LONG ISLAND SOUND FUTURES FUND 2010

Request for Proposals

Applications must be submitted in the online application system by Friday, May 7, 2010 Midnight Eastern Daylight Time

Major Financial Support

Major financial support for the Long Island Sound Futures Fund (Sound Futures Fund) Grant Program is provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in concert with the Long Island Sound Study (LISS), the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Shell Marine Habitat Program, FedEx and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). Available funding for 2010 grants is projected to be approximately $3 million depending upon the availability of federal and private funds.

Major Technical Support

The United States Environmental Protection Agency, Regions I and II, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, New York and Connecticut Sea Grant, Interstate Environmental Commission, New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration review proposals and provide technical assistance to applicants and recipients.

Sound Futures Fund Priorities

This year the Sound Futures Fund will emphasize implementation projects focused on protecting and restoring Long Island Sound, particularly projects that:

restore and protect important fish and wildlife habitats; and
implement locally-based projects that improve water quality and protect water resources.

The Sound Futures Fund will also consider projects that:

support communities in developing and implementing watershed management plans;
encourage environmentally sensitive land-use planning and development;
develop the capacity of local governments, citizens groups, educational, and other organizations to promote community-based stewardship;
improve natural resources based public access to the Sound;
provide opportunities for direct educational experiences with the Sound; and
promote a greater understanding of the Sound and the interrelationship between its health and the condition of local watersheds.

Follow the links to understand how your project is consistent with the Long Island Sound Study's Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan (LISS CCMP) and the Long Island Sound 2003 Agreement.

Sign up for Workshop!!! Past and New Applicants - Many changes in the Long Island Sound Futures Fund!!

We recommend you review the extensively revised Sound Futures Fund Request for 2010 Proposals (RFP) and plan to participate in the online workshop. The focus of the workshops will be about changes to the RFP and the types of projects sought under the Sound Futures Fund. The online workshop will occur March 16, 2010, 1 pm - 3pm EDT. https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/906968809. You must register in order to participate.

Changes to the Long Island Sound Futures Fund!!

In response to the increased emphasis on implementation, the Sound Futures Fund RFP has been extensively revised from prior years in both the potential size of awards and in the categories eligible for funding. Major changes in the RFP are highlighted in red throughout the document.

Grant Size
There are three categories of grant awards available under the Sound Futures Fund:
1. Implementation Grants-Grant Awards of $20,000 to $500,000. Approximately 70% of the available funds from this year's announcement will be dedicated to implementation activities in this category. These awards must result in quantifiable pollutant reductions or habitat improvements (protection, enhancement, or restoration) that directly lead to measurable improvements in the health of Long Island Sound and its watershed. Implementation projects will involve either the physical restoration or protection of important coastal habitats, or watershed restoration projects designed to help attain water quality standards emphasizing management goals for nutrients, bacterial indicators and other pollutants identified in the LISS CCMP.
2. Planning, Innovation, and Education Grants-Grant awards ranging from $20,000 to $150,000. There are three funding ranges in this category:
  1. Innovative Management-Grants ranging from $20,000 to $150,000 will be awarded to test new and innovative ecosystem-based management approaches that will expand the collective knowledge about the most cost effective and sustainable approaches to water and habitat quality improvement.
  2. Planning and Design-Grants ranging from $20,000 to $60,000 will be awarded to support project planning and design activities that set the stage for the successful implementation of watershed restoration and conservation projects.
  3. Education-Grants ranging from $20,000 to $35,000 will be awarded to support education projects that involve the public to increase awareness, appreciation, and stewardship of Long Island Sound.
3. Small Grants-Grants ranging from $3,000 to $10,000 will be awarded to projects that involve public participation, information, and education. If your project involves an on-the-ground component such as habitat restoration, the major purpose of the project must involve public participation, information, and education. Total funding available for this category is capped at $90,000.
Geographic Focus
Habitat restoration or stewardship protection projects must fall within the coastal area boundary established by the LISS (e.g., the Long Island Sound and its coastal watersheds) as shown in Figure 1. This includes the coastal portions of New York City and the counties of Westchester, Nassau, Queens, Bronx, Manhattan and Suffolk in New York that drain to Long Island Sound, and the coastal area of Connecticut. Proposals for all other projects, e.g. watershed protection, stormwater management, and nonpoint source pollution control, and diadromous fish passage, may be in any portion of the Long Island Sound watershed within the states or Connecticut and New York.

