Grantee Research Project Results
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Research and Development
National Center for Environmental Research
Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Program
CLOSED - FOR REFERENCES PURPOSES ONLY
Extreme Event Impacts on Air Quality and Water Quality with a Changing Global Climate
This is the initial announcement of this funding opportunity.
Funding Opportunity Number:
- Extreme Event Impacts on Air Quality and Water Quality with a Changing Global Climate: EPA-G2011-STAR-D1
Early Career: Extreme Event Impacts on Air Quality and Water Quality with a Changing Global Climate: EPA-G2011-STAR-D2
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 66.509
Solicitation Opening Date: January 21, 2011
Solicitation Closing Date: April 18, 2011, 11:59:59 pm Eastern Time
Eligibility Contact: James Gentry (gentry.james@epa.gov); phone: 703-347-8093
Electronic Submissions: Ron Josephson (josephson.ron@epa.gov); phone: 703-308-0442
Technical Contact: Bryan Bloomer (bloomer.bryan@epa.gov); phone: 703-347-8040
Access Standard STAR Forms (https://www.epa.gov/research-grants/funding-opportunities-how-apply-and-required-forms)
View research awarded under previous solicitations (https://cfpub.epa.gov/ncer_abstracts/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipients.archive/)
SUMMARY OF PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
Synopsis of Program:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, is seeking applications proposing the development of assessments, tools and techniques, and demonstration of innovative technologies for providing information and capacity to adequately prepare for climate-induced changes in extreme events in the context of air and water quality management. A goal of this RFA is to seek a better understanding of the hazards (the extreme events) and to establish ways for climate scientists, impact assessment modelers, air and water quality managers, and other stakeholders to co-produce information necessary to form sound policy in relation to extreme events and their impact on air and water quality under a changing climate.
In addition to regular awards, this solicitation includes the opportunity for early career projects. The purpose of the early career award is to fund research projects smaller in scope and budget by early career PIs. Please see Section III of this Request for Applications (RFA) for details on the early career eligibility criteria.
Award Information:
Anticipated Type of Award: Grant
Estimated Number of Awards: Approximately 6 regular awards and approximately 4 early career awards.
Anticipated Funding Amount: Approximately $6 million total for all awards
Potential Funding per Award: Up to a total of $750,000 for regular awards and $375,000 for early career awards, including direct and indirect costs, with a maximum duration of 3 years. Cost-sharing is not required. Proposals with budgets exceeding the total award limits will not be considered.
Eligibility Information:
Public nonprofit institutions/organizations (includes public institutions of higher education and hospitals) and private nonprofit institutions/organizations (includes private institutions of higher education and hospitals) located in the U.S., state and local governments, Federally Recognized Indian Tribal Governments, and U.S. territories or possessions are eligible to apply. Special eligibility criteria apply to the early career project portion of this RFA. See full announcement for more details.
Application Materials:
To apply under this solicitation, use the application package available at Grants.gov (for further submission information see Section IV.E. “Submission Instructions and other Submission Requirements”). The necessary forms for submitting a STAR application will be found on the National Center for Environmental Research (NCER) web site, http://epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/research-grants/funding-opportunities-how-apply-and-required-forms. If your organization is not currently registered with Grants.gov, you need to allow approximately one week to complete the registration process. This registration, and electronic submission of your application, must be performed by an authorized representative of your organization.
If you do not have the technical capability to utilize the Grants.gov application submission process for this solicitation, call 1-800-490-9194 or send a webmail message to https://www.epa.gov/research-grants/forms/contact-us-about-research-grants at least 15 calendar days before the submission deadline to assure timely receipt of alternate submission instructions. In your message provide the funding opportunity number and title of the program, specify that you are requesting alternate submission instructions, and provide a telephone number, fax number, and an email address, if available. Alternate instructions will be e-mailed whenever possible. Any applications submitted through alternate submission methods must comply with all the provisions of this Request for Applications (RFA), including Section IV, and be received by the solicitation closing date identified above.
Agency Contacts:
Eligibility Contact: James Gentry (gentry.james@epa.gov); phone: 703-347-8093
Electronic Submissions: Ron Josephson (josephson.ron@epa.gov); phone: 703-308-0442
Technical Contact: Bryan Bloomer (bloomer.bryan@epa.gov); phone: 703-347-8040
I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION
A. Introduction
One of the high-priority research areas identified by the EPA Office of Research and Development (ORD) is the impact of climate change upon air and water quality. EPA has the responsibility under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and the Clean Air Act (CAA), for making sure public water systems provide safe drinking water and to preserve and protect the nation’s air quality. The EPA Administrator has recently concluded that emissions of greenhouse gases pose a threat to human health and the environment, including air quality that will be worse than it otherwise would have been, as a result of human induced climate change. The EPA currently supports a number of grants investigating climate change and the impacts upon water resources and air quality. Research grants resulting from previous solicitations and information regarding current research can be found on ORD’s National Center for Environmental Research (NCER) web site at https://www.epa.gov/research-grants/.
In addition to regular awards, this solicitation includes the opportunity for early career projects. The purpose of the early career award is to fund research projects smaller in scope and budget by early career PIs. Please see Section III of this RFA for details on the early career eligibility criteria.
