Funding Wizard

Background: Solid waste generated in the U. S. has nearly tripled since 1960, according to EPA data. Although recycling and composting are increasingly employed to keep waste from landfill, the U.S. still sends more to landfill each year and landfill space is limited. Source reduction is the most preferred method of waste management in the EPA’s Waste Management Hierarchy. Source reduction is also the most preferred method of waste management for the military (Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense. Memorandum. “Revision to the Department of Defense Integrated Solid Waste Management Metrics.” United States Army Regulations, March 16, 2020.), but there is no standard method to measure source reduction (DoDI 4715.23). Currently, Installations must report diversion, a measure of waste that is not landfilled or incinerated divided by all waste generated On-Post. In other words, diversion is the percentage of actual waste generated that is reused, donated, recycled, composted, or sent to a waste-to-energy facility. Source reduction is a measure of the amount of reduced waste generation. Diversion is a metric that does not include any source reduction. Smart sensors would allow for consistent data collection of current trends in solid waste generation and disposal. The sensors would show changes over time. Initial data could be used as baseline data to measure changes over time, quantifying future source reduction.Furthermore, visual feedback could be used to nudge the Post population to waste less. Brief Description of Anticipated Work: The government seeks research and technical support for smart sensor design and fabrication of smart sensors to track real-time weights in interior waste containers at two (2) military Installations. Support is also sought for statistical analyses of data results. Study design and study sites will be decided based upon input from selected Installations, ERDC-CERL, Sponsoring Agency, and CESU partners. Details of primary tasks for Year 1 are as follows: Primary Task 1: Smart Sensor Design and Fabrication Sensors shall be able to collect real-time data on solid waste weight generation in interior waste containers and send that data to a sequestered data repository accessible to CERL researchers. Due to variability in container dimensions, sensors need a flexible design that can be tailored to each container. Sensors shall be fabricated by the awardee. Primary Task 2: Sensor Installation Sensors shall be placed in all interior waste containers at two (2) military Installations. At each Installation, sensors will be installed in interior waste containers at up to two (2) dining facilities, the common areas of up to two (2) office buildings, and the common areas of up to two (2) barracks buildings. Installation of sensors shall take place in summer 2022 at the selected Installations. Primary Task 3: Data Collection Data collection shall take place over a period of up to three (3) months, with ten (10) to twelve (12) weeks anticipated. Primary Task 4: Statistical Analyses Using standard statistical methods, data shall be analyzed. Potential Continuation Phase (Year 2) Continuation Task 1: Add Feedback Visualization to existing Smart Sensors Feedback visualization will show waste generation in a legible way and encourage proper segregation of materials (e.g. refuse, recycling, compost). Continuation Task 2: Data Collection Data collection shall take place over a period of one (1) to three (3) months. Continuation Task 3: Statistical Analyses Data and analyses from the primary tasks shall be used as a baseline to compare against when analyzing

This Request for Information (RFI) is being issued by the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Building Energy Codes Program, on behalf of the Office of Energy and Renewable Energy (EERE) Building Technologies Office (BTO). The intent of this RFI is to obtain public input regarding the solicitation process and structure of a potential DOE Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to fund sustained cost-effective implementation of building energy codes, in accordance with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This will be referred to throughout the document as the Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation (RECI) FOA. Specifically, this RFI seeks input on: • Energy Code Implementation Criteria and Requirements for Key Topic Areas • Advanced Energy Codes and Building Resilience • Methods to Support Sustained State Energy and Building Resilience Code Implementation • Funding, Partnerships, Eligible Entities, and Evaluation Criteria • Energy and Environmental Justice (EEJ) Priorities Information collected from this RFI will be used by DOE for planning purposes to develop a potential FOA. The information collected will not be published.

The Department of Energy’s (DOE’S) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) and National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) are focused on developing advancements in new materials needed to operate in extreme environments. FECM has previously supported the development of hydrogen turbines for coal gasification systems with pre-combustion carbon capture. This approach, with a water gas shift, produces a pure hydrogen fuel for the gas turbine and was also considered for fuel cell applications. More recently, the focus has been on high hydrogen content-fueled (70%-100% hydrogen) turbines. In this application, combustion characteristics pose a challenge. Hydrogen is a fast-burning fuel with high flame speeds, causing issues with most modern dry low-nitrogen oxide (NOx) combustors on industrial gas turbines. Previous DOE-funded research investigated issues related to hydrogen use in turbines and its effects on combustion, materials, and aerothermal heat transfer. Significant progress was made in resolving the understanding of auto-ignition, flashback, thermo-acoustics, mixing requirements and other combustion-related phenomena.A significant amount of work remains before a full commercial offering of 100% hydrogen-fueled turbines. After the hydrogen concentration exceeds 75%, there is a significant change in combustion behavior that will require new combustor designs, sensor locations, and control schemes to detect the flame and monitor for flashback and thermoacoustic instabilities. NOx emissions may become an issue at higher hydrogen concentrations due to increased flame temperature and limitations of current pre-mixed dilution technologies. Standard catalytic NOx reduction technologies with some modifications could still be a viable approach. The higher flame temperatures and increased water content could also affect the lifetime of metal hot gas path parts and ceramic recession, thereby increasing the need for new materials and coating and improved cooling schemes.This FOA focuses on development of these hot gas path parts, and specifically the advancement of ceramic matrix composite (CMC) materials to increase the temperature range of the hot gas

The ForInvest project will work in developing countries in the three key geographies identified in the Plan to Conserve Global Forests: Critical Carbon Sinks: the Amazon basin, Congo basin, and South East Asia. The project will support the Plan’s objective by facilitating and enabling investment, particularly from private sector financial institutions, in natural climate solutions and other land use activities that increase carbon storage or prevent greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from landscapes. Specifically, the project will unlock investments by developing natural climate solutions-focused investment pipelines, and linking investors to those pipelines.