Figure 1: The Long Island Sound Study coastal area project boundary (red line) is based on climatological and topographical features.
Eligible Applicants
State, tribal, and local governments, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, interstate entities, and regional water pollution control agencies are eligible for funding. For-profit entities are encouraged to partner with local governments or non-profit organizations.
Eligible Implementation Grant Activities. Eligible categories include, in no particular order:
1. Nitrogen Reduction and Stormwater and Nonpoint Source Pollution Control: Projects using innovative, sustainable, and cost-effective strategies - including market-based approaches - for reducing nutrient loads. Follow the link to A Total Maximum Daily Load Analysis to Achieve Water Quality Standards for Dissolved Oxygen in Long Island Sound (LIS TMDL) to establish whether your project objectives are consistent with the objectives of the LIS TMDL. The program seeks to support projects representing the diverse conditions (e.g., urban, rural, suburban, and agricultural) and sources of nutrients (e.g., stormwater, groundwater, and other non-point sources) that exist throughout the Long Island Sound watershed. Example topics follow in no particular order or priority.
  1. Stormwater Control
    1. Field-scale demonstrations of innovative technologies, conservation practices, and Best Management Practices (BMPs) that have the potential to significantly reduce excess nutrient loads. For example, using alternative stormwater designs such as water quality swales or rain gardens; replacing a percentage of lawns with a vegetative buffer strip of natural vegetation; installing on-site systems for retention and treatment of stormwater, etc.
    2. Demonstration projects utilizing pervious surfaces, such as porous pavement.
    3. Rainwater harvesting projects for official buildings (i.e. government, NGO, or university facilities; funding is not available for private citizens) such as green roof projects, rain barrels, etc. Projects that will reduce flooding during normal rainfall events (<2") and improve water quality of local water body. </li />
    4. Using stormwater BMPs to promote infiltration (for example, grassed swales, infiltration trenches, greenstreets, programs to disconnected downspouts, rain barrels, cisterns and/or stormwater planters to receive, retain and filter runoff, and retention or wet ponds).
    5. Installation of stormwater or other NPS control project BMPs combined with monitoring to document effectiveness in improving water quality. Such monitoring would establish a baseline and then effectively document water quality improvements. Project monitoring should determine the quality of runoff pre- and post-BMP implementation.
  2. Local Ordinances and Practices
    1. Retrofitting of catch basins, storm drains, etc., to reduce pollutants entering a water body.
  3. Hydrologic Modification:
    1. Projects aimed at reducing the impacts of hydrologic modification, specifically the alteration of stream flow by human activities (projects that reduce stream channelization, dams, etc. are examples of desired activities).
2. Habitat Restoration Projects that restore or enhance coastal habitats. Specific priority habitat types include coastal and island forests, tidal wetlands, freshwater wetlands, riverine migratory corridors, coastal grasslands, and coastal beaches and dunes. Follow the link to Long Island Sound Study Habitat Restoration Initiative (HRI) to access the complete list of priority habitat types and sites of interest for project work under the Sound Futures Fund. Preference will also be given to projects proposed on sites within an identified LISS Stewardship Initiative Area. Follow the link to the Stewardship Initiative for more information on the 33 Inaugural Stewardship Areas.
  1. Applicants are required to review the information provided on the LISS habitat restoration website. Please follow the link to Special Instructions for Habitat Restoration Proposals. The instructions provide additional guidance about developing a habitat restoration proposal for the Sound Futures Fund. The issues addressed in the special instructions are also addressed in the form of questions in the Sound Futures Fund application. Review of the special instructions will assist you in preparation of your proposal.
  2. Applicants are also required to contact one of the technical advisors in the category of habitat restoration to discuss their project prior to submitting an application. Follow the link to Technical Assistance for the contact information.
  3. For projects proposing on-the-ground restoration, preference will be given to those for which applicable permit applications have been submitted or approved. Restoration projects that do not have basic permitting submitted or approved will not be funded.
  4. Permission for the proposed activity must be documented in a letter from the landowner(s).
  5. Habitat creation (e.g., destroying one habitat type in favor of another) projects will not be funded nor will projects to modify a habitat that is currently healthy and functioning. Preference will be given to projects proposed on sites within an identified LISS Stewardship Initiative Area.
3. Species Conservation: Projects to protect or restore populations of endangered, threatened, or at-risk species. Projects that support management, planning and restoration recommendations of the New York State Wildlife Action Plan (pages 279-320) and Connecticut (Review chapters 3 and 4) State Wildlife Action Plan.
4. Project types include:
  1. Projects to increase freshwater and diadromous fish populations and other aquatic species, such as river herring (alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus) and blueback herring, through the protection, restoration and enhancement of spawning and rearing habitat, including such projects as reconfiguring or removing barriers to fish passage (removing small dams, culverts or other physical barriers which also can benefit communities through reduced flood impacts and removal of potential liability), maintenance of critical in-stream flows for fish passage, and promoting stewardship activities by involving angler groups and other community-based organizations.
  2. Projects to enhance or restore native shellfish populations and/or to restore non-commercially harvested shellfish beds and reefs to enhance water quality or spawning stock habitat areas. Projects involving restoration or repair of existing shellfish beds for commercial harvesting purposes or establishing new shellfish habitat for commercial purposes are ineligible for Sound Futures Fund grants.
  3. Management of vegetation and predators in beach areas used by beach and island ground-nesting birds, transient waterfowl and horseshoe crabs.
  4. Stewardship programs at beaches during key nesting and migration periods to minimize disturbance to those areas.
5. Stewardship: Projects to enhance the resource values of the stewardship areas identified by the LISS Stewardship Initiative, using creative partnerships with local communities and landowners to protect open space, preserve and enhance existing conservation values, and to increase public access to the Sound. Follow the link to the Stewardship Initiative for more information on the 33 Inaugural Stewardship Areas and the publicly owned stewardship sites within them. Projects are preferred that preserve or enhance ecological function and where appropriate and possible may improve natural resource-based recreation and public access in LISS Stewardship Areas. Project types include:
  1. Acquisition of open space (e.g. fee simple, conservation easement).
  2. Cooperative planning and management of environmental resources to prevent the loss of and sustain ecological values at a site.
    Stand-alone public access such as creation of boat launches, fishing piers, public viewing areas, waterfront trails or walkways are not eligible for funding under the Sound Futures Fund.
    