B. Background
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report states that discernible human influence on the climate is likely contributing to changes in wind patterns; affecting extra-tropical storm tracks and temperature, is likely increasing temperatures of hot nights, cold nights, and cold days, and is more likely than not increasing the likelihood of heat waves, the number of areas affected by droughts, and the frequency of heavy precipitation events (IPCC, 2007). It is unlikely that science will ever directly link any one specific extreme event (e.g., a severe hurricane) to human-caused climate change. However, climate change is expected to increase the probability of extreme events in the future. For example, under future climate change scenarios it is probable that heat waves become more intense and more frequent in the coming decades. Changes in frequency and intensity of heat waves and other extreme events across North America were comprehensively assessed in the U.S. Climate Change Science Program Synthesis and Assessment Product 3.3: Climate Extremes (CCSP, 2008). Building on this comprehensive assessment of what has happened, and what may happen, with changes in weather and climate extremes, it is imperative to understand how extreme events in a changing climate will influence air and water quality across the US.
Any particular weather element or phenomenon has a frequency distribution, such as warm nights, frost days, hurricane occurrence and intensity, and so forth. The tails of the frequency distribution represent the extremes of the weather element or phenomenon that occur infrequently (see, for example, figure ES.1 in CCSP SAP3.3). One example is the IPCC identification of extreme events as occurring between 1 and 10% of the time at a particular location in a particular reference period (Trenberth et al., 2007). A change in the mean or variance of the frequency distribution affects the extremes in complicated ways (Meehl et al., 2000; Caesar et al., 2006, Trenberth et al., 2007). For example, a change in the variance of a distribution results in a larger change in the frequency of the extremes than a change in the mean (Katz and Brown, 1992). However, other metrics may better identify extremes other than a statistical analysis identifying the tails of the distribution of a weather element or phenomenon. This RFA seeks multidisciplinary proposals that identify appropriate descriptions of extreme events that are relevant to managing air and water quality in a future of likely climate induced changes to these extremes.
The most well understood impact of climate change on extremes is the observed shift in the temperature distribution. The global average temperature from 1906 to 2005 has increased 0.74˚C ± 0.18˚C, (Solomon et al., 2007). The global increase in temperature is reflected in an array of temperature indices. Alexander et al., 2006 analyzed temperature records from 1951 to 2003 and showed the globally averaged daily maximum and minimum temperature increased. Much of this increase was associated with stronger warming in the daily minimum temperature than in the maximums causing a decrease in the diurnal temperature range (DTR) (Easterling, 2000). Observations across the U.S. show a decrease in frost days and an increase in the growing season length, the number of warm nights, and in heat wave intensity (Meehl et al., 2007a; Kunkel et al., 2004). In addition, the ratio of the daily record high maximum temperature to the record daily low temperature across the U.S. is about two to one suggesting that the occurrence of record lows is declining more rapidly than expected while record highs continue to increase (Meehl, 2009).
Given the documented relationship between higher temperatures and poor air quality (Camalier et al, 2007, Bloomer et al, 2009) along with the evidence that air quality will be worse in the future than it otherwise would have been without climate change (Jacob and Winner, 2009), extreme weather events are expected to affect air quality, possibly in the frequency or nature of extreme poor air quality episodes. Investigation is warranted to develop tools and techniques for evaluating these kinds of events and for providing policy makers with reliable information from which to formulate adaptive policies to preserve air quality and protect health.
Climate change is also expected to affect the amount, location, and fractions of water in the ice, liquid, and vapor phases in the atmosphere. As the world warms, basic physics indicates the overall abundance of atmospheric water vapor will increase as a result of increasing temperatures. The increase in atmospheric water vapor, along with changes in location and phase distributions, implies a change in the type, amount, frequency, intensity, and duration of precipitation (Trenberth et al., 2007). Most importantly, the frequency distribution shows the increase in precipitation extremes is substantially greater than the increase in the annual mean precipitation (Kharin and Zwiers, 2005). Globally the contribution of very wet days (upper 5%) to total annual precipitation has increased by 0.41% per decade from 1979-2003 (Alexander et al., 2006). Southern Africa, south-east Australia, western Russia, and parts of Europe and the eastern US show robust increases in precipitation extremes while eastern Asia and Siberia show a decrease in the frequency of heavy precipitation (Frich et al., 2002). Over the United States, heavy (above the 95th percentile) and very heavy (above the 99.9th percentile) precipitation has increased by 14 and 20%, respectively, although very heavy precipitation varies significantly depending on the region and season (Groisman et al., 2004).
Not all regions in the US, or elsewhere around the world, are experiencing what is indicated by aggregate statistics. For example the Pacific Northwest region is expected to experience significant shifts in snow cover and timing of snow melt. Water resources depend on the previous winter’s snowpack in addition to spring and summer rainfall and temperatures. Earlier snowmelt may make water systems more exposed during hot and dry summers. Later formation (the fall and winter accompaniment to earlier spring snow melt) of sea ice in the Alaskan arctic coupled with increased storm severity and frequency as predicted under future climate change for this region place coastal communities at significant risk to greater erosion and more severe storm damages possibly resulting in fouled water systems and the release of toxic materials. The consideration of shifting circulation and storm patterns regionally, in particular the evaluation of cyclone frequency, severity and ground track, coupled with consideration of extreme heat waves and high winds, are imperative for long term resource planning and preserving air and water quality objectives in many regions of interest across the US (including Alaska and Hawaii.)
