V COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN RESTORATION PROGRAM Columbia River Basin Restoration Program Vision Statement The EPA Columbia River Basin Restoration Program—through the implementation of Clean Water Act Section 123—will be a catalyst for basin- wide toxics reduction work efforts, enabling communities to access unimpaired watersheds with healthy fish and wildlife and quantifiable toxics reductions in fish, wildlife, and water. EPA is soliciting applications from entities that are interested in acting as a Toxic Reduction Lead (TRL). The primary roles of a TRL are to: 1. Develop, implement, and manage a multi- phase or large-scale program or programs which leverage partnerships and include a comprehensive toxics reduction plan; 2. Lead program and policy development and provide technical assistance; 3. Award and manage subawards; 4. Participate in the Columbia River Basin Restoration Program Working Group and provide periodic program updates at the bi-annual meetings. An applicant's program implementation plan should consider how program outcomes will address EPA's FY2023 priorities, how collaborative and supportive relationships with partners will be established and maintained, and how the entity will support leading projects that are either geographically or substantively connected. EPA will not be funding standalone monitoring projects through this RFA; however, EPA can fund effectiveness monitoring, a form of monitoring specifically aimed at determining if an action is meeting, or has met, the goals associated with an implementation project. Programs, activities, and projects must occur within the Columbia River Basin (Basin). The Basin is defined as the Columbia River from the Pacific Ocean, including tidally influenced portions of tributaries of the Columbia River, up to the Canadian Border, including tributary basins of the Columbia River in that region. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law by President Biden in November 2021, provided the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with a historic investment of $79 million over a five-year period to implement Clean Water Act Section 123, the Columbia River Basin Restoration Program, through multi-year grants to reduce toxics in Columbia River Basin waters, fish, and wildlife. The Toxic Reduction Lead RFA will be open December 13th, 2022, through March 13th, 2023. EPA anticipates providing up to $40 million under this announcement. Approximately 5 to 10 cooperative agreements in total, ranging from $3 million to $7 million each, will be awarded. Project periods may extend up to 4-6 years, and a 25% match is required. This funding opportunity will be made available on grants.gov. EPA is soliciting applications from entities that are interested in acting as Toxic Reduction Lead. This grant competition will be for applicants that are interested in developing a program plan and leading projects that are either geographically or substantively connected. For example, a State Agency might want to apply to develop a program plan, and manage sub-awards for projects that could implement toxic TMDLs/water quality management plans throughout the state portion of the Basin; or a NGO might apply to develop a program plan to implement agricultural best practices projects or pollution prevention projects throughout the Basin. DECEMBER 2022 ------- INFORMATIONAL WEBINARS EPA will host the same informational webinar on two different dates. Potential applicants are encouraged to participate to learn more about the Columbia River Basin Restoration Program and the grant application process. Webinar links and dial-in information for the individual sessions can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/ columbiariver/columbia-river- basin-restoration-funding- assistance-program FOR MORE INFORMATION Please visit EPA's Columbia River Basin Restoration Funding Assistance Program webpage or contact Nicole Taylor at taylor.nicole@epa.gov or (206) 553-8322, if you need further information or have any questions regarding this RFA. WHO ARE ELIGIBLE ENTITIES? Eligible entities include State governments, Tribal governments, regional water pollution control agencies and entities, local government entities, nongovernmental entities, or soil and water conservation districts. WHAT TYPES OF PROJECTS ARE ELIGIBLE? All grant applications should focus on one or more of EPA's FY2023 program priorities: 1. Agricultural best practices to reduce toxics 2. Green infrastructure to reduce stormwater and improve water quality 3. Pollution prevention to prevent toxics from entering the environment 4. Cleaning up contaminated sites including targeted small-scale clean-up actions which do not duplicate with similar work efforts of other EPA funded programs including but not limited to CERCLA, RCRA, and Brownfields. 5. Community education and outreach to help the public take actions to reduce toxics in the Basin BACKGROUND The Columbia River Basin covers 260,000 square miles, federally recognized Tribes, areas of MT, ID, WA, and OR and smaller portions of WY, NV, and UT. The Basin provides benefits including commercial fisheries, agriculture, forestry, recreation, and electric power generation. Human activities have contributed toxic contaminants to the environment that contribute to human health and ecosystem risks. Throughout the Basin, fish species have accumulated contaminant levels that are harmful to people and wildlife. Toxics in fish are a primary health concern for Columbia River Basin Tribal people and other high fish consumers. CLEAN WATER ACT SECTION 123 - FEDERAL ACTION TO RESTORE THE BASIN The Columbia River Basin Restoration Act was enacted in December 2016, amending the Clean Water Act (CWA) to include Section 123, which directs EPA to: • Establish a Columbia River Basin Restoration Program; • Provide grants for projects for specific purposes; and • Establish a voluntary Columbia River Basin Restoration Working Group. EPA'S COMMITMENT TO TRIBAL HEALTH PROTECTION, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE The Columbia River Basin Restoration Program is focused on engaging Tribal and underserved communities in efforts to identify and reduce threats to their environment and community health. Toxics reduction will support climate resilience for the Columbia River Basin ecosystem by reducing aquatic ecosystem and human health stressors in an environment stressed by severe climatic events. COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN RESTORATION FUNDING ASSISTANCE PROGRAM The Columbia River Basin Restoration Act was enacted in December 2016, which directed EPA to provide competitive grants for toxics reduction actions throughout the Basin, In September 2020, using Congressional appropriations, EPA awarded the first 14 grants to increase monitoring to evaluate trends, increase agricultural best practices, increase green infrastructure, and increase pollution prevention and public engagement and education. In October 2022, EPA announced 25 newly awarded grants funded through CWA Section 123 with ongoing Congressional appropriations and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. DECEMBER 2022 ------- |