    For more information about stewardship acquisition priorities under the Sound Futures Fund follow the link to NOAA's Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Programs (CELCP) in New York (see e-Appendix D) and Connecticut. High-ranking projects within these two state programs' criteria are preferred by the Sound Futures Fund, although all criteria under those programs need not be met. Please note:
  3. Applicants are required to contact a technical assistance advisor in the category of stewardship to discuss their project prior to submitting an application.
  4. Applicants are required to submit a letter from the landowner stating willingness to sell for conservation purposes. The letter does not need to commit the landowner to any specific action other than openness to negotiating with the conservation organization for the purpose of protecting the property.
Eligible Planning, Innovation, and Education Grant Activities
Special Opportunity! FedEx has identified New York City as one of 12 U.S. communities where it will fund grassroots conservation projects in 2010 and 2011. The company is interested in funding a project that supports community involvement in the boroughs of New York City that fall within the watershed boundaries of the Long Island Sound (Queens, Bronx, Manhattan). One or more projects in the Planning, Innovation, and Education grant categories or the small grant category will be selected, in part, based on provision of a community service day where LISS partners may participate in an urban restoration project. Project types might include, but are not limited to, planting trees or native plants, pulling invasive plants, removing trash from urban waterways, installing rain gardens. The LISFF application asks applicants to describe this element in their proposal.
Eligible categories include, in no particular order:
1. Nitrogen Reduction and Stormwater and Nonpoint Source Pollution Control: Projects that expand the collective knowledge on the most innovative, sustainable and cost-effective strategies - including market-based approaches - for reducing nutrient loads. Follow the link to LIS TMDL to establish whether your project objectives are consistent with its objectives. The program seeks to support projects representing the diverse conditions (e.g., urban, rural, suburban, and agricultural) and sources of nutrients (e.g., stormwater, groundwater, and other non-point sources) that exist throughout the Long Island Sound watershed. Example topics follow in no particular order or priority.
  1. Stormwater Control
    1. Field-scale demonstrations of innovative technologies, conservation practices, and Best Management Practices (BMPs) that have the potential to significantly reduce excess nutrient loads. For example, using alternative stormwater designs such as water quality swales or rain gardens; replacing a percentage of lawns with a vegetative buffer strip of natural vegetation; installing on-site systems for retention and treatment of stormwater, etc.
    2. Demonstration projects utilizing pervious surfaces, such as porous pavement.
  2. Local Ordinances and Practices
    1. Programs to encourage changes in zoning and housing regulations that promote compact, multi-use development and innovative practices (such as gray water reuse).
    2. Programs to change local or state snow removal and ice control practices to encourage pre-storm salting that uses a saline mixture to coat roadways, thereby reducing salt application rates and improving road treatment.
    3. Inter-municipal agreements for watershed management to encourage cooperation in comprehensively addressing sources of nonpoint source pollution including, but not exclusive to those addressed through storm water management (e.g., septic system management, chemical pollutants, etc.).
    4. Water quality trading demonstrations (including point source to nonpoint source) and other market-based strategies to reduce nutrient loads to the Sound and its tributaries. Follow the link for information about how to remain in accordance with EPA policies and guidance and state policies, local water quality objectives, and the LIS TMDL.
  3. Home Lawn & Garden Care
    1. Projects that develop, promote, and implement local regulations for non-agricultural turf fertilizer (i.e., lawns) utilizing best management practice protocols, educational materials, and outreach tools to reach public management agencies and/or the general public. For more information, follow the link to the State of CT's organic lawn care program or NYSDEC's Green Lawns and Gardens.
    2. Projects that develop and promote guidelines for non-agricultural pesticide use utilizing best management practice protocols, educational materials, and outreach tools.
  4. On-site Wastewater Treatment Systems
    1. Identify and promote innovative ways to improve management of onsite disposal systems or onsite wastewater treatment systems to protect or restore water resources by reducing pollutant loadings.
    2. Education and outreach efforts, including social marketing or other innovative public outreach techniques, on the proper design, construction, use, and maintenance of on-site wastewater systems.