Temperature and precipitation extremes (including droughts) are also affected by global circulation patterns such as El Niño and the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Future El Niño driven patterns over the U.S. are expected to shift eastward and northward, which will expand the area of decreased frost days in the Southwest north and eastward, increase intense precipitation events in the Southwest and Southeast, and increase heat wave intensity over the southern U.S. during future El Niño events (Meehl et al., 2007b). Extratropical cyclone tracks during the winter from 1959-97 in the northern hemisphere also appeared to shift northward increasing the frequency of mid-latitude cyclones further north and decreasing the frequency of mid-latitude cyclones along traditional storm tracks even though the intensity of the cyclones increased in both regions (McCabe et al., 2001). An increase in cyclone intensity is expected due to warmer sea surface temperatures under a changing climate. Many studies show an increase in tropical cyclone intensity in the late 20th to early 21st century whether by examining the potential destructiveness or the category of the cyclone (Emanuel, 2005; Webster et al., 2005; Klotzbach, 2006; Holland and Webster, 2007; and references therein). The location of extreme precipitation events and heat waves will change due to changing circulation patterns and will influence air and water quality objectives as a result.
The impacts of extreme events on water and air quality have been shown to have severe societal impacts. Drier summers lead to droughts, heat waves, poor air quality, high fire risks, and a higher risk of flooding when precipitation does occur (Meehl et al., 2007a) impacting health, resources, and water quality. Heat waves, such as the one that occurred in 2003 in Europe, increase energy demand, air and water pollution, water shortages, wildfires, glacier melting, and mortality rates (Schär and Jendritzky, 2004). Increased spring and summer temperatures and earlier spring melt lead to increased wildfire risk (Westerling et al, 2006) and associated poor air quality (Spracklen et al, 2009). Changes in global circulation patterns, such as the mid latitude cyclone track across eastern North America, lead to stagnation events that increase high ozone episode severity and frequency of occurrence (Leibensperger et al., 2008).
The vulnerability of water resources to extreme events is very site specific and can vary within a single watershed based upon the built and natural infrastructures’ capacity, technical, financial, and managerial expertise. Modeling, treatment technology, and decision-support in watershed to regional water resource management requires robust methods in which drinking water, wastewater, and storm water managers assess their individual, as well as aggregate, vulnerabilities to changes in the frequency and intensity of extreme events along with their ability to develop adaptation planning and capacity. For example, a more sustainable utility may be able to modify its existing treatment train, chemical inputs, or communication resources. However, utilities already having difficulty meeting public health and water quality criteria requirements may have to add treatment systems, thus significantly adding to consumer costs, in order to adapt to extreme events. Development of assessments, tools and techniques, and demonstration of innovative technologies for providing information and capacity to foresee issues and adequately prepare for climate induced changes in extreme events in this context is central to this RFA for both water and air quality related management decision making.
Risk analysis is a viable tool to evaluate the air and water quality impacts due to extreme events on society. Risk is a function of hazards and of vulnerabilities. Hazards, in the context of this RFA, are the extremes or tail ends of weather and climate variable distributions (i.e. temperature, precipitation, tropical storms, droughts, etc.). Vulnerabilities are determined by human factors such as exposure, sensitivity, adaptive capacity, etc. to the hazards. Together, hazards and vulnerabilities provide the context in which risk analysis is conducted and policy is formed. A goal of this RFA is to seek a better understanding of the hazards (the extreme events) and to establish ways for climate scientists, impact assessment modelers, air and water quality managers, and other stakeholders to co-produce information necessary to forming sound policy in relation to extreme events and their impact on air and water quality under a changing climate.
It is clear that although more research is still needed, the climate science community is able to identify extreme events and analyze past trends on a global scale. However, looking forward, more research is needed to understand how local and regional extreme events will change in the future, to determine the probability of multiple extreme events occurring simultaneously or consecutively, to identify the impacts of extreme events on local and regional water and air quality, and finally, on how to disseminate the information effectively to stakeholders. Ultimately, this research will result in a comprehensive analysis of the hazards of extreme events and how to best incorporate this information into vulnerability assessments in order to produce a robust risk analysis and form sound policy for preserving and improving the Nation’s air and water quality.
The specific Strategic Goal and Objective from the EPA’s Strategic Plan that relate to this solicitation are:
- Goal 4: Healthy Communities and Ecosystems, Objective 4.4: Enhance Science and Research.
The EPA’s Strategic Plan can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/cfo/plan/plan.htm
C. Authority and Regulations
The authority for this RFA and resulting awards is contained in the Clean Air Act, Section 103, 42 U.S.C. 7403; the Safe Drinking Water Act, Section 1442, 42 U.S.C. 300j-1, and the Clean Water Act, Section 104, 33 U.S.C. 1254.
For research with an international aspect, the above statutes are supplemented, as appropriate, by the National Environmental Policy Act, Section 102(2)(F).
Note that a project’s focus is to consist of activities within the statutory terms of EPA’s financial assistance authorities; specifically, the statute(s) listed above. Generally, a project must address the causes, effects, extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of air pollution, water pollution, solid/hazardous waste pollution, toxic substances control, or pesticide control depending on which statute(s) is listed above. These activities should relate to the gathering or transferring of information or advancing the state of knowledge. Proposals should emphasize this “learning” concept, as opposed to “fixing” an environmental problem via a well-established method. Proposals relating to other topics which are sometimes included within the term “environment” such as recreation, conservation, restoration, protection of wildlife habitats, etc., must describe the relationship of these topics to the statutorily required purpose of pollution prevention and/or control.
