Restoring and Protecting Piping Plover Nesting Habitat in the St. Louis River Estuary - Phase III | F17AS00106

Opportunity Information: Apply for F17AS00106

The grant opportunity titled "Restoring and Protecting Piping Plover Nesting Habitat in the St. Louis River Estuary - Phase III" is a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) project funded through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, administered through the Green Bay Ecological Services Field Office. It focuses on recovery support for the Great Lakes piping plover (Charadrius melodus), a federally protected shorebird that depends on open, sandy shoreline habitat for nesting. The overall purpose is to continue on-the-ground habitat work and community-facing efforts that make it more likely piping plovers can successfully return to, nest, and raise young in the St. Louis River Estuary, particularly along shoreline areas where plovers have been seen in recent years.

The project is tied directly to established regional planning and restoration priorities. Specifically, it is intended to advance recovery actions laid out in the Draft Wisconsin-Minnesota Piping Plover Management Plan and to help address "beneficial use impairments" within the St. Louis River Estuary Area of Concern. In practical terms, this means the work is not just about a single species, but also about improving ecological conditions in a historically impacted Great Lakes estuary where habitat quality and wildlife use are key measures of restoration success.

The funded activities concentrate on Minnesota Point and Wisconsin Point, two locations in the estuary where piping plovers have been recently observed and where suitable nesting habitat can be created or maintained. The work described includes habitat maintenance and restoration (such as keeping nesting areas open and suitable), direct site protection and monitoring (to reduce disturbance and track plover presence and nesting outcomes), and outreach and education (to build public understanding and cooperation around protecting nesting areas). In addition to these core tasks, the project includes an investigative component at the end of Minnesota Point to assess future plover management possibilities there, suggesting the effort is also meant to expand or refine where and how management might be effective over time.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant (CFDA 15.662) with an award ceiling of $60,000 and an expectation of a single award. It is not a competitive funding opportunity and does not include an application process. Instead, it is a notice of intent to make a single-source award to the St. Louis River Alliance (SLRA) under the Department of the Interior justification cited as 505 DM 2.14B (2 and 4). The rationale given is that competition is not practical because this Phase III effort is a continuation of work SLRA began in 2011. USFWS emphasizes SLRA's established track record in the project area, including sustained site monitoring and extensive work with local communities to build support and enthusiasm for piping plover recovery. That history is presented as the foundation for enabling breeding plovers to return to western Lake Superior, making the continued partnership the most efficient and effective way to achieve the project goals.

Key logistics in the posting include the funding opportunity number F17AS00106, an original posting date of February 1, 2017, and an original closing date of February 8, 2017, though the "closing" functions more as a notice timeline rather than a deadline for applicants because the award is intended for a named recipient. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as targeted continuation funding to maintain momentum on habitat improvement, protective management, monitoring, and public engagement activities that support piping plover recovery in a specific Great Lakes estuary restoration setting.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Restoring and Protecting Piping Plover Nesting Habitat in the St. Louis River Estuary - Phase III" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.662.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 01, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Feb 08, 2017 There is not an application process for this funding opportunity. This is a notice of intent to award a single source grant to the Saint Louis River Alliance under justification 505DM 2.14B 2 and 4. (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 $60,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for F17AS00106

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