  5. Assessments
    1. Field and modeling demonstrations of the potential benefits and costs of Nutrient Bioextraction (Nutrient Bioextraction is an environmental management strategy by which nutrients are removed from an aquatic ecosystem through the harvest of enhanced biological production, including but not limited to the aquaculture of suspension-feeding shellfish and/or algae.
    2. Local nonpoint source pollution control assessments to assess programs and practices to prevent and reduce nonpoint source pollution. Several assessment methods exist, that can be used to identify gaps and solutions to prevent and reduce nonpoint source pollution. Follow the link to examples of methods contained in a manual entitled Protecting Water Resources through Local Regulation: A Manual for New York Municipalities.
    3. Projects designed to quantify the effectiveness of municipal stormwater management programs.
  6. Boats/Cars
    1. Clean boating programs, including education on pumpout requirements for No Discharge Areas, bottom paint education, etc., focused on boaters, marinas, boatyards and marine retailers encouraging positive action toward pollution reduction; and clean boat cleaning/painting programs. Follow the link to clean marina information program at Connecticut Clean Marina Program or New York Sea Grant's Environmental Best Management Practices.
2. Watershed Planning and Management: Projects to provide technical assistance support and education to municipalities in watershed planning and management, development, and implementation of projects identified in watershed management plans, and development of new watershed management plans. Example topics follow in no particular order or priority.
  1. Watershed Planning
    1. Projects to develop or implement watershed management plans in collaboration with locally-based public and private entities. Watershed management plans should include goals to: expand the percentage of riverine miles and coastal shoreline with natural vegetated buffers; support Low Impact Development (LID) programs to reduce runoff volume and pollutant load from development and encourage municipalities to adopt a "no net increase in runoff" approach that seeks to cap the water quality and quantity impacts of impervious surfaces in the watershed; and develop alternative green infrastructure approaches to traditional hard methods in the Long Island Sound watershed , including, but not limited to, LID techniques, alternative site design concepts, sustainable storm water management strategies, community greening strategies for adding natural open space, tree planting, native species planting/retention, green roofs and rain gardens, gray water and wastewater reuse, and incentive plans to encourage implementation, restoration and/or protection.
    2. Assessment, development, and adoption of consistent watershed based multi-jurisdictional land use policies to advance coastal resource/water quality protection goals (e.g., setting standards in coastal areas for impervious surface coverage and increasing the size of upland review areas, etc.).
    3. Development of comprehensive watershed-based municipal/inter-municipal management plans that addresses both water quantity and quality (e.g., sharing O&M equipment to maintain pervious surfaces, etc.).
    4. Developing strategies to mitigate and/or adapt to climate change.
    5. Projects for assisting municipalities to incorporate LID and green storm water best management practices (Green BMPs) into local zoning and building regulations.
  2. Local Ordinances and Practices
    1. Support implementation of local land use controls for watershed protection encompassing comprehensive planning, zoning, subdivision review, site planning, overlay districts, and other local land use control techniques available.
    2. Developing a single or multi-jurisdictional stormwater utility to generate a sustainable source of funding for municipal stormwater management.
    3. Development of land use practices that avoid conversion of areas that are particularly susceptible to erosion and sediment loss, preserve areas that provide important water quality benefits and/or are necessary to maintain riparian and aquatic biota, and ensure site development, including roads, highways, and bridges, that protects the natural integrity of ground and surface waters and natural drainage systems.
  3. Hydrologic Modification
    1. Projects aimed at reducing the impacts of hydrologic modification, specifically the alteration of stream flow by human activities (projects that reduce stream channelization, dams, etc. are examples of desired activities).
    Habitat Restoration: Projects for activities (e.g. engineering design and assessments and evaluations) necessary to develop plans to restore or enhance coastal habitats and riverine migratory corridors, consistent with the goals of and identified site locations of the Long Island Sound Study Habitat Restoration Initiative and sites within an identified LISS Stewardship Initiative Area. Follow the link to the Stewardship Initiative for more information on the 33 Inaugural Stewardship Areas.
    
