Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands Monitoring Program | EPA R5 GL2025 CWMP

Opportunity Information: Apply for EPA R5 GL2025 CWMP

The Great Lakes Coastal Wetland Monitoring Program (GLCWMP) is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding opportunity designed to support long-term, basin-wide monitoring of coastal wetland health across all five Great Lakes. The program exists in part to help EPA meet its legal obligations under Section 118 of the Clean Water Act, which calls for a Great Lakes system-wide surveillance network to track Great Lakes water quality. Within that broader mandate, this program puts special focus on coastal wetlands because they are ecologically valuable, widely distributed, and highly sensitive to both local and basin-scale stressors. The overarching goal is to generate consistent, comparable information that can be used to report on wetland condition, detect trends over time, and guide restoration and protection priorities across the Great Lakes Basin.

Because it is not realistic or cost-effective to monitor every single wetland each year, the GLCWMP uses a structured, standardized sampling design. It targets coastal wetlands that are larger than 4 hectares (about 10 acres) and that have a surface-water connection to a Great Lake or its connecting rivers. Under these criteria, 1,014 wetlands are included in the monitoring universe. These sites are visited on a rotating schedule so that each qualifying wetland is sampled at least once every five years, with roughly 200 wetlands sampled annually. In addition to this rotating basin-wide coverage, a subset of sites receives more frequent annual monitoring for specific biological groups and water quality, helping the program build stronger indicators and trend lines.

Field and analytical work under the program covers multiple components of wetland condition, including biological communities and basic water quality. The monitoring includes birds, amphibians, fish, macroinvertebrates, and plant communities, alongside water quality measurements, at selected sites. The point of collecting this mix of information is to support scientifically grounded indicators and indices that summarize status and trends in wetland condition in ways that are meaningful for management decisions. Since the program began in 2011, it has already monitored more than 1,000 wetland sites representing over 400,000 acres of coastal wetland habitat, building one of the most comprehensive standardized datasets for Great Lakes coastal wetlands.

The funding announcement is aimed at applicants that can credibly perform coastal wetland field sampling and the related analyses needed to support Great Lakes Water Quality Monitoring Program (GLWQMP) metrics and reporting needs. In practical terms, the ideal applicants are organizations with demonstrated capacity for large-scale field logistics, standardized ecological sampling, data management, quality assurance, and interpretation of wetland condition using EPA-established protocols. EPA points applicants to its public resources showing how the data are used and where previously sampled wetlands can be viewed, as well as the monitoring protocols hosted on EPA Great Lakes monitoring webpages.

From a conservation and public-interest perspective, the opportunity is grounded in the reality that Great Lakes coastal wetlands deliver habitat, ecological functions, and recreation benefits, yet they have experienced major losses and degradation over the last century. While roughly 500,000 acres of coastal wetlands remain in the Great Lakes, understanding the condition of these remaining habitats is seen as essential for targeting protection and restoration investments. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) supports this monitoring effort specifically because consistent condition assessments are necessary to measure progress and prioritize actions across the basin.

Administratively, this opportunity is a discretionary EPA award offered as a cooperative agreement, meaning recipients should expect substantial EPA involvement in coordination, program direction, or technical oversight compared with a standard grant. The Funding Opportunity Number is EPA R5 GL2025 CWMP, listed under CFDA 66.469, with an original closing date of 2025-03-14. The notice anticipates a single award, with an award ceiling of $12,000,000. Eligibility is described broadly as "Others," with applicants directed to Section 2 of the Notice of Funding Opportunity for the specific eligibility rules and requirements that govern who can apply and under what conditions.

• The Environmental Protection Agency in the environment sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands Monitoring Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 66.469.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2025-01-13.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-03-14. (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 $12,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for EPA R5 GL2025 CWMP

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