California Conservation Innovation Grant Program (CIG) - 2013

California CIG pre-proposals are to be submitted to the Davis, CA, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) State Office by 4:00 PM, Friday, March 22, 2013.

The Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) is a voluntary program intended to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies while leveraging Federal investment in environmental enhancement and protection, in conjunction with agricultural production. These projects may be watershed-based, regional, or statewide in scope. State, tribal, and local governmental entities, non-governmental organizations, and individuals may apply. Selection will be based on the criteria established in this notice and selected applicants may receive grants of up to 50 percent of the total project cost. Applicants must provide non-Federal funding for at least 50 percent of the project cost. Up to 50 percent (25 percent of the total project cost) of the applicant's match may be from in-kind contributions. The remainder must be cash.

CIG has two competitions available in fiscal year 2013 -- National and State. The announcement for program funding for the national competition is available below. Each state administering a CIG competition will announce funding availability through separate announcement.

National CIG Competition

For fiscal year 2013, NRCS is offering two CIG funding opportunities. The first one focuses in the following areas: Program Outreach Nutrient Management, Energy Conservation, Soil Health, Wildlife, Economics, Co-Management for Food Safety and CIG Projects Assessment. The deadline to submit pre-proposal applications is March 22, 2013.

Follow the link to obtain information and application assistance on the National CIG Competition: 2013 NRCS nationally-administered CIG grant program.

California CIG Competition

The CIG final rule describes the state component of CIG. The Request for Proposals (RFP) for fiscal year 2013 CIG program announcement is available from this website at the links below. The announcement describes California state CIG program requirements and application process. The intent of the state component is to provide flexibility to NRCS State Conservationists to target CIG funds to individual producers and smaller organizations that may possess promising innovations, but may not compete well on the larger scale of the national grants competition. The California state component of CIG is announced on this website and through public notices, separately from the national notice.

California 2013 CIG Announcement

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California FY 2013 CIG Program Announcement (PDF; 140 KB)

Contacts

Alan Forkey, Program Manager
Phone: 530-792-5653
Email: Alan.Forkey@ca.usda.gov

Erik Beardsley, Program Specialist
Phone: 530-792-5649
Email: Erik.Beardsley@ca.usda.gov

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