    Priority habitat types include coastal and island forests, tidal wetlands, freshwater wetlands, riverine migratory corridors, coastal grasslands, and coastal beaches and dunes.
    
    Applicants are required to review the information provided on the LISS habitat restoration website. Please follow the link to Special Instructions for Habitat Restoration Proposals for additional guidance about how to develop a habitat restoration proposal. The special instructions have been translated into questions in the online application. A review of the special instructions will help inform the development of your final application.
    
    Applicants are also required to contact one of the technical advisors in the category of habitat restoration to discuss their project prior to submitting an application. Follow the link to Technical Assistance for the contact information.
    
    Habitat creation (e.g., destroying one habitat type in favor of another) projects will not be funded nor will projects to modify a habitat that is currently healthy and functioning.
3. Invasive Species Control:
  1. Projects to control or manage invasive animal or plant species affecting Long Island Sound's coastal ecosystem. Applications for invasive species projects must include a clear long-term management and maintenance strategy. Preference will be given to projects focused on controlling new invasive species for which there is potential for eradication. Projects that propose to control widespread non-native species, such as watermilfoil, will not be funded.
  2. Projects to establish invasive species monitoring and reporting protocols. Protocols must feature standardization in training, data collection, and reporting. The protocols must focus on early detection of new infestations and monitoring of known populations developing a list of sentinel sites, reviewing data collection and reporting protocols for databases already in existence (including the marine database housed by MIT Sea Grant, United States Geological Service, etc.), developing complementary protocols and Quality Assurance/Quality Control protocols for data collection, and providing training. The protocols should also identify the role of possible partner organizations, such as local and regional Integrated Ocean Observing Systems (e.g. the Long Island Sound Integrated Coastal Observing System (LISICOS), the NorthEast Regional Association (NERA), and the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association (MACOORA), and other new or ongoing regional initiatives in ecosystem-based management, such as the New York Ocean and Great Lakes Ecosystem Conservation Council (OGLECC).
4. Species Conservation: Planning or design projects to protect or restore populations of endangered, threatened, or at-risk species. Follow the link to information about the types of projects to support management, planning and restoration recommendations of the New York (page 137-141) and Connecticut (Chapter 3 and 4) State Wildlife Action Plans.
  
