California Ag Network

Tag: Grants

  • UC water institute announces 2017 grant recipients

    Sacramento, Calif., (March 16, 2017) – The UC California Institute for Water Resources (CIWR) has announced the recipients of six grants to address the most critical water issues in the state. For this program, the Institute leverages funds it receives from the Water Resources Research Act of 1964 through the Department of Interior.

    CIWR, which is part of UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, facilitates collaborative research and outreach on water issues across California’s academic institutions and with international, federal, state, regional, nonprofit, and campus communities.

    Small grants to support initial work will be dispersed to the following projects (click the headline for more information):

    One proposed solution for recharging overdrawn aquifers is flooding farmland during the rainy season. Optimizing agricultural groundwater banking for specific crops can be challenging. The goal of this project is to better understand how alfalfa, which is grown year-round, responds to winter flooding.

    Declining water levels can degrade or eliminate fish habitat during California’s summer season. Storing water off-channel during the rainy season can improve flow during the summer. The study is designed to gain a better understanding of the relationship between stream flow and habitat.

    Turfgrass is common in urban landscapes and provides valuable recreation areas and ecosystem services. This project will help determine the best irrigation strategies for common turfgrass species.

    The natural conditions of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta have been changed by habitat alteration and non-native predacious fish introduction. This project will examine the interplay between altered habitat and predatory fish, and how they impact native salmon populations.

    Sacramento State geology professor Amelia Vankeuren and graduate students collect samples at the American River.

    During the recent drought, California required that on-average urban water districts conserve 25 percent of their water. While some districts were successful, others failed to meet their target. This project will examine how variation in policy – pricing, messaging and penalties – and drought severity affected water conservation.

    As part of California’s groundwater management act, some basins were designated as high management priorities. This project will characterize groundwater using age, location and temperature. This information will be valuable for stakeholders creating a groundwater sustainability plan.

    Farmer Jim Morris on an alfalfa field being flooded for groundwater recharge.

     

     

  • CDFA Seeking Public Comments On The Next Dairy Digester Research And Development Program Grant Solicitation

    Sacramento, Calif., (February 7, 2017) – The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is now accepting public comments on the DRAFT Request for Grant Applications for the Dairy Digester Research and Development Program (DDRDP), authorized by the Budget Act of 2016.

    An estimated $29-36 million in competitive grant funding will be awarded to provide financial assistance for the installation of dairy digesters that result in reduced greenhouse gas emissions from California dairy operations. DDRDP receives funding from the California Climate Investments Program, which use proceeds from the state’s cap-and-trade auctions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while providing a variety of additional benefits to California communities.

    The DRAFT Request for Grant Applications is accessible on the CDFA Office of Environmental Farming and Innovation (OEFI) webpage: www.cdfa.ca.gov/go/DD.

    CDFA will hold a webinar on Monday, February 6, 2017 at 10:00 A.M. to provide information on how to comment on the DRAFT Request for Grant Applications and field questions. To register for the webinar, please visit the program webpage at www.cdfa.ca.gov/go/DD.

    Those interested must submit their comments via email to cdfa.oefi@cdfa.ca.gov by 5:00 p.m. PST on Tuesday, February 14, 2017.

    The DDRDP is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide program that puts billions of cap-and-trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment—particularly in disadvantaged communities. The cap-and-trade program also creates a financial incentive for industries to invest in clean technologies and develop innovative ways to reduce pollution. California Climate Investment projects include affordable housing, renewable energy, public transportation, zero-emission vehicles, environmental restoration, more sustainable agriculture, recycling and much more. At least 35 percent of these investments are made in disadvantaged and low-income communities. For more information, visit California Climate Investments.

  • California Lands More than $5 Million in USDA Grants for Citrus Greening Research

    Sacramento, Calif., (January 25, 2017) – The USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has announced four grants totaling more than $13.6 million to combat a scourge on the nation’s citrus industry, citrus greening disease, also known as Huanglongbing (HLB). UC Riverside will receive $5,112,000 of that funding for a program to design and identify bactericides that can cure or suppress HLB.

    “The economic impact of citrus greening disease is measured in the billions,” said NIFA Director Sonny Ramaswamy. “NIFA investments in research are critical measures to help the citrus industry survive and thrive, and to encourage growers to replant with confidence.”

    HLB is currently the most devastating citrus disease worldwide. It was first detected in Florida in 2005 and has since affected all of Florida’s citrus-producing areas leading to a 75 percent decline in Florida’s $9 billion citrus industry. HLB has also been detected in Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina and Texas, as well as three residential communities in Southern California. Fifteen U.S. States or territories, including California, are under full or partial quarantine due to the presence of the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), a vector for HLB.

