FY 2021 Atlantic Salmon Habitat Restoration Partnership Grants | NOAA NMFS HCPO 2021 2006774

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOAA NMFS HCPO 2021 2006774

The FY 2021 Atlantic Salmon Habitat Restoration Partnership Grants opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number: NOAA NMFS HCPO 2021 2006774) is a NOAA discretionary grant program run through the NOAA Restoration Center under the U.S. Department of Commerce. Its core purpose is straightforward: to fund habitat restoration work that supports recovery of the Gulf of Maine Distinct Population Segment (DPS) of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), a highly imperiled population that depends on access to high-quality freshwater spawning and rearing habitat in Maine.

Projects are judged primarily on how well they track NOAA's established recovery direction for this species. Strong proposals are expected to align with the priority habitat restoration actions laid out in the 2019 Recovery Plan for the Gulf of Maine DPS of Atlantic salmon and the Species in the Spotlight Priority Actions 2016-2020 action plan. In practical terms, the solicitation emphasizes work that measurably improves fish passage and overall connectivity between spawning and rearing areas inside designated Critical Habitat, particularly in locations tied to river-specific salmon stocks. It also stresses using proven restoration approaches, with barrier removal called out as the highest-priority technique, and it places real weight on an applicant's ability to manage multiple restoration efforts across several years while coordinating closely with NOAA to hit project milestones.

The solicitation supports a range of project phases, as long as they are connected to real restoration outcomes. Eligible activities can include feasibility studies, planning and assessments that directly lead to implementation, engineering design and permitting, on-the-ground construction and restoration, and post-project monitoring. Applicants can propose a single phase or bundle multiple phases together (for example, design plus construction plus monitoring), so long as the work plan clearly ties to restoring salmon habitat function and passage.

Awards are made as multi-year cooperative agreements, which typically involve substantial NOAA engagement during the project period. Funding is structured over up to three fiscal years, with first-year funding awarded in FY 2021 and anticipated (but not guaranteed) funding for FY 2022 and FY 2023 based on future congressional appropriations and the project's progress toward agreed milestones. Because of that structure, applicants are expected to present a detailed multi-year budget narrative, including clear, itemized cost expectations for year two and year three, not just the first-year request.

In terms of award size, NOAA anticipated that typical federal funding would fall between $300,000 and $750,000 total over three years, and it set firm boundaries for requests: proposals asking for less than $300,000 or more than $1.5 million in total federal funds over the three-year period would not be accepted. For FY 2021 specifically, NOAA anticipated up to $1 million would be available to support the first year of selected projects, recognizing that the full multi-year amounts depend on what Congress appropriates in FY 2021 through FY 2023.

Eligibility is fairly broad across the non-federal landscape. Eligible applicants include institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, commercial (for-profit) organizations, U.S. territories, and state, local, and Native American tribal governments. However, federal agencies and federal employees are explicitly ineligible to apply under this solicitation. NOAA encourages federal partners to participate instead by collaborating with eligible applicants such as states, municipalities, counties, and NGOs.

Geography is tightly defined around the Maine habitat units that matter most for Gulf of Maine DPS recovery. Applicants must propose work within one or more Salmon Habitat Recovery Units (SHRUs) in Maine, though the applicant organization's physical or mailing address does not need to be inside the SHRU boundaries. The SHRUs cover the full Gulf of Maine DPS range in Maine and include three main areas: (1) Merrymeeting Bay, which includes the Androscoggin and Kennebec watersheds and extends east to include the Sheepscot, Pemaquid, Medomak, and St. George watersheds; (2) Penobscot Bay, covering the entire Penobscot basin and extending west to include the Ducktrap watershed; and (3) the Downeast Coastal SHRU, which includes coastal watersheds from the Union River east to the Dennys River.

The application deadline listed for this opportunity was April 12, 2021 (Original Closing Date). NOAA also hosted a public informational webinar on March 8, 2021 at 1:00 p.m. EST (one hour) to walk potential applicants through the program, with access details provided in the notice. Overall, the program is designed for applicants that can demonstrate both strong technical restoration plans (especially barrier removal and passage improvements) and the organizational capacity to deliver complex, multi-year habitat work in close coordination with NOAA's salmon recovery priorities.

• The Department of Commerce in the environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY 2021 Atlantic Salmon Habitat Restoration Partnership Grants" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 11.463.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-02-09.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-04-12. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,500,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for NOAA NMFS HCPO 2021 2006774

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