Applicable regulations include: 40 CFR Part 30 (Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations), 40 CFR Part 31 (Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments) and 40 CFR Part 40 (Research and Demonstration Grants). Applicable OMB Circulars include: OMB Circular A-21 (Cost Principles for Educational Institutions) relocated to 2 CFR Part 220 (http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_08/2cfr220_08.html), OMB Circular A-87 (Cost Principles for State, Local and Indian Tribal Governments) relocated to 2 CFR Part 225 (http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_10/2cfr225_10.html), OMB Circular A-102 (Grants and Cooperative Agreements With State and Local Governments), OMB Circular A-110 (Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Other Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals and Other Non-Profit Organizations) relocated to 2 CFR Part 215 (http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_08/2cfr215_08.html), and OMB Circular A-122 (Cost Principles for Non-Profit Organizations) relocated to 2 CFR Part 230 (http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_07/2cfr230_07.html).
D. Specific Research Areas of Interest/Expected Outputs and Outcomes
Note to applicant: The term “output” means an environmental activity or effort, and associated work products, related to a specific environmental goal(s), (e.g., testing a new methodology), that will be produced or developed over a period of time under the agreement. The term “outcome” means the result, effect, or consequence that will occur from the above activit(ies) that is related to an environmental, behavioral, or health-related objective.
Applications should respond to two or more of the following topics:
- What tools or techniques are available, or can be developed, and can be demonstrated to identify changes across historical data records of extreme events that impact air or water quality? Can these tools or techniques demonstrate the linkages between observed events, past trends in events, and future predicted climate change induced extreme events that impact air or water quality?
- Can we identify the likelihood of multiple extreme events occurring together in a given region that impact air or water quality? What might be the likely impacts of these (multiple) events on regional to local scale air and water quality?
- How can air quality and water quality models be enhanced to capture the changes in various kinds of extreme events, likely in different regions of the country over the next several decades, that impact air or water quality?
- What tools or techniques can provide local and regional scale information on extreme events to policy makers and planners who are developing sustainable systems to be in place over the next several decades that affect air and water quality?
The outputs of the proposed projects include reports, presentations, and peer-reviewed journal publications describing climate-induced changes in extreme events in the context of air quality and water quality management, as well as tools, techniques, and innovative technologies that will help prepare for these changes. The expected outcome of this research is improved information and understanding regarding the ways extreme events affect present and future air and water quality that will, in turn, lead to better analysis and decision-making.
- Alexander, L.V., X. Zhang, T. C. Peterson, J. Caesar, B. Gleason, A. M. G. Klein Tank, M. Haylock, D. Collins, B. Trewin, F. Rahimzadeh, A. Tagipour, K. Rupa Kumar, J. Revadekar, G. Griffiths, L. Vincent, D. B. Stephenson, J. Burn, E. Aguilar, M. Brunet, M. Taylor, M. New, P. Zhai, M. Rusticucci, and J. L. Vazquez-Aguirre (2006), Global observed changes in daily climate extremes and temperature and precipitation, J. Geophys. Res., 111, D05109, doi:10.1029/2005JD006290.
- Bloomer, B. J., J. W. Stehr, C. A. Piety, R. J. Salawitch, and R. R. Dickerson (2009), Observed relationships of ozone air pollution with temperature and emissions, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L09803, doi:10.1029/2009GL037308.
- CCSP, (2008): Weather and Climate Extremes in a Changing Climate. Regions of Focus: North America, Hawaii, Caribbean, and U.S. Pacific Islands. A Report by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program and the Subcommittee on Global Change Research. [Thomas R. Karl, Gerald A. Meehl, Christopher D. Miller, Susan J. Hassol, Anne M. Waple, and William L. Murray (eds.)]. Department of Commerce, NOAA's National Climatic Data Center, Washington, D.C., USA, 164.
- Camalier, L., W. Cox, P. Dolwick, The effects of meteorology on ozone in urban areas and their use in assessing ozone trends, Atmos. Environ. 41, 7127 (2007).
- Cesar, J., L. Alexander, and R. Vose (2006), Large-scale changes in observed daily maximum and minimum temperatures: Creation and analysis of a new gridded data set, J. Geophy. Res., 111, doi:10.1029/2005JD006280.
- Easterling, D.R., G.A. Meehl, C. Parmesan, S.A. Changnon, T.R. Karl, and L.O. Mearns (2000), Climate Extremes: Observations, Modeling, and Impacts, Science, 289, 2068-2074.
- Emanual, K., (2005), Increasing destructiveness of tropical cyclones over the past 30 years, Nature, 436, 686-688.
- Frich, P., L.V. Alexander, P. Della-Marta, B. Gleason, M. Haylock, A.M.G. Klein Tank, and T. Peterson (2002), Observed coherent changes in climatic extremes during the second half of the twentieth century, Clim. Res., 19, 3, 193-212.
- Groisman, P.Y., R.W. Knight, T.R. Karl, D.R. Easterling, B. Sun, and J.H. Lawrimore (2004), Contemporary changes of the hydrological cycle over the contiguous United States: Trends derived from in situ observations, J. Hyrdometeorol., 5, 1, 64-85.
- Holland, G.J. and P.J. Webster (2007), Heightened tropical cyclone activity in the North Atlantic: Natural variability or climate trend? Phil. Trans. R. Soc., 365, 2695.
- IPCC, (2007): Summary for Policymakers. In: Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M.Tignor and H.L. Miller (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA
- Daniel J. Jacob, Darrell A. Winner, Effect of climate change on air quality, Atmospheric Environment, Volume 43, Issue 1, Atmospheric Environment – Fifty Years of Endeavour, January 2009, Pages 51-63, ISSN 1352-2310, DOI:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2008.09.051.
