Torch/Platform Irene Oil Spill Restoration | F19AS00025

Opportunity Information: Apply for F19AS00025

The Torch/Platform Irene Oil Spill Restoration grant opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number F19AS00025) is a discretionary federal funding program offered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. It is structured as a cooperative agreement, which generally means the selected recipient should expect to work closely with the Fish and Wildlife Service during planning and implementation rather than operating entirely independently. The funding is categorized under Disaster Prevention and Relief (CFDA 15.658), reflecting that the work supports restoration actions associated with oil spill impacts and related environmental recovery priorities.

The project focus is European beach grass removal on the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge. European beach grass is a non-native invasive plant that can radically alter dune ecosystems by trapping sand and stabilizing dunes that would otherwise remain more open and dynamic. When dunes become overly stabilized, the landscape can lose the broad, sparsely vegetated sandy areas that certain coastal wildlife species need for nesting, foraging, and movement. This opportunity is designed to restore or improve those natural dune conditions by reducing or removing the invasive grass, thereby benefiting habitat quality for two sensitive coastal bird species: the western snowy plover and the least tern. Both species rely on open sand and low vegetation structure, and invasive dune grasses can make nesting areas less suitable by changing topography, increasing vegetation density, and potentially influencing predator access and visibility.

Funding is limited to a single expected award, with an award ceiling of $109,000. The applicant pool is narrowly defined: eligible applicants are nonprofit organizations with IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) status, excluding institutions of higher education. This suggests the agency intended the work to be carried out by an on-the-ground conservation nonprofit capable of implementing habitat restoration activities, coordinating field crews, and meeting federal compliance, reporting, and coordination requirements associated with a cooperative agreement.

The notice was created on November 7, 2018, with an original closing date of November 12, 2018, indicating a very short application window. That typically signals either a targeted solicitation aimed at a specific type of partner, a time-sensitive restoration need, or a project that had already been scoped and required quick deployment. In practical terms, an applicant would have needed to be ready to move quickly, already familiar with the refuge setting, and able to demonstrate relevant experience with invasive plant management in sensitive coastal dune habitats, including methods that minimize disturbance during nesting seasons and protect the very habitat features the project is meant to restore.

In summary, this opportunity provides up to $109,000 through a cooperative agreement to support invasive European beach grass removal on the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge, with the specific conservation goal of improving habitat conditions for western snowy plovers and least terns as part of Torch/Platform Irene oil spill restoration efforts. It is administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service, is open only to qualifying 501(c)(3) nonprofits (not universities), and was designed to result in one award under the Disaster Prevention and Relief restoration framework.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the disaster prevention and relief sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Torch/Platform Irene Oil Spill Restoration" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.658.
• This funding opportunity was created on Nov 07, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Nov 12, 2018. (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 $109,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

Apply for F19AS00025

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