The Department is combining three major discretionary grant programs into one Multimodal Projects Discretionary Grant (MPDG) opportunity to reduce the burden for state and local applicants and increase the pipeline of “shovel-worthy” projects that are now possible because of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. These investments will create good-paying jobs, grow the economy, reduce emissions, improve safety, make our transportation more sustainable and resilient, and expand transportation options in rural America and other underserved communities. Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this funding will help enable more communities to build vital infrastructure projects that also strengthen supply chains and reduce costs for American families.The National Infrastructure Project Assistance (MEGA) program was created in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to fund major projects that are too large or complex for traditional funding programs. The program will provide grants on a competitive basis to support multijurisdictional or regional projects of significance that may also cut across multiple modes of transportation. Eligible projects could include highway, bridge, freight, port, passenger rail, and public transportation projects of national and regional significance. These could be bridges or tunnels connecting two states; new rail and transit lines that improve equity and reduce emissions; and freight hubs integrating ship, train and truck traffic while improving environmental justice. DOT will award 50 percent of funding to projects greater than $500 million in cost, and 50 percent to projects greater than $100 million but less than $500 million in cost. The program will receive up to $1 billion this year alone and be able to provide multi-year funding to projects.

This Program Announcement is issued under the provisions of section 104 of the Water Resources Research Act of 1984 (Public Law 98-242), as amended by Public Laws 101-397, 104-147, 106-374, 109-471, and 117–58. Section 104 of the Water Resources Research Act directs the Secretary of the Interior to administer program grants to Institutes established under the provisions of section 104(a) of the Act. Water Resources Research Institutes have been established in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. The Institute in Guam also serves the Federated States of Micronesia and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The Institute in Hawaii also serves American Samoa. The addresses of the 54 Institutes are available at https://water.usgs.gov/wrri/index.php. Responsibility for administration of the Water Resources Research Act Program has been delegated to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

Beginning farmer education for adult and young audiences in the United States can generally be traced back to the advent of the 1862 and 1890 Morrill Land-Grant Acts. But, for the first time, the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Pub .L. No. 110-234, Section 7410) appropriated $75 million for FY 2009 to FY 2012 to develop and offer education, training, outreach and mentoring programs to enhance the sustainability of the next generation of farmers. The Agriculture Act of 2014 provided an additional $20 million per year for 2014 through 2018. The reasons for the renewed interest in beginning farmer and rancher programs are as follows: the rising average age of U.S. farmers; the 8% projected decrease in the number of farmers and ranchers between 2008 and 2018; and the growing recognition that new programs are needed to address the needs of the next generation of beginning farmers and ranchers. The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (aka the 2018 Farm Bill) reauthorized the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program and provides mandatory funds for which supports education, mentoring, and technical assistance initiatives for beginning farmers and ranchers.

The primary goal of American Rescue Plan Technical Assistance Investment Program is to ensure improved understanding of and equitable participation in the full range of USDA programs and services among underserved farmers, ranchers, forest land owners and operators through supporting the organizational delivery of technical assistance projects and establishment of technical assistance networks. USDA is authorized to support and facilitate the establishment of technical assistance projects toward this goal. Projects must provide a range of technical assistance services to underserved agricultural producers. The term “agricultural producer” is used to refer to agricultural farmers, ranchers, and private forest land owners and operators.

The overall goal of the Organic Transitions Program (ORG) is to support the development and implementation of research, extension and higher education programs to improve the competitiveness of organic livestock and crop producers, as well as those who are adopting organic practices. NIFA administers the ORG program by determining priorities in U.S. agriculture through Agency stakeholder input processes in consultation with the NAREEEAB. ORG will continue to prioritize environmental services provided by organic farming systems in the area of soil conservation, pollinator health, and climate change mitigation, including greenhouse gases (GHG), as well as the development of educational tools for Cooperative Extension personnel and other agricultural professionals who advise producers on organic practices, and development of cultural practices and other allowable alternatives to substances recommended for removal from the National Organic Program’s National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances. It is expected that all projects will integrate research, education and extension activities, as appropriate to project goals, although some projects may be weighted more heavily than others in one or more of these areas. However, all proposals should have activities and impact in research and at least one of the other areas: education and extension.

Applications to the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative - Sustainable Agricultural Systems (SAS) Request for Applications (RFA) must focus on approaches that promote transformational changes in the U.S. food and agriculture system. NIFA seeks creative and visionary applications that take a systems approach for projects are expected to significantly improve the supply of affordable, safe, nutritious, and accessible agricultural products, while fostering economic development and rural prosperity in America. These approaches must demonstrate current needs and anticipate future social, cultural, behavioral, economic, health, and environmental impacts. Additionally, the outcomes of the work being proposed should result in societal benefits, including promotion of rural prosperity and enhancement of quality of life for all those involved in food and agricultural value chains from production to utilization and consumption. See AFRI SAS RFA for details.