- Katz., R.W. and B.G. Brown (1992). Extreme events in a changing climate: Variability is more important than averages. Climate Change, 31, 3, 289-302.
- Kharin, V.V., and F.W. Zwiers (2005), Estimating extremes in transient climate change simulations, J. Clim., 18, 8, 1156-1173
- Klotzbach, P.J. (2006), Trends in global tropical cyclone activity over the past twenty years (1986-2005), Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, 10.1029/2006GL025881
- Kunkel, K.E., D.R. Easterling, K. Redmond, and K. Hubbard (2003), Temporal variation of extreme precipitation events in the United Statess: 1895-2000, Geophys. Res. Lett, 30, doi:10.1029/3003GL018052.
- Leibensperger, E.M., L.J. Mickley, and D.J. Jacob (2008), Sensitivity of US air quality to mid-latitude cyclone frequency and implications of 1980-2006 climate change, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 8, 7075-7086.
- McCabe G.J., M.P. Clark, and M.C. Serreze (2001) Trends in Northern Hemisphere surface cyclone frequency and intensity, Journal of Climate, 14, 2763-2768.
- Meehl, G.A., T.R. Karl, D.R. Easterling, S.A. Changnon, R. Pielke Jr., D. Changnon, J. Evans, P.Y. Groisman, T.R. Knutson, K.E. Kunkel, L.O. Mearns, C. Parmesan, R. Pulwarty, T. Root, R.T. Sylves, P. Whetton, and F. Zwiers (2000), An Introduction to Trends in Extreme Weather and Climate Events: Observations, Socioeconomic Impacts, and Model Predictions, Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 81,3, 413-416.
- Meehl, G.A., T.F. Stocker, W.D. Collins, P. Friedlingstein, A.T. Gaye, J.M. Gregory, A. Kitoh, R. Knutti, J.M. Murphy, A. Noda, S.C.B. Raper, I.G. Watterson, A.J. Weaver and Z.-C. Zhao, (2007a): Global Climate Projections. In: Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M. Tignor and H.L. Miller (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.
- Meehl, G.A., C. Tebaldi, H. Teng, and T.C. Peterson (2007b), Current and future US weather extremes and El Niño, Geophys. Res. Lett. 34, 10.1029/2007GL031027.
- Meehl, G.A., C. Tebaldi, G. Walton, D. Easterling, and L. McDaniel (2009), Relative increase of record high maximum temperatures compared to record low minimum temperatures in the U.S., Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, 23, doi:10.1029/2009GL040736.
- Schär, C. and G. Jendritzky (2004), Hot news from summer 2003, Nature, 432, 559-560.
- Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, R.B. Alley, T. Berntsen, N.L. Bindoff, Z. Chen, A. Chidthaisong, J.M. Gregory, G.C. Hegerl, M. Heimann, B. Hewitson, B.J. Hoskins, F. Joos, J. Jouzel, V. Kattsov, U. Lohmann, T. Matsuno, M. Molina, N. Nicholls, J. Overpeck, G. Raga, V. Ramaswamy, J. Ren, M. Rusticucci, R. Somerville, T.F. Stocker, P. Whetton, R.A. Wood and D. Wratt, 2007: Technical Summary. In: Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M. Tignor and H.L. Miller (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.
- Spracklen, D. V., L. J. Mickley, J. A. Logan, R. C. Hudman, R. Yevich, M. D. Flannigan, and A. L. Westerling (2009), Impacts of climate change from 2000 to 2050 on wildfire activity and carbonaceous aerosol concentrations in the western United States, J. Geophys. Res., 114, D20301, doi:10.1029/2008JD010966.
- Trenberth, K.E., P.D. Jones, P. Ambenje, R. Bojariu, D. Easterling, A. Klein Tank, D. Parker, F. Rahimzadeh, J.A. Renwick, M. Rusticucci, B. Soden and P. Zhai, 2007: Observations: Surface and Atmospheric Climate Change. In: Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Solomon, S., D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M. Tignor and H.L. Miller (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York, NY, USA.
- Webster, P.J., G.J. Holland, J.A. Curry, and H.R. Chang (2005), Changes in tropical cyclone number, duration, and intensity in a warming environment, Science, 309, 1844
- Westerling, A.L., H.G. Hidalgo, D.R. Cayan, and T.W. Swetnam (2006), Warming and earlier spring increase western U.S. forest wildfire activity, Science, 313, 940-943.
F. Special Requirements
Agency policy and ethical considerations prevent EPA technical staff and managers from providing applicants with information that may create an unfair competitive advantage. Consequently, EPA employees will not review, comment, advise, and/or provide technical assistance to applicants preparing applications in response to EPA RFAs. EPA employees cannot endorse any particular application.
Multiple Investigator applications may be submitted as: (1) a single Lead Principal Investigator (PI) application with Co-PI(s) or (2) a Multiple PI application (with a single Contact PI). If you choose to submit a Multiple PI application, you must follow the specific instructions provided in Sections IV. and V. of this RFA. For further information, please see the EPA Implementation Plan for Policy on Multiple Principal Investigators (http://rbm.nih.gov/toolkit.htm).
Please note: Early career projects will not accommodate a Multiple PI application. Early career projects shall be submitted as a single Lead PI application. Special eligibility criteria apply to the early career portion of this RFA. Please see Section III of this RFA for details on the early career eligibility criteria. The application must include an early career certification (see “Early Career Certification” in Section IV.B.5.c).