  Project types include:
  1. Projects to increase freshwater and diadromous fish populations and other aquatic species, such as river herring (alewife, Alosa pseudoharengus) and blueback herring, through the protection, restoration and enhancement of spawning and rearing habitat, including such projects as reconfiguring or removing barriers to fish passage (removing small dams, culverts or other physical barriers which also can benefit communities through reduced flood impacts and removal of potential liability), maintenance of critical in-stream flows for fish passage, and promoting stewardship activities by involving angler groups and other community-based organizations.
  2. Projects to enhance or restore native shellfish populations and/or to restore non-commercially harvested shellfish beds and reefs to enhance water quality or spawning stock habitat areas. Projects involving restoration or repair of existing shellfish beds for commercial harvesting purposes or establishing new shellfish habitat for commercial purposes are ineligible for Sound Futures Fund grants.
  3. Management of vegetation and predators in beach areas used by beach and island ground-nesting birds, transient waterfowl and horseshoe crabs.
  4. Stewardship programs at beaches during key nesting and migration periods to minimize disturbance to those areas;
  5. Implementation of programs that reduce the presence of feral domestic species and wildlife predators on beach and ground-nesting birds.
5. Stewardship: Projects to enhance the resource values of the stewardship areas identified by the LISS Stewardship Initiative, using creative partnerships with local communities and landowners. Follow the links to the Stewardship Initiative for more information on the 33 Inaugural Stewardship Areas. Projects are preferred that preserve or enhance ecological function and where appropriate may improve natural resource-based recreation and access to LISS Stewardship Areas. For information about priorities for stewardship acquisition follow the link to NOAA's Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Programs (CELCP) in New York (see e-Appendix D) and Connecticut (refer to pages 2, 6, 9). High-ranking projects that fit within these two state programs' criteria are preferred by the Sound Futures Fund, although all criteria under those programs need not be met. Project types include:
  1. Administrative costs of acquisition (title searches, appraisals, fees, etc.). Projects or programs to provide tools or technical assistance to local decision-makers or landowners to protect the ecological value of a LISS Stewardship Area.
  2. Activities/program to promote the principles and implementation of low-impact development, or to develop a watershed-based management plan for a LISS Stewardship Area.
    - Applicants are required to contact the technical advisor when proposing an acquisition under the stewardship category to discuss their project prior to submitting an application.
    - Applicants are required to submit a letter from the landowner confirming willingness to sell for conservation purposes when proposing an acquisition under the stewardship category prior to submitting an application. The letter does not need to commit the landowner to any specific action other than openness to negotiating with the conservation organization for the purpose of protecting the property.
    - Stand-alone public access such as creation of boat launches, fishing piers, public viewing areas, waterfront trails or walkways are not eligible for funding under the Sound Futures Fund.
6. Education: Programs, activities, and related projects to promote a greater understanding of Long Island Sound. Proposals integrating direct experiential or hands-on elements are preferred. Proposals to develop new curriculum will not be supported. Please note the maximum award for an educational project is still $35,000. Proposals are sought for projects that:
  1. Employ community-based social marketing to encourage citizens to use appropriate environmental behaviors to improve environmental quality; these projects can address the public perception of sources of pollution ranging from pet waste, wildlife feeding, illicit stormwater connections, leaking sewer pipes, failing septic systems, combined sewer overflows and vessel waste discharge.
  2. Help raise awareness of Long Island Sound's ecological and cultural history, fund projects to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the early Dutch exploration of Long Island Sound (1613-1614) with an emphasis on celebrating the public's use of the Sound from the pre-colonial era to the present.
Eligible Activities - Small Grants
Proposals can include, but are not limited to, the following: Community-based social marketing, environmental festivals, mobile exhibits, boat tours, educational theater, estuary exploration, fishing clinics, marine debris and floatable reduction and removal, commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the early Dutch exploration of Long Island Sound (1613-1614) with an emphasis on celebrating the public's use of the Sound from the pre-colonial era to the present, beach clean ups, curb your dog campaign, interpretive signage, discouraging waterfowl feedings, septic system maintenance, household waste collections and pharmaceutical take-back programs, watershed initiatives, storm drain stenciling/marking, monitoring, a guide for Long Island Sound exotic species, native plant sales, beach grass plantings, pet store and garden store pollution prevention programs, Long Island Sound curriculum inventory, signage, posters, workshops, videos, school programs, seal census, and spill prevention programs. Proposals are specifically requested for activities or events that recognize and celebrate Long Island Sound as part of National Estuaries Day 2010. New curriculum development will not be funded.
