Department of the Interior’s WaterSMART Grant: Developing Climate Analysis Tools for Water Resources

The objective of this FOA is to invite universities, non-profits, and organizations with water or power delivery authority to leverage their money and resources by cost sharing with Reclamation on research activities designed to enhance the management of water resources, including developing tools to assess the impacts of climate change on water resources.

These research projects will focus on the knowledge gaps outlined in USGS Circular 1331: Climate Change and Water Resources Management—A Federal Perspective (Section 6). Research projects will support ongoing efforts under the Secure Water Act (Subtitle F of Title IX of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, P.L. 111-11 (42 USC 10364), including efforts within Department of the Interior (DOI) Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs), Basin Studies, and West-Wide Risk Assessments (WWRAs). These three programs serve important functions in addressing the effects of climate change on water resources: (1) LCCs are partnerships that bring together science and resource conservation to support and complement adaptation strategies addressing climate change and water conservation; (2) Basin Studies are comprehensive water supply and demand studies evaluating the ability to meet future water demands within a basin or sub-basin; and (3) WWRAs provide a consistent baseline of climate impact information that the Basin Studies may use. Applicants must provide a cost share of 50% or more of the total project cost.