[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 101 (Wednesday, May 26, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28504-28508]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-13424]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service


North American Wetlands Conservation Act: Request for Evaluation 
Grant Proposals for Year 2000

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of request for proposals.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to advise the public that over 
the period June 1, 1999, to July 15, 1999, we, the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service (Service), will entertain proposals that request 
matching funds for projects that evaluate the success of North American 
Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) projects, or that will ensure the 
success of future NAWCA projects by improving strategic conservation 
planning capabilities. We will give funding priority to projects 
related to existing wetland conservation implementation plans, to be 
conducted in a partnership mode by wetland managers and scientists. 
Project criteria, proposal formatting and other essential application 
information is provided here. Funding is limited to projects located in 
the United States.

DATES: Initial proposals (pre-proposals) must bear postmarks no later 
than Thursday, July 15, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Address proposals to: North American Waterfowl and Wetlands 
Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Suite 
110, Arlington, Virginia, 22203, Attn: Evaluation Grants Coordinator.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Rex R. Johnson, Evaluation Grants 
Coordinator, North American Waterfowl and Wetlands Office, Patuxent 
Wildlife Research Center, 11510 American Holly Drive, Laurel, Maryland, 
20708-4017, 301/497-5674; facsimile 301/497-5706, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

North American Wetlands Conservation Act Evaluation Grants

1. Introduction

    Since its inception in 1989, the North American Wetlands 
Conservation Act (NAWCA or Act) has added a new dimension to the 
conservation of wetland-associated migratory birds and the diverse 
wetland ecosystems upon which they and many other fish and wildlife 
species depend. Never before had Federal legislation been passed with 
the express purpose of creating partnerships among Federal and non-
Federal wetland conservationists or with the explicit goal of 
implementing management plans emanating from international treaties and 
conventions. The Act was precedent-setting in its support of the new 
and innovative partnerships that were emerging from implementation of 
the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP) and visionary in 
its anticipation of major national and international conservation 
initiatives for nongame migratory birds. Moreover, an institutional 
framework was created for garnering additional resources and pooling 
them to implement, via partnerships, high priority wetland conservation 
projects across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Over the past 
eight years, $249 million of NAWCA grant funds have been leveraged with 
$516 million of partner funds and allocated through a highly 
competitive process to 588 projects in North America. However, the 
success of NAWCA involves more than the efficient allocation of limited 
Federal financial resources to support partner projects. The ultimate 
success of the Act hinges on efficiency and effectiveness in the 
attainment of biological ends--the conservation of migratory birds and 
the North American wetland ecosystems upon which many species of 
migratory birds and other wildlife depend. The evaluation grants 
program, described below, is designed to address how successfully the 
program is delivering the migratory bird and other wildlife resource 
benefits anticipated by the Act.

1.1  The Purposes of the Act

    Any strategy for implementing NAWCA or procedures for monitoring 
and evaluating its effectiveness must arise from the purposes of the 
Act:

    * * * To encourage partnerships among public agencies and other 
interests--
    (1) To protect, enhance, restore, and manage an appropriate 
distribution and diversity of wetland ecosystems and other habitats 
for migratory birds and other fish and wildlife in North America;
    (2) To maintain current or improved distributions of migratory 
bird populations; and
    (3) To sustain an abundance of waterfowl and other migratory 
birds consistent with the goals of the North American Waterfowl 
Management Plan and the international obligations contained in the 
migratory bird treaties and conventions and other agreements with 
Canada, Mexico, and other countries.

    These purposes infer an explicit and measureable relationship 
between wetland conservation and wetland-wildlife management and values 
at a North American scale. While habitat benefits for all wetland-
associated fish and wildlife are recognized, the stated emphasis on the 
Act is on ``current or improved distributions of migratory bird 
populations'' consistent with ``international obligations.'' The 
international migratory patterns of these birds is the thread which 
binds the patchwork of regional and national conservation work into a 
truly continent-wide quilt of wetland conservation.