    Since 2009, USDA has invested more than $400 million to address citrus greening, including more than $57 million through the Citrus Disease Research and Extension Program since 2014.  Other projects in the current grant award include:

    • Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, $4,274,523
    • Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, $2,476,099
    • USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Athens, Georgia, $1,821,197

    More information on these projects is available on the NIFA website.

    Information on efforts to control the Asian citrus psyllid and stop HLB in California is available on CDFA’s web site and the California Citrus Threat web site.

  • USDA Offers Grants To Help Local Food Sector

    Washington, D. C., (January 20, 2017) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has announced the availability of $27 million in grants to fund innovative projects designed to strengthen market opportunities for local and regional food producers and businesses.

    “These grants will continue USDA’s support for the local food sector as an important strategy for keeping wealth in rural communities,” said AMS Administrator Elanor Starmer.  “Entrepreneurs around the country are creating jobs and new economic opportunities in response to growing consumer demand for local food.  AMS is excited to partner with local food stakeholders to strengthen local economies and improve access to fresh, healthy food for their communities.”

    AMS has announced the request for applications for the Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Program, which includes Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP) and Local Food Promotion Program (LFPP) grants, and theFederal-State Marketing Improvement Program (FSMIP).  These programs and other resources across USDA are helping to revitalize rural America by supporting local and regional food stakeholders.

    The FMPP provides funds for direct farmer-to-consumer marketing projects such as farmers markets, community-supported agriculture programs, roadside stands, and agritourism.  Over the past 10 years, the FMPP has awarded more than 870 grants totaling over $58 million.  The successful results of these investments are summarized in the Farmers Market Promotion Program 2016 Report. (Add link). The LFPP supports projects focused on intermediary supply chain activities for local food businesses. LFPP was established in the 2014 Farm Bill to increase funding for marketing activities such as aggregation, processing, storage, and distribution of local foods.

    The FSMIP provides about $1 million in matching funds to state departments of agriculture, state colleges and universities, and other appropriate state agencies. Funds will support research projects to address challenges and opportunities in marketing, transporting, and distributing U.S. agricultural products domestically and internationally.

    AMS will host a webinar for potential FMPP and LFPP grant applicants on Wednesday, February 15, 2017, at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time, and a teleconference for potential FSMIP grant applicants on Thursday, February 16, 2017, at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time.  For more information about FSMIP, FMPP and LFPP, visit: www.ams.usda.gov/AMSgrants.  The website also contains a link to a grants decision tree, “What AMS Grant is Right for ME?”, to help applicants determine which AMS grant fits their project best.

    The grant applications for FSMIP, FMPP and LFPP must be submitted electronically through www.grants.gov/  by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, March 27, 2017.

    AMS will also host a webinar to introduce potential applicants to Grants.gov on Wednesday, February 8, 2017, at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time.  Applicants are urged to start the Grants.gov registration process as soon as possible to ensure that they meet the deadline and encouraged to submit their applications well in advance of the posted due date.  Any grant application submitted after the due date will not be considered unless the applicant provides documentation of an extenuating circumstance that prevented their timely submission of the grant application, read more on AMS Late and Non-Responsive Application Policy.

  • CDFA Accepting Applications For Grants To Provide Workshops And Technical Assistance For Farmers Participating In The State Water Efficiency And Enhancement Program (Sweep)

    Sacramento, Calif., (January 16, 2017) – CDFA will begin accepting applications today from non-profit organizations, California academic institutions and California Resource Conservation Districts for grant funds to provide technical assistance to applicants for grants from the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP).

    Applicants may apply for funding in amounts between $2,500 and $5,000. Applications must meet several minimum requirements including holding at least one technical assistance workshop within a disadvantaged community, reporting on workshop attendance to CDFA, and providing computers and internet access to allow growers to complete SWEEP applications.

    “Requests for technical assistance to complete water and greenhouse gas reduction calculations, and also help with the applications, are one of the most common comments we receive about SWEEP” said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross.

    Technical assistance will be made available through a $25,000 partnership grant between CDFA and the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service to achieve the mutual objective of providing technical assistance to SWEEP applicants. Technical assistance workshops that provide hands-on application assistance are critical to the success of SWEEP and the implementation of efficient irrigation systems to save water and reduce greenhouse gases.

    Organizations that wish to receive funding to provide technical assistance must access the “Request for Applications” at www.cdfa.ca.gov/go/SWEEP.  The Request for Applications contains detailed information on eligibility and program requirements. Applications must be submitted by email no later than January 25, 2017, 5:00 p.m. PST. Grants will be awarded on a first-come-first-served basis beginning January 13, 2017.