Groups of two or more eligible applicants may choose to form a consortium and submit a single application for this assistance agreement. The application must identify which organization will be the recipient of the assistance agreement and which organizations(s) will be subawardees of the recipient.
It is anticipated that a total of approximately $6 million will be awarded under this announcement, depending on the availability of funds and quality of applications received. The EPA anticipates funding approximately 6 regular and approximately 4 early career awards under this RFA. Requests for amounts in excess of a total of $750,000 for regular awards and $375,000 for early career awards, including direct and indirect costs, will not be considered. The total project period requested in an application submitted for this RFA may not exceed 3 years.
The EPA reserves the right to reject all applications and make no awards, or make fewer awards than anticipated, under this RFA. The EPA reserves the right to make additional awards under this announcement, consistent with Agency policy, if additional funding becomes available after the original selections are made. Any additional selections for awards will be made no later than six months after the original selection decisions.
EPA intends to award only grants under this announcement.
Under a grant, EPA scientists and engineers are not permitted to be substantially involved in the execution of the research. However, EPA encourages interaction between its own laboratory scientists and grant Principal Investigators after the award of an EPA grant for the sole purpose of exchanging information in research areas of common interest that may add value to their respective research activities. This interaction must be incidental to achieving the goals of the research under a grant. Interaction that is “incidental” does not involve resource commitments.
A. Eligible Applicants
Public nonprofit institutions/organizations (includes public institutions of higher education and hospitals) and private nonprofit institutions/organizations (includes private institutions of higher education and hospitals) located in the U.S., state and local governments, Federally Recognized Indian Tribal Governments, and U.S. territories or possessions are eligible to apply. Profit-making firms are not eligible to receive assistance agreements from the EPA under this program.
Eligible nonprofit organizations include any organizations that meet the definition of nonprofit in OMB Circular A-122, located at 2 CFR Part 230. However, nonprofit organizations described in Section 501(c) (4) of the Internal Revenue Code that lobby are not eligible to apply.
National laboratories funded by Federal Agencies (Federally-Funded Research and Development Centers, “FFRDCs”) may not apply. FFRDC employees may cooperate or collaborate with eligible applicants within the limits imposed by applicable legislation and regulations. They may participate in planning, conducting, and analyzing the research directed by the applicant, but may not direct projects on behalf of the applicant organization. The institution, organization, or governance receiving the award may provide funds through its assistance agreement from the EPA to an FFRDC for research personnel, supplies, equipment, and other expenses directly related to the research. However, salaries for permanent FFRDC employees may not be provided through this mechanism.
Federal Agencies may not apply. Federal employees are not eligible to serve in a principal leadership role on an assistance agreement, and may not receive salaries or augment their Agency’s appropriations in other ways through awards made under this program.
The applicant institution may enter into an agreement with a Federal Agency to purchase or utilize unique supplies or services unavailable in the private sector to the extent authorized by law. Examples are purchase of satellite data, census data tapes, chemical reference standards, analyses, or use of instrumentation or other facilities not available elsewhere. A written justification for federal involvement must be included in the application. In addition, an appropriate form of assurance that documents the commitment, such as a letter of intent from the Federal Agency involved, should be included.
The early career projects will support research performed by PIs with outstanding promise at the Assistant Professor or equivalent level. Principal investigators from applicant institutions applying for the early career portion of the RFA must meet the following additional eligibility requirements:
- Hold a doctoral degree in a field of science or engineering by the closing date of the RFA;
- Be untenured at the closing date of the RFA;
- By the award date, be employed in a tenure-track position (or tenure-track-equivalent position) as an assistant professor (or equivalent title) at an institution in the U.S., its territories, or possessions. Note: For a position to be considered a tenure-track-equivalent position, it must meet all of the following requirements: (1) the employing department or organization does not offer tenure; (2) the appointment is a continuing appointment; (3) the appointment has substantial educational responsibilities; and (4) the proposed project relates to the employee's career goals and job responsibilities as well as to the goals of the department/organization.
Senior researchers may collaborate in a supporting role for early career projects. Early career applications should not propose significant resources for senior researchers and may not list senior researchers as co-PIs. The application must include an early career certification (see “Early Career Certification” in Section IV.B.5.c).
Potential applicants who are uncertain of their eligibility should contact James Gentry (gentry.james@epa.gov) in NCER, phone 703-347-8093.
B. Cost-Sharing
Institutional cost-sharing is not required.
C. Other
Applications must substantially comply with the application submission instructions and requirements set forth in Section IV of this announcement or they will be rejected. In addition, where a page limitation is expressed in Section IV with respect to parts of the application, pages in excess of the page limit will not be reviewed. Applications must be submitted to grants.gov (see Section IV.E. “Submission Instructions and Other Submission Requirements” for further information) on or before the solicitation closing date and time in Section IV of this announcement or they will be returned to the sender without further consideration. Also, applications exceeding the funding limits or project period term described herein will be returned without review. Further, applications that fail to demonstrate a public purpose of support or stimulation (e.g., by proposing research which primarily benefits a Federal program or provides a service for a Federal agency) will not be funded.
Applications deemed ineligible for funding consideration will be notified within fifteen calendar days of the ineligibility determination.
IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION
Formal instructions for submission through Grants.gov follow in Section E.