1.1.1  Improving NAWCA Implementation Through Evaluation

    Section 19 of the 1994 amendments to NAWCA called for the 
development of ``a strategy to assist in implementation of the Act'' 
and ``procedures to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of wetlands 
conservation projects completed under this Act.'' Specifically * * *

    Not later than January 31, 1996, the Secretary, in cooperation 
with the [North American Wetlands Conservation] Council, to further 
the purposes of the Act shall--
    (1) Develop and implement a strategy to assist in the 
implementation of this Act in conserving the full complement of 
North American wetlands systems and species

[[Page 28505]]

dependent on those systems, that incorporates information existing 
on the date of the issuance of the strategy in final form on types 
of wetlands habitats and species dependent on the habitats; and
    (2) Develop and implement procedures to monitor and evaluate the 
effectiveness of wetlands conservation projects completed under this 
Act.

    The wording of Section 19 is consistent with the principles of 
adaptive resource management in which planning, implementation and 
evaluation function as interrelated parts of an iterative cycle. 
Planning has merit only to the extent it provides a strategy for 
implementation; and evaluation, only to the extent it allows 
refinements in future planning. Thus, the greatest benefits of 
planning, evaluation, or implementation cannot be realized without 
integrated progress in all three elements.

2. Evaluation Grant Goals

    To foster persistent partnerships among wetland and wildlife 
managers and scientists to generate reliable information through 
evaluation that is used to enhance future Act effectiveness through 
improved biological planning or partnering strategies.
    It cannot be overemphasized that the purpose of Evaluation Grants 
is to maximize the effectiveness of future wetlands conservation 
projects completed under the Act. Evaluation need should be identified 
by wetland or migratory bird managers who have traditionally 
implemented conservation activities under the Act. Thus, Evaluation 
Grant proposers should be past or potential NAWCA grant recipients 
(including, but not limited to, NAWMP Joint Venture representatives) 
partnered with technically-capable scientists. This partnering approach 
to evaluation will help ensure that Evaluation Grant projects:
    (1) originate from priority management information needs for 
strategic conservation delivery;
    (2) are derived from and support established habitat conservation 
plans or objectives;
    (3) are sound and scientifically-based; and
    (4) are used to direct future NAWCA wetland conservation 
implementation.

2.1 Priority Projects

    Proposed projects should evaluate the effectiveness of past or 
current NAWCA projects in achieving explicit program objectives, or 
should result in a refined understanding of wetland/landscape function, 
or migratory bird responses to wetland habitat management, in ways that 
enhance future NAWCA conservation delivery. Migratory bird functions 
should be evaluated in the context of wetland characteristics and 
landscape structure. Projects that evaluate the composition, 
management, or dynamics of established conservation partnerships such 
as NAWMP Joint Ventures with a goal of improving partnering strategies 
also will be favorably considered.

2.2 Eligibility

    Funding is limited to U.S. project proposals.

2.3 Project Duration

    Projects of 1-2 years in duration may be proposed. Projects 
spanning 3 years will be considered but are not encouraged. Three-year 
project proposals must include an explicit justification for the 
extended duration.

2.4 Available Funds

    The total funding package presented to the North American Wetlands 
Conservation Council (Council) in FY2000 will not total 
$500,000 of NAWCA funds. Selected projects will be funded 
for their full duration from the FY2000 allocation. A maximum project 
funding limit has not been established; however, proposals requesting a 
total of $100,000 of NAWCA funds are most likely to be 
selected.

2.4.1 Matching Funds Requirements

    Project partners must match grant requests with non-federal funds 
or other contributions by at least a 1-to-1 ratio. Acceptable matching 
contributions are described in Appendix A.

3. Proposal Development

    Proposal development will proceed in 2 stages beginning with the 
preparation and review of brief (3-5 page) preproposals. Preproposals 
will be screened by Council representatives, who will then work with 
successful applicants to develop a limited number into full proposals 
with objectives, partnerships, products, and outcomes mutually agreed 
upon by the Council and grant applicants.
    A Principal Investigator (PI) and a Project Officer (PO) that will 
administer the grant agreement, should be identified for each project. 
The PI and PO may be the same person. All written correspondence will 
be sent to the PI and PO; however, the PO must be:
    (1) affiliated with the PI's organization;
    (2) knowledgeable about biological, partnership, and administrative 
aspects of the proposal; and
    (3) readily available to provide information.
    Preproposals and full proposals should be accompanied by a cover 
page with the following information:

A. Project Title
B. Principal Investigator's
    1. Name
    2. Title
    3. Organization
    4. Address
    5. Telephone number
    6. Facsimile number
    7. E-mail address

3.1 Project Justification

    A detailed project justification should be included in preproposals 
and full proposals. The justification should be derived from and refer 
to an established conservation organization's biological foundation and 
explicit objectives for past or current habitat projects, or for 
populations. The justification should be developed in light of 
Evaluation Grant goals and review criteria (section 4.2). Achieving 
Evaluation Grant project objectives should result in fulfilling the 
evaluation needs described in the justification.

3.2 Preproposals

    Five copies of preproposals must be submitted by July 15, 1999, and 
should provide a project a set of explicit objectives, preliminary 
methods, and a budget with a source of matching funds.
    Preproposals should adhere to the following outline:

A. Justification (project description, explicit objectives)
B. Preliminary Methods
C. Preliminary Budget (see Appendix B) and Source of Matching Funds
    (letters of committment not required for preproposals)

3.3 Full Proposals

    Five copies of full proposals are due by November 1, 1999. Full 
proposals should adhere to the following outline:

A. Abstract
B. Project Description
    1. Justification
    2. Objectives
    3. Methods
    Study Area (if appropriate)
    Data Acquisition
    Data Analysis
    4. Products and Future Applications
    5. Management Outreach
C. Project Partners and Management
D. Budget--(see Appendix B)
    1. Funds Requested
    2. Matching Funds or Services
    3. Total Project Budget
E. Project Timetable
F. Literature Cited
G. Appendix A--Investigator Qualifications

[[Page 28506]]

H. Appendix B--Letters of Matching Commitment from Partners (see 
Appendix C)

4. Preproposal and Full Proposal Review

    Council representatives will review preproposals and full 
proposals, and will present funding recommendations based on full 
proposal reviews to the Council.

4.1 How To Submit a Proposal

    Preprosals and full proposals should be submitted by the required 
deadlines (section 6) to: Evaluation Grants Coordinator, North American 
Waterfowl and Wetlands Office, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 110, 
Arlington, VA 22203.

4.2 Review Team

    The review team will consist of the Evaluation Grants Coordinator, 
2 North American Wetlands Conservation Council Staff, and 1 USGS-
Biological Resources Division scientist with expertise in wetlands and 
landscape ecology. Other individuals will be enlisted to review 
preproposal and full proposal methods related to their areas of 
expertise when necessary.

