Environmental DNA Sampling in the Lower Roanoke River | W9126G 21 2 SOI 4742

Opportunity Information: Apply for W9126G 21 2 SOI 4742

The Environmental DNA Sampling in the Lower Roanoke River opportunity is a US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Sustainable Rivers Program project intended to identify a qualified non-federal research partner to help study how river flow management affects rare and migratory fish in the Roanoke River system. USACE plans to use responses to a Request for Statements of Interest (RSOI) to screen and select potential investigators before inviting a full proposal later. The work falls under Department of Defense research authority (10 U.S.C. 2358) and is structured as a cooperative agreement under CFDA 12.300 (Science and Technology and other Research and Development). While eligibility is described broadly as “unrestricted,” it is specifically limited in the narrative to non-federal partners affiliated with the Piedmont - South Atlantic Coast, Chesapeake Watershed, or Southern Appalachian Mountains CESU Unit region.

The scientific and management motivation comes from the Roanoke River being one of the most important Atlantic seaboard river systems for diadromous fish reproduction, including juvenile alosines such as blueback herring, alewife, and hickory shad. In 2016, the Corps revised flood operations at the John H. Kerr Hydropower Project to implement a more naturally variable release pattern called Quasi-Run-of-River (QRR). Under QRR, releases are designed to mimic natural inflows as much as possible while still meeting flood control and other project purposes. Although the Roanoke has been heavily monitored for diadromous fish recruitment before and after QRR implementation, the Corps notes that there has been limited work directly linking juvenile population observations to specific river flow events. This project is meant to close that gap by pairing flow conditions with modern biological detection methods.

A central feature of the project is evaluating environmental DNA (eDNA) as a practical tool for flow-fish relationship studies and, ultimately, for operational decision support. eDNA sampling detects genetic material shed by organisms into the water, allowing investigators to infer presence or absence and, with sufficient calibration, potentially relate signal strength to abundance. USACE is interested in capturing both spatial and temporal variability, meaning sampling that can show where juvenile fish are congregating at different times and under different flow regimes, what habitat conditions coincide with those detections, and how those patterns shift with reservoir release decisions. Because the Roanoke is one of the original eight Sustainable Rivers Program rivers (dating back to 2002), USACE also views it as a testbed for approaches that could be transferable to other regulated rivers nationwide.

The anticipated work is organized around several clear objectives. First, the project aims to gather data on how river flows affect juvenile fish in the Roanoke River. Second, it will examine how well eDNA performs for detecting fish presence or absence under varying flow conditions, including understanding how flow changes might influence detection reliability. Third, it will refine eDNA methods so that eDNA results can be better correlated to fish abundance in a way that is specific to the Roanoke River context, recognizing that calibration often depends on local hydrology, species behavior, and sampling design. Fourth, the study is expected to produce actionable insight for USACE Wilmington District on how Kerr Reservoir release patterns influence juvenile diadromous species, especially blueback herring and alewife. Fifth, the project is meant to frame lessons learned in a broader operational context so the Corps can assess whether eDNA could be used to inform reservoir releases on other rivers, not just the Roanoke.

From a funding and schedule perspective, USACE expects approximately $65,000 to be available for the base period, which is anticipated to be 12 months from the date of award. The notice also indicates up to four optional 12-month extension periods, subject to available funds, which implies a potential multi-year effort if the initial work is successful and budget is continued. The posting lists an award ceiling of $335,000 and an expectation of one award, consistent with a base year plus option years structure. Importantly, at the RSOI stage applicants are not asked to submit a full technical proposal or a detailed budget; instead, USACE is requesting statements that demonstrate qualifications, relevant skills, and any necessary certifications to perform comparable work. Those qualifications will be used to decide who is invited to submit a complete proposal when the final Statement of Objectives (SOO) is issued at the request-for-proposals stage.

Administratively, the opportunity was posted on Grants.gov for a 30-day response window. Statements of Interest were due by 5:00 PM Central Time on July 27, 2021. The primary contacts listed are a Grants Specialist in the USACE Fort Worth District and a Project Manager in the USACE Regional Planning and Environmental Center, who can address administrative and technical questions respectively.

• The Department of Defense, Fort Worth District in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Environmental DNA Sampling in the Lower Roanoke River" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.300.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 28, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 27, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $335,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for W9126G 21 2 SOI 4742

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