Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit | G23AS00389

Opportunity Information: Apply for G23AS00389

The US Geological Survey (USGS) is soliciting proposals for a cooperative agreement under the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program, specifically limited to partners affiliated with the Pacific Northwest CESU. The project focus is scientific research and technical analysis that links landscape features detectable through remote sensing to on-the-ground stream conditions, with an emphasis on how riparian corridors and upland wetlands relate to stream temperature and streamflow in a high-value watershed in southeastern Oregon. Because this is a CESU opportunity, it is intended to support collaborative work between USGS and an eligible CESU partner, leveraging the CESU network to deliver research, technical assistance, and education that inform public-land and resource management.

The study area is the upper Donner und Blitzen River basin in the Harney Basin, which drains Steens Mountain, a prominent fault-block mountain rising to about 2,968 meters (9,738 feet). This river system, referred to in the notice as the Blitzen River, has outsized ecological and management importance. It supports one of the strongest remaining populations of Great Basin redband trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss newberri) and is notable for being the first and only designated redband trout reserve. The river also carries multiple special designations and management priorities: it intersects Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wilderness and wilderness study lands, is designated as a Wild and Scenic River, and provides water that ultimately supports Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and Malheur Lake. Malheur Lake is described as one of the largest stopover and breeding areas for migratory shorebirds and waterfowl in western North America, which means changes in upstream hydrology and temperature can cascade into broader habitat conditions important for regional and continental migration.

The research motivation highlighted in the opportunity is climate and drought vulnerability. Even though the redband trout population in this watershed is currently considered strong, recent work across the broader region suggests that drought can rapidly undermine even resilient populations, largely through warming water temperatures, reduced summer baseflows, and loss of cold-water refugia. By quantifying the relationships among remotely sensed riparian and wetland extent (both along stream corridors and in upland areas) and key stream metrics (temperature and flow), the study aims to improve understanding of how landscape water storage and vegetation patterns influence thermal and hydrologic buffering. In practical terms, the work is meant to help identify which features of the watershed contribute most to maintaining cooler temperatures and more stable flows, information that can guide conservation, restoration, and drought planning.

Administratively, this is a discretionary funding opportunity issued by the USGS under a cooperative agreement mechanism, indicating substantial involvement is expected between the agency and the recipient during the project period (for example, coordination on study design, data needs, analysis approaches, or integration with ongoing monitoring). The activity category is Science and Technology and other Research and Development, and it is listed under CFDA (now commonly referred to as Assistance Listing) 15.808. Eligibility is restricted: applicants must be participating partners of the Pacific Northwest CESU; the listing indicates eligible applicants as "Others" in the sense used by federal opportunity postings, but the key gate is CESU partnership status.

Key opportunity details include the funding opportunity number G23AS00389, a maximum award amount (ceiling) of $55,000, and an original closing date of July 7, 2023, with the opportunity created on June 7, 2023. The notice does not specify the number of expected awards in the excerpt provided, but the ceiling and the narrow eligibility suggest a targeted, project-specific award intended to produce applied, management-relevant findings for the Blitzen River system and its sensitive aquatic and wetland-dependent species and habitats.

• The Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.808.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2023-06-07.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-07-07. (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 $55,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for G23AS00389

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