4.3 Review Criteria

    At a minimum, preproposals and full proposals should address the 
following issues, which will constitute the general review criteria. A 
rigid ``scoring'' system will not be used to determine which 
preproposals and full proposals are most meritorious. The review team 
will use sound professional judgment to evaluate proposals, in the 
context of communication among qualified professionals.
    Partnerships: The Act is predicated on the power of partnerships to 
deliver wetlands conservation. Proposals for evaluation and planning 
should likewise include strong partnerships. Prospective grantees are 
expected to build upon existing wetlands conservation partnerships to 
maximize the use of and coordination with existing planning, 
implementation and evaluation infrastructures rather than seek to 
develop new or competing organizations.
    Contribution to increasing the effectiveness of the Act: Act funds 
have been used to varying degrees to fund wetlands conservation 
projects across the country. Some regions have received little Act 
funding while others have applied many millions of dollars to implement 
projects. Proposals will be judged on the extent to which they evaluate 
and affect NAWCA projects, past and future. Thus, priorities will be 
on: evaluation/planning for areas with a large number of projects; 
large affected acreages and/or significant investment of Act funds; 
and/or projects or methods related to critical wetland conservation 
approaches for that region.
    Contribution to integration of migratory bird conservation: 
Delivering NAWCA implementation funds to projects best fulfilling the 
purposes of the Act requires integration of NAWMP goals with those of 
other major bird initiatives. The extent to which the proposals advance 
integrated conservation of waterfowl, neotropical migratory birds, 
shorebirds, and other wetland-associated migratory birds will be a 
principal criterion in proposal evaluation.
    Contribution to a landscape-level context for wetland conservation: 
Evaluation units should be ecologically based and appropriate in scale 
to address regional wetlands conservation goals and objectives and 
facilitate a meaningful linkage to continental migratory bird 
population objectives, and those of other wetlands-dependent wildlife 
as available. Therefore, proposals should address the evaluation needs 
for wetland habitats in the context of ecologically-based landscapes as 
opposed to an individual wetland.
    Status of biological planning and evaluation: Biological planning, 
evaluation and monitoring is relatively advanced in some regions of the 
U.S., and almost non-existent in others. Proposals addressing the full 
range of planning and evaluation consistent with Council goals are 
encouraged. These may range from initiation of the adaptive management 
process in areas currently using little or no proactive, integrated, 
biological planning, to evaluation of progress toward fulfilling 
objectives derived from ongoing biological planning efforts.
    Contribution to the biological foundation for wetland and 
associated migratory bird conservation: Projects should facilitate the 
linkage of regional or continental migratory bird population responses 
to landscape-level habitat conservation objectives. This linkage 
represents a fundamental principle in the Council's evaluation 
strategy, and projects seeking to establish or significantly improve 
that linkage will be a priority.
    Contributions to the effectiveness of future partnerships: The 
success of future NAWCA implementation is dependent on strong 
partnerships backed by sound biological planning. The evolution and 
composition of partnerships dictates their success in delivering 
migratory bird conservation under NAWCA. Projects that evaluate the 
dynamics of past NAWCA partnerships with the goal of increasing the 
effectiveness of future partnerships will be seriously considered.
    Commitment to long-term regional planning and evaluation: The 
extent to which applicants demonstrate the likelihood of 
``institutionalizing'' the planning and evaluation efforts for which 
Act funding is sought is a significant consideration. The Council seeks 
to insure that Act funds are used to catalyze these efforts, and will 
deprioritize proposals in which the partners in the planning and 
evaluation effort are clearly dependent upon the Act for continued 
future progress. This criterion can be viewed as analogous to the 
``long-term'' criterion used to evaluate implementation projects.

5. Grants Administration and Performance Reporting

    Evaluation Grants will be administered by NAWWO staff, and 
evaluation grant recipients will be required to provide detailed annual 
and project completion reports (see Appendix D for reporting formats) 
by October 1 each year through project termination. Annual and final 
reports will be presented to the Council and Council Staff by the 
Council Coordinator or Evaluation Grants Coordinator at their November/
December meetings.

6. Schedule

    The following schedule will be adhered to in soliciting, reviewing, 
and funding Evaluation Grants proposals:

Request for Proposals............  1 June 1999.
Due Date for Proposals...........  15 July 1999.
Preproposal Reviews Completed and  15 August 1999.
 Proposers Notified.
Full Proposals Due...............  1 November 1999.
Funding Recommendations Presented  December 1999.
 to Council.
Evaluation Grant Awards Announced  January/February 2000.
 and Funds Disbursed.
 


[[Page 28507]]

Appendix A--Matching Contributions

Acceptable Matching Contributions--

    Direct project-related expenditures for:

Equipment/Supplies
Labor (non-Federal employees)
Travel
Cash (non-Federal sources)
Related evaluation/implementation expenditures (non-Federal funds) 
incurred within previous 2 years (consult Evaluation Grants 
Coordinator)
Other (consult Evaluation Grants Coordinator)
Waiver-of-Overhead (within non-Federal agency/organization 
established policy guidelines)

Unacceptable Contributions--

Contributions of Federal employee staff time
Federal Aid in Wildlife/Sport Fish Restoration grants to States
Funds that have a Federal origin
Evaluation/implementation costs incurred> 2 years before project 
performance period
Any contribution used to match a previous Federal or non-Federal 
grant
Other contributions determined to be not acceptable (consult with 
Evaluation Grants Coordinator)

Appendix B--Budgets

                                            Preproposal Budget Format
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       FY00            FY01            FY02
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NAWCA Funds Requested...........................................  ..............  ..............  ..............
Matching Contributions..........................................  ..............  ..............  ..............
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................  ..............  ..............  ..............
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


                                                               Full Proposal Budget Format
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       FY00                            FY01                            FY02
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               NAWCA           Match           NAWCA           Match           NAWCA           Match
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Personnel...............................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
Jane Doe @  x  FTE......................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
Equipment...............................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
Supplies *..............................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
Travel..................................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
Other...................................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
Indirect Costs..........................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............................................  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............  ..............
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Criteria for supplies.