A. Internet Address to Request Application Package
Use the application package available at Grants.gov (see Section E. “Submission Instructions and Other Submission Requirements”). Note: With the exception of the current and pending support form (available at http://epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/research-grants/funding-opportunities-how-apply-and-required-forms), all necessary forms are included in the electronic application package.
An email will be sent by NCER to the Lead/Contact PI and the Administrative Contact (see below) to acknowledge receipt of the application and transmit other important information. The email will be sent from receipt.application@epa.gov; emails to this address will not be accepted. If you do not receive an email acknowledgment within 30 days of the submission closing date, immediately inform the Eligibility Contact shown in this solicitation. Failure to do so may result in your application not being reviewed. See Section E. “Submission Instructions and Other Submission Requirements” for additional information regarding the application receipt acknowledgment.
B. Content and Form of Application Submission
The application is made by submitting the materials described below. Applications must contain all information requested and be submitted in the formats described.
- Standard Form 424
The applicant must complete Standard Form 424. Instructions for completion of the SF424 are included with the form. (However, note that EPA requires that the entire requested dollar amount appear on the 424, not simply the proposed first year expenses.) The form must contain the signature of an authorized representative of the applying organization.
Applicants are required to provide a "Dun and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System" (DUNS) number when applying for federal grants or cooperative agreements. Organizations may receive a DUNS number by calling 1-866-705-5711 or by visiting the web site at http://www.dnb.com.
Executive Order 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs," does not apply to the Office of Research and Development's research and training programs unless EPA has determined that the activities that will be carried out under the applicants' proposal (a) require an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), or (b) do not require an EIS but will be newly initiated at a particular site and require unusual measures to limit the possibility of adverse exposure or hazard to the general public, or (c) have a unique geographic focus and are directly relevant to the governmental responsibilities of a State or local government within that geographic area.
If EPA determines that Executive Order 12372 applies to an applicant's proposal, the applicant must follow the procedures in 40 CFR Part 29. The applicant must notify their state's single point of contact (SPOC). To determine whether their state participates in this process, and how to comply, applicants should consult http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants_spoc. If an applicant is in a State that does not have a SPOC, or the State has not selected research and development grants for intergovernmental review, the applicant must notify directly affected State, area wide, regional and local entities of its proposal.
EPA will notify the successful applicant(s) if Executive Order 12372 applies to its proposal prior to award.
- Key Contacts
The applicant must complete the "Key Contacts" form found in the Grants.gov application package. An "Additional Key Contacts" form is also available at http://epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/research-grants/funding-opportunities-how-apply-and-required-forms. The Key Contacts form should also be completed for major sub-agreements (i.e., primary investigators). Do not include information for consultants or other contractors. Please make certain that all contact information is accurate.
For Multiple PI applications: The Additional Key Contacts form must be completed (see Section I.F. for further information). Note: The Contact PI must be affiliated with the institution submitting the application. EPA will direct all communications related to scientific, technical, and budgetary aspects of the project to the Contact PI; however, any information regarding an application will be shared with any PI upon request. The Contact PI is to be listed on the Key Contact Form as the Project Manager/Principal Investigator (the term Project Manager is used on the Grants.gov form, the term Principal Investigator is used on the form located on NCER's web site). For additional PIs, complete the Major Co-Investigator fields and identify PI status next to the name (e.g., "Name: John Smith, Principal Investigator").
- Table of Contents
Provide a list of the major subdivisions of the application indicating the page number on which each section begins.
- Abstract (1 page)
The abstract is a very important document in the review process. Therefore, it is critical that the abstract accurately describes the research being proposed and conveys all the essential elements of the research. Also, the abstracts of applications that receive funding will be posted on the NCER web site.
The abstract should include the information described below (a-h). Examples of abstracts for current grants may be found on the NCER web site.
- Funding Opportunity Title and Number for this proposal.
- Project Title: Use the exact title of your project as it appears in the application. The title must be brief yet represent the major thrust of the project. Because the title will be used by those not familiar with the project, use more commonly understood terminology. Do not use general phrases such as "research on."
- Investigators: For applications with multiple investigators, state whether this is a single Lead PI (with co-PIs) or Multiple PI application (see Section I.F.). For Lead PI applications, list the Lead PI, then the name(s) of each co-PI who will significantly contribute to the project. For Multiple PI applications, list the Contact PI, then the name(s) of each additional PI. Provide a web site URL or an email contact address for additional information.
- Institution: In the same order as the list of investigators, list the name, city and state of each participating university or other applicant institution. The institution applying for assistance must be clearly identified.
- Project Period and Location: Show the proposed project beginning and ending dates and the geographical location(s) where the work will be conducted.
- Project Cost: Show the total dollars requested from the EPA (include direct and indirect costs for all years).
- Project Summary: Provide three subsections addressing: (1) the objectives of the study (including any hypotheses that will be tested), (2) the experimental approach to be used (a description of the proposed project), and (3) the expected results of the project and how it addresses the research needs identified in the solicitation, including the estimated improvement in risk assessment or risk management that will result from successful completion of the proposed work.
- Supplemental Keywords: Without duplicating terms already used in the text of the abstract, list keywords to assist database searchers in finding your research. A list of suggested keywords may be found at: http://epa.govhttps://www.epa.gov/research-grants/funding-opportunities-how-apply-and-required-forms.
