Department of the Interior Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring Grant in the Greater Yellowstone Network

This Funding Announcement is not a request for applications. This announcement is to provide public notice of the National Park Service¿s intention to fund the following project activities without full and open competition.

ABSTRACT
Funding Announcement P13AS00033
Project Title Amphibian
Recipient Northern Rockies Conservation cooperative
Principle Investigator / Program Manager Margaret Schilling
Total Anticipated Award Amount $0.00 All funds will be on Task Agreements
Cost Share none
New Award or Continuation? Continuation
Anticipated Length of Agreement From date of award until March 30, 2019
Anticipated Period of Performance From date of award until March 30, 2019
Award Instrument Cooperative Agreement
Statutory Authority 16 USC 1g
CFDA # and Title 15.945 Cooperative Research and Training Programs
Single Source Justification Criteria Cited (2) Continuation
NPS Point of Contact June Zastrow 303-987-6718, june_zastrow@nps.gov

OVERVIEW

The objective of this Agreement is to carry out, in collaboration with NRCC, the amphibian monitoring protocol in the Greater Yellowstone Network (GRYN). The GRYN is a NPS Inventory and Monitoring Program with responsibility for monitoring amphibians in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks. The GRYN and NRCC have worked together to implement this protocol since 2010 and wish to continue this collaborative relationship.

The NRCC is a non-profit entity whose purpose is further research and science in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. NRCC’s programs gather scientific data to provide a well-rounded, reliable body of biological and social knowledge for improving conservation in natural resource.

The collaborative relationship between the NRCC and NPS presents a unique opportunity for adults of all ages to become involved with the Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring project. Direct, hands-on- experience in data collection techniques will enhance and strengthen technical abilities involving GPS, databases, and digital photography as well as foster a sense of land stewardship. Collaborating in the data analysis, interpretation and reporting of monitoring results will add and enhance the body of knowledge about the status and trends of amphibian species in the Greater Yellowstone. This work is of great interest to a wide range of natural resource managers and scientists throughout the world who are dealing with declines in amphibian species. The project results will be shared with neighboring agencies who also manage amphibian species and to natural resource conservation groups dedicated to amphibian conservation.

RECIPIENT INVOLVEMENT

A. NRCC agrees to:
1. Work with the NPS GRYN to collaboratively implement the Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring Protocol for the Greater Yellowstone Network.
2. Provide a project coordinator to participate in all phases of project management, including but not limited to, planning, scheduling, and determining catchment assignments; training field crews on monitoring protocol Standard Operating Procedures (SOP¿s), completing visual encounter surveys for amphibians within assigned catchments, and supporting efforts to summarize, analyze and prepare reports.
3. Cooperatively determine which party will apply for or renew applications for the NPS Research Permit at each park unit and submit the annual investigator¿s report.
4. Recruit, train and supervise NRCC field technicians assigned to the project. Ensure that at least one member of a field team is current in basic first aid, that all field crew members have bear safety training and that crews exercise risk management during field surveys.
6. If the need arises, as in a safety emergency, drive the government owned vehicle, ensuring that drivers have a valid driver¿s license and have completed training in defensive driving.
7. Provide field equipment such as waders, nets, compass, field notebooks, clipboards, pepper spray and other consumable supplies such as batteries and latex gloves. Provide sanitization gear for washing and disinfecting waders and nets.
8. Fully acknowledge the NPS in any publications or presentations using materials derived from project conducted through this cooperative agreement.
9. Manage and deliver photos following protocol guidance and allow the NPS to use photographs taken during field monitoring (including those that show people) in presentations, publications, or education and outreach materials displayed on the web.
10. Collaborate with the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative, the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, and other cooperators with statistical expertise to jointly analyze, interpret, co-author and publish results of data collected following the Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring Protocol.
11. Abide by the code of scientific and scholarly conduct established by NPS Director¿s Order #79: integrity of Scientific and Scholarly Activities (Section IV) available at: http://www.nps.gov/policy/Director¿s_Order_79.pdf.

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE INVOLVEMENT

Substantial involvement on the part the National Park Service is anticipated for the successful completion of the objectives to be funded by this award. In particular, the National Park Service will be responsible for the following:

A. NPS agrees to:
l. Provide financial assistance as provided for in Article VI.
2. Work with NRCC to collaboratively implement the Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring Protocol for the Greater Yellowstone Network.
3. Assign an aquatic ecologist to participate in all phases of project management, including but not limited to, planning, scheduling, securing accommodations, determining catchment assignments; training field crews on monitoring protocol Standard Operating Procedures (SOP¿s), completing visual encounter surveys for amphibians within assigned catchments; and leading the data analysis and report preparation.
4. Cooperatively determine which party will apply for or renew applications for the NPS Research Permit at each park unit and submit the annual investigator¿s report.
5. Issue government owned equipment for use by the NRCC project coordinator during the project, including but not limited to, Personal Data Assistants (PDA) for data collection, Global Positioning System (GPS) for navigation, Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) for daily check-in, and two-way digital park radios for communications with park dispatch.
6. Assign NPS data manager to provide database management and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) support for monitoring activities.
7. Provide statistical analysis and interpretation of data and ensure that results are peer reviewed and published in scholarly journals and the NPS National Resource Publication Management Series.
8. Conduct end of season reviews to exchange feedback on monitoring activities including safety and risk management. Revise, maintain and provide copies of the Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring Protocol whenever changes are made.
10. Provide NRCC personnel transportation (as a passenger) in the government vehicle when sampling together. Allow NRCC personnel to drive the government owned vehicle, if the need arises, and if licensing and defensive driving training requirements are met.
11. Work with the USGS Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative, the Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, and other cooperators with statistical expertise to jointly analyze, interpret, co-author and publish results of data collected following the Cooperative Amphibian Monitoring Protocol.
12. Abide by the code of scientific and scholarly conduct established by NPS Director¿s Order #79: integrity of Scientific and Scholarly Activities (Section IV) available at: http://www.nps.gov/policy/Director¿s_Order_79.pdf.

SINGLE-SOURCE JUSTIFICATION

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
SINGLE SOURCE POLICY REQUIREMENTS

Department of the Interior Policy (505 DM 2) requires a written justification which explains why competition is not practicable for each single-source award. The justification must address one or more of the following criteria as well as discussion of the program legislative history, unique capabilities of the proposed recipient, and cost-sharing contribution offered by the proposed recipient, as applicable.

In order for an assistance award to be made without competition, the award must satisfy one or more of the following criteria:

(1) Unsolicited Proposal ¿ The proposed award is the result of an unsolicited assistance application which represents a unique or innovative idea, method, or approach which is not the subject of a current or planned contract or assistance award, but which is deemed advantageous to the program objectives;

(2) Continuation ¿ The activity to be funded is necessary to the satisfactory completion of, or is a continuation of an activity presently being funded, and for which competition would have a significant adverse effect on the continuity or completion of the activity;

(3) Legislative intent ¿ The language in the applicable authorizing legislation or legislative history clearly indicates Congress¿ intent to restrict the award to a particular recipient of purpose;

(4) Unique Qualifications ¿ The applicant is uniquely qualified to perform the activity based upon a variety of demonstrable factors such as location, property ownership, voluntary support capacity, cost-sharing ability if applicable, technical expertise, or other such unique qualifications;

(5) Emergencies ¿ Program/award where there is insufficient time available (due to a compelling and unusual urgency, or substantial danger to health or safety) for adequate competitive procedures to be followed.

The National Park Service did not solicit full and open competition for this award based the following criteria:

(2) CONTINUATION

SINGLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION DESCRIPTION:

The NPS I&M program identified breeding amphibians as an ecosystem vital sign; consequently a cooperative approach to monitoring was initiated in 2005 with the objective to monitor annually. The NPS and NRCC have cooperated since 2010 to annually monitor the status of amphibians in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. In 2013 we assembled an interdisciplinary team to begin the data analysis for trends in both amphibian breeding and wetland inundation. The trend analysis is on-going and will continue into 2015. The NRCC research associate is an integral member of this interdisciplinary team as she happens to have the most extensive hands-on experience collecting and managing the field data which will help the team interpret the results for reporting and publication. A new CA will enable us to continue collecting data annually and to jointly analyze and publish the first ever amphibian trend report for our area.

Thus far our annual amphibian and wetland habitat monitoring has greatly increased the scientific understanding of wetland and amphibian vulnerability under a changing climate on lands with few anthropogenic impacts. This understanding is of utmost importance because wetlands are among the most climate-change-threatened habitats (IPCC 2008) and amphibians are among the most imperiled taxa (Adams et al. 2013) on Earth. Information generated from this monitoring effort should also help inform conservation decisions on public and privates lands throughout the Northern Rockies because it provides annual, spatially balanced evidence about the distribution and occurrence of amphibians and the inundation status of wetlands across dramatic elevation gradients and differing vegetation cover types.

This monitoring data should reduce uncertainty surrounding amphibian and wetland resources and strengthen opportunities to make informed, science-based decisions that will have the greatest likelihood of benefiting wetlands and wetland-dependent taxa on public lands and in a changing climate.

STATUTORY AUTHORITY

16 U.S.C. §I g – provides that the NPS may enter cooperative agreements that involve the transfer of NPS-appropriated funds to non-profit organizations for the public purpose of carrying out NPS programs pursuant to 31 US.C. 6305;

16 U.S.C. §593-1 – National Parks Omnibus Management Act of 1998- NPS Inventory & Monitoring Program.