Funding Opportunities

Funding for Water Resources 104g-General

The U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the National Institutes for Water Resources supports an annual call for proposals to focus on water problems and issues that are of a regional or interstate nature or relate to a specific program priority identified by the Secretary of the Interior and the Institutes.

The program objectives of the National Competitive Grants program are to promote collaboration between the USGS and university scientists in research on significant national and regional water resources issues; promote the dissemination and results of the research funded under this program; and to assist in the training of scientists in water resources.

Funding for this 2025 program is 1.85 million dollars in federal funds per year that are required to be matched with non-federal dollars. Any investigator at an accredited institution of higher learning in the United States is eligible to apply for a grant through a Water Research Institute or Center established under the provisions of the Water Resources Research Act.

Proposals are sought on the topic of improving and enhancing the nation’s water supply and availability, and promoting the exploration of new ideas that address or expand our understanding of water problems, including the following specific areas of inquiry (levels of priority are not assigned, and the order of listing does not indicate the level of priority):

Priority 1: Economic value of Information of the USGS streamgage network and associated National Water Information System (NWIS). Applicants should review the National Hydrologic Warning Council 2006 report for a listing of benefits categories. For this proposal, USGS is most interested in categories (1) through (3) in the 2006 report; categories (4) and (5) are of significant but lesser interest. USGS appreciates that proposals may seek a tradeoff between examining multiple benefit categories at a reduced geographic scale versus a limited number of benefits categories at a national scale. While preference will be given to those proposals that provide a Nation-wide assessment, please consider the minimum geographic scope to be Hydrologic Unit Code 12 (Hydrologic Unit Maps | U.S. Geological Survey).

An economic valuation should include the following items:

• Define the program: objective identification and scope
• Identify Costs and Benefits
  • Direct Costs: Include expenses such as funding, resources, labor, and implementation costs
  • Benefits: Identify direct market and non-market benefits
• Quantify Costs and Benefits
  • Monetary Valuation: Assign a monetary value to both costs and benefits where possible. This may include:
  • Market prices for goods and services
  • Willingness to pay for non-market benefits
  • Cost savings or increased productivity.
• Analyze timeframe and discounting
  • Time horizon: Determine the timeframe over which the costs and benefits will be evaluated.
  • Discount rate: Apply a discount rate to account for the time value of money, ensuring future benefits and costs are appropriately valued in present terms.
• Stakeholder Analysis
  • Identify Affected Parties: Understand who will benefit from or bear the costs of the program
• Report Findings
  • Documentation: Present the methodology, assumptions, and results clearly.
  • Recommendations: Provide actionable insights based on the analyses, discussing implications for policy and practice.

Available resources for USGS Streamgage Network:

• Congressional Research Service Report – USGS Streamgaging Network: Overview and Issues for Congress
• National Water Monitoring Network | U.S. Geological Survey
• Federal Priority Streamgages (FPS) and Re-Prioritization of the U.S. Geological Survey Federal Priority Streamgage Network
• Previous, similar work
  • https://water.usgs.gov/osw/pubs/nhwc_report.pdf
  • nhwc report final 030806.pub
• National Water Information System (NWIS)
  • Water Data for the Nation
  • National Water Dashboard
  • Explore USGS Water Data

Priority 2: Model Advancement and Machine Learning Integration

Explore methods to develop new hydrologic models in large, regional areas or, where possible, at the national level to enhance understanding of water availability. Provide information on promising modeling approaches to inform science questions specific to a region. Examples include:

• Machine Learning Techniques for Water Quality Data: Apply AI and machine learning methods to harmonize water quality data across different sources, improving integration and accessibility for hydrologic modeling.
• Groundwater and Base Flow Predictions: Specifically apply machine learning techniques to predict transient groundwater levels or base flow to streams, enhancing the understanding of these critical hydrologic processes.

Causal Machine Learning Exploration: Investigate the use of causal machine learning to evaluate current or ongoing studies impacted by non-causal modeling. This approach should help quantify the extent of the problem associated with non-causal machine learning modeling and inform the development of more robust, process-based modeling frameworks.

For more information, please review the RFP below.

Full proposals must be submitted through IWRRC.

There are multiple deadlines for proposal submission: See submission guidelines for specific information
September 3, 2025 at 5:00PM Eastern – Intent to Submit notification
September 18, 2025 at 10:00AM Eastern – Budget submission
September 26, 2025 at 10:00AM Eastern – Remaining proposal documents

2025 Request for Proposal (.pdf) 

Budget-justification (examples of good and bad budget justification)
Budget-sheet
104g-budget instructions
Data management checklist
IWRRC Required Statements
Attachment 1 – WRRA Special Terms and Conditions Geospatial Data
Attachment 2 – Focus Categories
DOI covered UAS assessment guide
Attachment 3 – Example of USGS Collaboration 
Common Form for Biographical Sketch (OMB 3145-0279) template
Common Form for Current and Pending (OMB 3145-0279) template
Other application documents needed include: SF-424, SF-424A, SF-LLL, and Certification Regarding Lobbying

The IWRRC has developed Submission Guidelines to provide assistance with the proposal process.