- Research Plan, Quality Assurance Statement, Early Career Certification, and References
- Research Plan (15 pages)
Applications should focus on a limited number of research objectives that adequately and clearly demonstrate that they meet the RFA requirements. Explicitly state the main hypotheses that you will investigate, the data you will create or use, the analytical tools you will use to investigate these hypotheses or analyze these data, and the results you expect to achieve. Research methods must be clearly stated so that reviewers can evaluate the appropriateness of your approach and the tools you intend to use. A statement such as: "we will evaluate the data using the usual statistical methods" is not specific enough for peer reviewers.
This description must not exceed fifteen (15) consecutively numbered (bottom center), 8.5x11-inch pages of single-spaced, standard 12-point type with 1-inch margins. While these guidelines establish the minimum type size requirements, applicants are advised that readability is of paramount importance and should take precedence in selection of an appropriate font for use in the proposal.
The description must provide the following information:
- Objectives: List the objectives of the proposed research and the hypotheses being tested during the project, and briefly state why the intended research is important and how it fulfills the requirements of the solicitation. This section should also include any background or introductory information that would help explain the objectives of the study. If this application is to expand upon research supported by an existing or former assistance agreement awarded under the STAR program, indicate the number of the agreement and provide a brief report of progress and results achieved under it.
- Approach/Activities: Outline the research design, methods, and techniques that you intend to use in meeting the objectives stated above.
- Expected Results, Benefits, Outputs, and Outcomes: Describe the results you expect to achieve during the project (outputs) and the potential benefits of the results (outcomes). This section should also discuss how the research results will lead to solutions to environmental problems and improve the public's ability to protect the environment and human health. A clear, concise description will help NCER and peer reviewers understand the merits of the research.
- General Project Information: Discuss other information relevant to the potential success of the project. This should include facilities, personnel expertise/experience, project schedules with associated milestones and target dates, proposed management, interactions with other institutions, etc. Applications for multi-investigator projects must identify project management and the functions of each investigator in each team and describe plans to communicate and share data.
- Appendices may be included but must remain within the 15-page limit.
- Quality Assurance Statement (3 pages)
For projects involving environmental data collection or processing, conducting surveys, modeling, method development, or the development of environmental technology (whether hardware-based or via new techniques), provide a Quality Assurance Statement (QAS) regarding the plans for processes that will be used to ensure that the products of the research satisfy the intended project objectives. Follow the guidelines provided below to ensure that the QAS describes a system that complies with ANSI/ASQC E4, Specifications and Guidelines for Quality Systems for Environmental Data Collection and Environmental Technology Programs. Do not exceed three consecutively numbered, 8.5x11-inch pages of single-spaced, standard 12-point type with 1-inch margins.
NOTE: If selected for award, applicants will be expected to provide additional quality assurance documentation.
Address each applicable section below by including the required information, referencing the specific location of the information in the Research Plan, or explaining why the section does not apply to the proposed research. (Not all will apply.)
- Identify the individual who will be responsible for the quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) aspects of the research along with a brief description of this person's functions, experience, and authority within the research organization. Describe the organization's general approach for conducting quality research. (QA is a system of management activities to ensure that a process or item is of the type and quality needed for the project. QC is a system of activities that measures the attributes and performance of a process or item against the standards defined in the project documentation to verify that they meet those stated requirements.)
- Discuss project objectives, including quality objectives, any hypotheses to be tested, and the quantitative and/or qualitative procedures that will be used to evaluate the success of the project. Include any plans for peer or other reviews of the study design or analytical methods.
- Address each of the following project elements as applicable:
- Collection of new/primary data:
(Note: In this case the word "sample" is intended to mean any finite part of a statistical population whose properties are studied to gain information about the whole. If certain attributes listed below do not apply to the type of samples to be used in your research, simply explain why those attributes are not applicable.)- Discuss the plan for sample collection and analysis. As applicable, include sample type(s), frequency, locations, sample sizes, sampling procedures, and the criteria for determining acceptable data quality (e.g., precision, accuracy, representativeness, completeness, comparability, or data quality objectives).
- Describe the procedures for the handling and custody of samples including sample collection, identification, preservation, transportation, and storage, and how the accuracy of test measurements will be verified.
- Describe or reference each analytical method to be used, any QA or QC checks or procedures with the associated acceptance criteria, and any procedures that will be used in the calibration and performance evaluation of the analytical instrumentation.
- Discuss the procedures for overall data reduction, analysis, and reporting. Include a description of all statistical methods to make inferences and conclusions, acceptable error rates and/or power, and any statistical software to be used.
- Use of existing/secondary data (i.e., data previously collected for other purposes or from other sources):
- Identify the types of secondary data needed to satisfy the project objectives. Specify requirements relating to the type of data, the age of data, geographical representation, temporal representation, and technological representation, as applicable.
- Specify the source(s) of the secondary data and discuss the rationale for selection.
- Establish a plan to identify the sources of the secondary data in all deliverables/products.
- Specify quality requirements and discuss the appropriateness for their intended use. Accuracy, precision, representativeness, completeness, and comparability need to be addressed, if applicable.
- Describe the procedures for determining the quality of the secondary data.
- Describe the plan for data management/integrity.
- Method development:
(Note: The data collected for use in method development or evaluation should be described in the QAS as per the guidance in section 3A and/or 3B above.)Describe the scope and application of the method, any tests (and measurements) to be conducted to support the method development, the type of instrumentation that will be used and any required instrument conditions (e.g., calibration frequency), planned QC checks and associated criteria (e.g., spikes, replicates, blanks), and tests to verify the method's performance.
- Development or refinement of models:
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.
- Collection of new/primary data:
- Research Plan (15 pages)