Appendix C--Sample Letter for Commitment of Matching Contributions

April 19, 1999.

Mr. David A. Smith,
Coordinator, North American Wetlands Conservation Council, North 
American Waterfowl and Wetlands Office, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Rm 
110, Arlington, VA 22203

    Dear Mr. Smith: The  is committed to providing funds to match the grant 
request entitled  submitted by . Contributions meet the 
eligibility requirements explained in the Request for Proposals for 
the North American Wetlands Conservation Act Evaluation Grants. The 
contribution does not include funds from the Federal Aid in 
Wildlife/Sport Fish Restoration grants to State programs or other 
Federal monies. Following is an explanation of contributions:
    We intend to provide <$$> in FY00 and <$$> in FY01. Of these 
funds, <$$> will be used for . This is the fair market value of 
these services.
    <$$> will be used for . This is the fair market value of these 
expenditures.
    <$$> are in-kind contributions that will be used for . This is the fair 
market value of these services.
     is pleased 
to be a partner in  and this match is put 
forward with full knowledge and support to leverage other non-
Federal and Federal grant funds.

    Sincerely,



Appendix D--Reporting Formats

    Return 3 copies to: Evaluation Grants Coordinator, North 
American Waterfowl and Wetlands Office, 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Rm 
110, Arlington, VA 22203.

A. Annual Performance Reporting--
I. Cover Page:
    Project Title
    Reporting Period
    PO and PI names and addresses
II. Executive Summary
III. Project Justification
IV. Objectives
V. Methods
VI. Accomplishments/Summary of Findings to date
VII. Management Outreach to date
VIII. Grant Funds Expended/Remaining
IX. Projected Activities/Time Table
X. Literature Cited

B. Project Completion Report--
I. Cover Page:
    Project Title
    Reporting Period
    PO and PI names and addresses
II. Executive Summary
III. Project Justification
IV. Objectives
V. Methods
VI. Results and Discussion/Productsa
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \a\ Include 3 hard copies of cartographic products 
that result from NAWCA Evaluation Grant projects.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

VII. Management Outreach and Impacts to date
VIII. Future Management Outreach and Outcomes
IX. Continuing Evaluation Needs--
    Institutionalizing the Evaluation Project
    Future Evaluation--the next steps
X. Literature Cited

    The detailed description of the submission and review schedule, 
format for pre-proposals and full proposals, and proposal review 
criteria, contained herein, may also be viewed and downloaded from the 
North American Waterfowl and Wetlands Office (NAWWO) internet web site 
at: http://www.fws.gov/r9nawwo/nawcahp.html after June 1, 1999, or by 
calling the NAWWO secretary at 703/358-1784. Pre-proposals and full 
proposals must contain all required components on the postmarked date. 
Pre-proposals and full

[[Page 28508]]

proposals lacking required components are subject to being declared 
ineligible and not further considered for funding.
    We have submitted information collection requirements for the NAWCA 
Evaluation Grants Program to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
for review and approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
Public Law 104-13. The OMB control number is 1018-0100. An agency may 
not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a 
collection of information request unless it displays a currently valid 
OMB control number. The information solicited: is necessary to gain a 
benefit in the form of a grant, as determined by the North American 
Wetlands Conservation Council and Migratory Bird Conservation 
Commission; is necessary to determine the eligibility and relative 
value of evaluation projects; and results in an approximate paperwork 
burden of 8 hours for each pre-proposal and 40 hours for each proposal; 
and does not carry a premise of confidentiality. The information 
collected in this program will not be part of a system of records 
covered by the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552(a)).

    Dated: May 21, 1999.
Jamie Rappaport Clark,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 99-13424 Filed 5-25-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P