not assigned, and the order of listing does not indicate the level of priority):

• Effects: Research that improves our understanding of the effects of aquatic invasive species on lakes, rivers, and associated tributaries in the upper Mississippi River basin, including changes to water quantity, water quality, and ecosystem dynamics.
• Characteristics: Research that identifies physical, biological, and chemical characteristics of water bodies that infer resistance and resilience to the distribution, establishment, and effects of aquatic invasive species in the upper Mississippi River basin. Research is needed to better understand these interactions to guide management decisions that will improve invasive species management and result in positive effects on aquatic ecosystems.
• Management: Research on assessment of the detection, spread, and management of aquatic invasive species in the upper Mississippi River basin and the connections to human dimensions, both socially and economically. Note that this does not include physical control of AIS.

Proposals may be for up to $348,000 for one to three years of work, and they require one-to-one matching with non-federal funds. Proposals involving substantial collaboration between the USGS and university scientists are encouraged.

Any investigator at an accredited institution of higher learning in the United States is eligible to apply but must apply to a Water Research Institute or Center established under the provisions of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984, as amended, including the University of Vermont.

Proposals are due by May 30, 2024 to the Vermont Water Center (vwrlsc@uvm.edu, cc gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu). Please let Gretchen Nareff know if you intend to apply, and please direct communications to her at gretchen.nareff@uvm.edu.

Resources

Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Competitive Grants FY 2024 Opportunity