[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 130 (Monday, July 8, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45143-45144]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-16982]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
North American Wetlands Conservation Act: Request for Small
Grants Proposals for Year 2003
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of request for proposals.
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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that we,
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) and the North American
Wetlands Conservation Council (Council), are currently entertaining
proposals that request match funding for wetland and wetland-associated
upland conservation projects under the Small Grants program. Projects
must meet the purposes of the North American Wetlands Conservation Act
of 1989, as amended. We will give funding priority to projects from new
grant applicants with new partners, where the project ensures long-term
conservation benefits. However, previous Act grantees are eligible to
receive funding and can compete successfully on the basis of strong
project resource values.
DATES: Proposals must be postmarked no later than Friday, November 29,
2002.
ADDRESSES: Address proposals to: Division of Bird Habitat Conservation,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 110,
Arlington, Virginia 22203, Attn: Small Grants Coordinator.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Keith A. Morehouse, Small Grants
Coordinator, or Office Secretary, Division of Bird Habitat
Conservation, 703.358.1784; facsimile 703.358.2282.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of the 1989 North American
Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA), as amended (16 U.S.C. 4401 et seq.)
is, through partnerships, to promote long-term conservation of North
American wetland ecosystems and the waterfowl and other migratory
birds, fish and wildlife that depend upon such habitats. Principal
conservation actions supported by NAWCA are acquisition, enhancement
and restoration of wetlands and wetlands-associated uplands habitat.
Initiated in 1996, the underlying objective of the NAWCA-based
Small Grants program is to promote long-term wetlands conservation
activities through encouraging participation by new grantees and
partners who may not otherwise be able to compete in the Standard
Grants program. We also hope that successful participants in the Small
Grants program will be encouraged to participate as a grantee or
partner in the Standard Grants program. Over the first seven years of
the Small Grants program, 553 proposals requesting a total of
approximately $19.8 million competed for funding. Ultimately, 164
projects were funded over this period for about $6.7 million. For 2003,
with the approval of the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission, we
have made the Small Grants program operational at a base level of $1.0
million. Between $1.0 and $2.0 million in Small Grants projects may be
funded. However, ultimately, the level of Small Grant funding depends
upon the quality of the pool of grant proposals.
To be considered for funding in the 2003 cycle, proposals must have
a grant request no greater than $50,000. We will accept all wetland
conservation proposals that meet the requirements of the Act. However,
considering appropriate proposal resource values, we will give funding
priority to projects from new grant applicants (individuals or
organizations who have never received a NAWCA grant) with new partners,
where the project ensures long-term conservation benefits. This
priority system does not preclude former NAWCA grant recipients from
receiving Small Grants funding; ultimately, project resource value is
the critical factor in deciding which projects receive funding. Also,
projects are likely to receive a greater level of attention if they are
part of a broader related or unrelated effort to bring or restore
wetland or wetland-associated upland conservation values to a
particular area or region.
In addition, proposals must represent on-the-ground projects, and
any overhead in the project budget must constitute 10 percent or less
of the grant amount. The anticipated magnitude of wetlands and wildlife
resources benefits that will result from project execution is an
important factor in proposal evaluation, and there should be a
reasonable balance between acreages of wetlands and wetland-associated
uplands. Mitigation-related projects may be precluded from
consideration, depending upon the nature of the mitigation.
Please keep in mind that NAWCA and matching funds may be applied
only to wetlands acquisition, creation, enhancement, and/or
restoration; they may not be applied to signage, displays, trails or
other educational features, materials and equipment, even though the
goal of the project may ultimately be to support wetland conservation
education curricula. Projects oriented toward education are not
ordinarily eligible for NAWCA funding because education is not a
primary purpose of the Act. However, acceptable project outcomes can
include educational benefits resulting from conservation actions.
Research is also not a primary purpose of the Act, and research
proposals are not considered for funding.
Even though we require less total application information for Small
Grants than we do for the Standard Grants program, Small Grant
proposals must have clear explanations and meet the basic purposes
given above and the 1:1 or greater non-Federal matching requirements of
the NAWCA. Small Grants projects must also be consistent with Council-
established guidelines, objectives and policies. All non-Federal
matching funds and proposed expenditures of grant funds must be
consistent with Appendix A of the Small Grants instructions,
``Eligibility Requirements for Match of NAWCA Grant and Non-Federal
Funds.'' Applicants must submit a completed Standard Form 424,
Application For
[[Page 45144]]
Federal Assistance. Hard copies of Small Grant instructions (booklets)
are no longer provided, except under special circumstances. However,
the NAWCA Program website, http://birdhabitat.fws.gov, contains
instructions for completing and submitting a Small Grant application,
as well as forms and instructions for the Standard Form 424.
Small Grant proposals may be submitted prior to the due date but
must be postmarked no later than Friday, November 29, 2002. Address
submitted proposals as follows: Division of Bird Habitat Conservation,
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 110,
Arlington, VA 22203, Attn: Small Grants Coordinator.
Applicants must submit complete grant request packages to the
Division of Bird Habitat Conservation (DBHC), including all of the
documentation of partners (partner letters) with funding pledge
amounts. Information on funding in partner letters, i.e., amounts and
description regarding use, must correspond with budget amounts in the
budget table and any figures provided in the narrative.
With the volume of proposals received, we are not usually able to
contact proposal sources to verify and/or request supplemental data
and/or materials. Thus, those proposals lacking required information or
containing conflicting information are subject to being declared
ineligible and not further considered for funding.
For more information, call the DBHC office secretary at
703.358.1784, facsimile 703.358.2282, or send e-mail to [email protected]. Small Grant application instructions may be available by
E-mail as a WordPerfect[sscopy] file, upon special request.
In conclusion, we require that, upon arrival in the DBHC, proposal
packages must be: complete with regard to the information requested,
presented in the format requested, and be presented according to the
established deadline.
The Service has submitted information collection requirements to
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval under
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. On May 26,
1999, OMB gave its approval for this information collection and
confirmed the approval number as 1018-0100. An agency may not conduct
or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of
information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.
The information collection solicited: is necessary to gain a benefit in
the form of a grant, as determined by the North American Wetlands
Conservation Council and the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission; is
necessary to determine the eligibility and relative value of wetland
projects; results in an approximate paperwork burden of 80 hours per
application; and does not carry a premise of confidentiality. The
information collections in this program will not be part of a system of
records covered by the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552(a)).
North American Wetlands Conservation Act: Request for Small Grants
Proposals for Year 2003.
Dated: June 17, 2002.
Steve A. Williams,
Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 02-16982 Filed 7-5-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P