Show How Well Your Project Fits!
Your project will be more competitive if you show its compatibility with federal or state management goals or programs, such as the: CCMP and the LIS TMDL, the Habitat Restoration and Stewardship Initiative. Links to these plans are found within the body of the RFP. Follow the link to the New York State Coastal Zone Management plans for Long Island Sound or the Connecticut Coastal Zone Management plans.
Technical Assistance
Technical assistance is available from our state and federal partners for help in the development of your application and project planning, design, and implementation. Applicants are strongly encouraged to review the Technical Assistance page, contact one or more of the technical advisors in advance of sending in your application, and to incorporate technical assistance into your projects as appropriate. Applicants for habitat restoration and stewardship acquisition projects must consult with a technical advisor in advance of submitting an application.
Number of Applications
The maximum number of proposals per organization is limited to three. For example, you may submit two large grant and one small grant proposal for a total of three. Universities are excluded from this limit, since they contain multiple eligible departments or investigators. However, no more than one proposal will be accepted from any individual principal investigator. Please note while you may submit multiple proposals, the likelihood you will be funded for all proposals is very dependent upon available funding. Each year the Sound Futures Fund receives more proposals than there is available funding to support. Hence, we recommend rather than submitting the maximum number of proposals, you select your best subset of proposals and especially those that are implementation projects with tangible outcomes measured in water or habitat quality protection or improvement.
Standards for Evaluation of Application
The Advisory Review Team for the Sound Futures Fund will use the following standards to evaluate proposals. These standards are integrated into the application.
- Please note proposals without sufficient information (text, maps, photos, etc.) to support evaluation will be rejected.
- Proposals that do not provide adequate assurance that the applicant has received or is likely to receive all necessary permits and clearances to complete the work within the project period will also be rejected.
The standards for project evaluation are listed below and include the maximum number of points in parentheses.
1. Relevance
  1. Correlation to priorities of the request for proposal (10 points)
  2. Potential to restore or protect the health and living resources of the Long Island Sound (10 points)
  3. An effective strategy to disseminate results (5 points)
  4. Transferability of information developed as a result of project (5 points)
2. Potential for project success
  1. Clarity & attainability of proposed outputs (deliverables at close of project period) and outcomes (years after close of project period) (10 points)
  2. Soundness of technical approach (10 points)
  3. Reasonable timeframe to complete the project (5 points)
  4. Reasonable and justified budget request (5 points)
  5. Applicant experience and qualifications (5 points)
  6. Facilities and resources to achieve objectives (5 points)
  7. If applicable, applicant's history of past grant performance (10 points)
  8. Applicant has appropriate partners to complete the project (5 points)
3. Comparison to other projects
  1. Cost-effective project (5 points)
  2. High level of matching funds (10 points)
Time Period for Project Completion
Projects should be completed within one year to 15 months upon receipt of grant award letter. For stewardship acquisition projects the project period can be up to two years. We understand a grant may only cover one year of a project which has multiple parts. However, the part of the project you are applying for must be completed in that time period. You can explain in the application that the funding will only be for the first phase of the project and that there are more elements to be developed and implemented to complete the larger project, but the part that is funded in this grant round must be completed in the time period described above.
Match
While match is not required for all grants under the Sound Futures Fund, it is a factor in the project evaluation and scoring. Preference will be given to projects with at least a 1:1 match. Applicants are encouraged to show federal partner contributions as well, although these contributions will not count towards match.
Applicants having difficulty securing match are encouraged to contact lynn.dwyer@nfwf.org for information on potential sources of matching funds.