Funding for 104g Aquatic Invasive Species

Text provided from the RFP: The challenges and opportunities that link aquatic invasive species and water resources are poorly understood, despite the real and growing effect of numerous aquatic invasive species on water quality, water quantity, and aquatic ecosystems. Research is needed to better identify and understand these interactions and to guide management decisions that will help to improve invasive species management and thus reduce effects of invasive species on water resources and aquatic ecosystems at local, regional, and national scales.

Proposals are sought on the following specific areas of inquiry (levels of priority are not assigned, and the order of listing does not indicate the level of priority):

• Effects: Research that improves our understanding of the effects of aquatic invasive species on lakes, rivers, and associated tributaries in the upper Mississippi River basin, including changes to water quantity, water quality, and ecosystem dynamics.
• Characteristics: Research that identifies physical, biological, and chemical characteristics of water bodies that infer resistance and resilience to the distribution, establishment, and effects of aquatic invasive species in the upper Mississippi River basin. Research is needed to better understand these interactions to guide management decisions that will improve invasive species management and result in positive effects on aquatic ecosystems.
• Management: Research on assessment of the detection, spread, and management of aquatic invasive species in the upper Mississippi River basin and the connections to human dimensions, both socially and economically. Note that this does not include physical control of AIS.

For more information, please review the RFP below.

Full proposals must be submitted through IWRRC.

There are multiple deadlines for proposal submission: See submission guidelines for specific information
September 3, 2025 at 5:00PM Eastern – Intent to Submit notification
September 18, 2025 at 10:00AM Eastern – Budget submission
September 26, 2025 at 10:00AM Eastern – Remaining proposal documents

2025 Request for Proposal – Aquatic Invasive Species (.pdf)

Budget-justification (examples of good and bad budget justification)
Budget-sheet
104g-budget instructions
Data management checklist
IWRRC Required Statements
Attachment 1 – WRRA Special Terms and Conditions Geospatial Data
Attachment 2 – Focus Categories
DOI covered UAS assessment guide
Attachment 3 – Example of USGS Collaboration
Common Form for Biographical Sketch (OMB 3145-0279) template
Common Form for Current and Pending (OMB 3145-0279) template
Other application documents needed include: SF-424, SF-424A, SF-LLL, and Certification Regarding Lobbying

The IWRRC has developed Submission Guidelines to provide assistance with the proposal process.

104g PFAS National Competitive Research Grants

Text from the RFP: The challenges and opportunities of understanding the impact of per-and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) substances on water resources are poorly understood, despite the real and growing effect of this group of man-made substances on water quality. Research is needed to better understand these interactions and guide management decisions that will improve water resources at the regional scale or national scale.

Proposals are sought on the following specific areas of inquiry (levels of priority are not assigned, and the order of listing does not indicate the level of priority):

• Media-specific methods: Enhanced methods for detection on specific media, with a clear indication of
  • new or different compounds,
  • new or different methodological approaches,
  • lower detection levels for specific media or compounds, especially with respect to EPA health guidelines for PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic Acid) and PFOS (Perfluorooctane Sulfonate).

Media of interest include (in ranked order) (1) Tissues/plasma, (2) sediment, (3) air or interfaces, (4) water.

• Atmospheric sources: Improved understanding of atmospheric exchange in PFAS distribution and fate. This may include methods to determine transport of PFAS to the atmosphere and to subsequent receiving waters, such as a water method that determines “new” compounds based on their likelihood to occur in the atmosphere.
• Processes oriented at molecular level: Process-oriented research of PFAS fate, transport, and effects, with emphasis on molecular-level understanding of PFAS precursor transformation, sorption dynamics, or mechanisms of bioaccumulation and(or) biological/ecological effects, or biodegradation of PFAS along source to receptor pathways and identification of mitigation methods and engage modeling and forecasting processes for prediction, prevention, and mitigation of enviromental risk of exposure to PFAS in ecosystems and human population.

For more information, please review the RFP below.

Full proposals must be submitted through IWRRC.

There are multiple deadlines for proposal submission: See submission guidelines for specific information
September 3, 2025 at 5:00PM Eastern – Intent to Submit notification
September 18, 2025 at 10:00AM Eastern – Budget submission
September 26, 2025 at 10:00AM Eastern – Remaining proposal documents

2025 Request for Proposal – PFAS (.pdf) 

Budget-justification (examples of good and bad budget justification)
Budget-sheet
104g-budget instructions
Data management checklist
IWRRC Required Statements
Attachment 1 – WRRA Special Terms and Conditions Geospatial Data
Attachment 2 – Focus Categories
DOI covered UAS assessment guide
Attachment 3 – Example of USGS Collaboration
Common Form for Biographical Sketch (OMB 3145-0279) template
Common Form for Current and Pending (OMB 3145-0279) template
Other application documents needed include: SF-424, SF-424A, SF-LLL, and Certification Regarding Lobbying

The IWRRC has developed Submission Guidelines to provide assistance with the proposal process.