WaterSMART: Grants to Develop Climate Analysis Tools for FY 2011

The objective of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to invite universities, non-profit research institutions, and organizations with water or power delivery authority to leverage their money and resources by cost sharing with Reclamation on activities designed to enhance the management of water resources, including developing tools to assess the impacts of climate change on water resources. These projects will focus on the information gaps outlined in the joint Reclamation and United States Army Corps of Engineers Report titled Addressing Climate Change in Long-Term Water Resources Planning and Management: User Needs for Improving Tools and Information. 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 DOI Landscape Conservation Cooperatives (LCCs), Basin Studies, and West-Wide Climate Risk Assessments (WWCRAs). These three programs serve important functions in addressing the effects of climate change on water resources: • LCCs are partnerships that bring together science and resource conservation to support and complement adaptation strategies addressing climate change and water conservation. • Basin Studies are comprehensive water supply and demand studies evaluating the ability to meet future water demands within a basin or sub-basin. • WWCRAs provide a consistent baseline of climate impact information that the Basin Studies may use. Together, these programs support Reclamation’s efforts to meet the obligation under Section 9503 of the SECURE Water Act of establishing a climate change adaptation program. The research projects will assist these efforts by helping to narrow uncertainties, provide information in more usable forms, or develop more robust strategies for incorporating uncertainty into decision-making. Enhanced water management is a crucial element of any plan to address the Nation’s water issues. With leveraged water management research grants, an important step will be taken towards improving water management for a more efficient use of water in the West.