Matching funds may include cash, in-kind contributions of staff and volunteer time, work performed, materials and services donated, or other tangible contributions to the project objectives and outcomes. The cost of recent land acquisition or easement may also qualify as match for a project involving work at the acquired site. To be eligible, matching contributions must be:
- non-Federal in origin (federally appropriated or managed funds are ineligible);
- raised and dedicated specifically for the project;
- spent between the project start and end dates designated in the grant application;
- voluntary in nature (mitigation, restitution, or other permit or court-ordered settlements are ineligible); and
- applied only to the Long Island Sound Futures Fund grant and not to any other matching programs.
Support Letters
You may provide a maximum of 5 letters. The purpose of a support letter is to show the level and type of support for the project among interested constituencies. Support letters should not be from persons affiliated with the applicant's organization (e.g., Board of Directors). Project partners are encouraged to submit letters to confirm their contribution to the project. For example, a letter from a manager of National Wildlife Refuge generally supporting the project of Friends group on refuge lands is acceptable or from a City Official supportive of work in a community park, a Boy or Girl Scout leader who is committing their packs to an invasive species control project, etc. For habitat restoration projects, letters documenting permission to work on private, federal or state land are required.
All letters must be received by Friday, May 7, 2010 Midnight Eastern Daylight Time and uploaded as scanned or other electronic formats into your online application. Letters received after that time will not be included with your application. For this reason, we suggest you immediately request letters from potential supporters to allow them to prepare the letters in time upload into the application.
Permitting
If applicable, applicants will be required to provide sufficient documentation with regard to all necessary permits and clearances that the project expects to receive or has received in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Endangered Species Act (ESA), and any other federal, state, or local ordinances. Consult Sound Futures Fund technical assistance for permit guidance. It is recommended that applicants reach out to the Sound Futures Fund technical assistance for information about required permits.
Projects Involving Data Collection
A United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Quality Assurance Project Plan (QAPP) documents the planning, implementation, and assessment procedures for a particular project, as well as any specific quality assurance and quality control activities. It integrates all the technical and quality aspects of the project in order to provide a "blueprint" for obtaining the type and quality of environmental data and information needed for a specific decision or use. All work performed or funded by the Sound Futures Fund that involves the acquisition of environmental data must have an approved QAPP. Where data collected will not be used externally such as with a classroom based water monitoring exercise to train students about data collection methods a QAPP would not be required. If data collected will inform management by a public agency or is part of research by a principal investigator, a QAPP will be required. If you have questions about whether you require a QAPP follow the link to information on QAPPs or contact Lynn.Dwyer@nfwf.org.
Restrictions
- Funds cannot be used for political advocacy, boycotts, litigation expenses, terrorist activities or activities conducted in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
- Funding for indirect costs, overhead, contingencies, and miscellaneous costs are not allowed. Waiver of such funds cannot be used as match.
- Funds cannot be for legally mandated actions under local, state or federal law, and/or associated with administrative permit conditions or terms of settlement agreements. Grantees and projects must be in compliance with all local, state and federal law.
- Habitat creation (e.g., destroying one habitat type in favor of another) projects will not be funded nor will projects to modify a habitat that is currently healthy and functioning.
- Projects involving restoration or repair of existing shellfish beds for commercial harvesting purposes or establishing new shellfish habitat for commercial purposes are not eligible for funding.
- Stand-alone public access such as creation of boat launches, fishing piers, public viewing areas, waterfront trails or walkways are not eligible for funding under the Sound Futures Fund.
- New curriculum development is not eligible for funding.
- Proposals for research projects are not eligible for support under the Sound Futures Fund. Those interested in research should follow the link to LISS Research Grant Program.
How to Apply
Submit a full-proposal via the *on-line full proposal application by Friday, May 7, 2010 Midnight Eastern Daylight Time. *Please note you will need to register as a new user unless you have previously applied to NFWF under our online system.
Notification of Awards
Applications must be submitted on-line by Friday, May 7, 2010 Midnight Eastern Daylight Time. Award notification will be made by late October 2010.*
*Please do not contact NFWF regarding the status of your proposal until after the award announcement date.
Award and Contracting Process
Proposals received will be reviewed by the Sound Futures Fund Advisory Review Team and ranked according to section J of this RFP "Standards for Evaluation of Application." Subsequently, applicants will receive email notification of the decision. After project selection, a NFWF Project Administrator will work with directly with the grantee to prepare grant agreements and other necessary paperwork based on approved project proposal. Following approval of the grantee's financial and legal documentation, budget and programmatic deliverables, a grant agreement will be drafted and emailed for signature by the grant recipient. The recipient then returns two copies of the signed agreement to NFWF and is then able to request payment of grant funds. Recipients will be expected to submit interim, annual and final financial and programmatic reports. Ten percent of the grant award is held-back until NFWF receives and approves a final programmatic and financial report.
Questions
Contact Lynn Dwyer via email at lynn.dwyer@nfwf.org or John Wright at john.wright@nfwf.org.