Innovative Solutions for Improving Water Quality and Strengthening Local Economies in the Gulf of America Watershed
On this page:
- Overview
- Who can apply
- How to apply
- Contact information
- Request for Applications and Budget Development Template
- Helpful Documents and Training Links
The EPA Gulf of America Division (GAD) is announcing a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to generate applications that align with the Administration’s Powering the Great American Comeback Initiative; to support GAD’s priority for water quality and habitat improvement; and to align with GAD’s statutory authority (Section 3.C) for demonstration projects that prevent, reduce, or eliminate nutrient pollution and/or harmful algal blooms ("HABs"). These funding purposes are concurrent with GAD’s objective to remain good stewards of tax-payer dollars while ensuring that every penny spent is going towards advancing this mission.
Nutrients are delivered to the Gulf of America from sources across the entire watershed and contribute to the development of hypoxic conditions, or low dissolved oxygen, in waters. Large hypoxic areas of water, often called “dead zones,” result in fish kills, decreased aquatic life generally, and challenges for commercial and recreational fishermen. In addition to the problems associated with low dissolved oxygen, excess nutrients can contribute to the formation and persistence of harmful algal blooms (“HABs”) in freshwater and marine systems. HABs disrupt local wildlife and may produce toxins harmful to humans. Sargassum is a type of floating brown algae that provides critical habitat, food resources, protection, and breeding grounds for hundreds of marine species. While Sargassum is an important resource that supports open ocean ecosystems, when rafts of Sargassum are carried to shore (called Sargassum inundation events or SIEs) they are considered a type of HAB that can harm human health, the environment, and coastal economies.
This funding opportunity seeks applications that improve water quality through nutrient reduction demonstration projects that are enhanced by innovative technology. All applicants should identify how their nutrient reduction project and use of innovative technology could lead to cost savings and economic benefits in the future.
Applications must propose a nutrient reduction and/or estuarine or marine HAB mitigation demonstration project in one or more of the following three areas within the Gulf of America watershed within the contiguous United States. Activities proposed in the Gulf of America must be limited to the United States contiguous zone (see Figure 1, pg. 4 and Section 9):
- Habitat: Enhance and/or restore habitat(s) to reduce nutrient pollution within the Gulf of America watershed.
- Water Quality: Capture, store, reuse, and/or infiltrate water to reduce nutrient loads and improve water quality; demonstrate sustainable solutions to align with broader watershed protection or restoration strategies.
- Harmful Algal Blooms (“HABs”): Prevent and reduce the impact of marine and estuarine HABs, including SIEs, on Gulf of America coastal areas (e.g., bays, estuaries, beaches, islands/keys, oyster reefs, nearshore waters). Projects should focus on innovative solutions.
Applications should also propose the development or expansion of innovative technologies in at least one of the following areas:
- Demonstrate how artificial intelligence (AI) and/or machine learning (ML) can be utilized to enhance water quality, habitat, and/or HAB (includes SIE and potential SIE) monitoring and management efforts throughout the Gulf of America watershed.
- Develop new or expand the capability of existing innovative technology to improve water quality, habitat, and/or HAB (includes SIE and potential SIE) monitoring, or management.
Applicants should describe how the effectiveness of project nutrient reduction activities will be demonstrated through monitoring activities and compared with baseline data to show improvements. Baseline data may be existing or collected as a project activity.
Applicants should describe how proposed activities and/or innovations will be evaluated alongside existing or commonly used practices to determine cost effectiveness. The evaluation should articulate how activities and/or innovations will lead to cost savings and economic benefits in the future.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to propose the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (“UAV,” i.e. drone) footage to document project activities and successes within the targeted watershed.
It is anticipated that up to 12 award(s) will be made under this announcement. Awards are expected to be from $500,000 to $1,000,000, depending on Agency funding levels, the quality of applications received, agency priorities, and other applicable considerations. Awards funded under this opportunity are expected to have a 3-to-5-year project period.
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Eligible entities are consistent with definitions at 2 CFR 200.1.
Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov: EPA-R4-GAD-2025-WQ
For questions, contact Matt Beiser (GAD-NOFO@epa.gov).
Request for Applications and Budget Development Template
Suggested budget table (xlsx) (133.36 KB)
- Utilizing the suggested budget table template is strongly encouraged or you risk the possibility of information being left out by you as the applicant, or overlooked, or not fully comprehended by the reviewers when the project is scored.
Helpful Documents and Training Links
- Please review the NOFO, Q&A, Getting Started Presentation and Common Errors document prior to submitting a question. If the answer to your question is not found in those documents, please submit your question to GAD-NOFO@epa.gov
- EPA GAD 2025 NOFO Questions and Answers (Last Updated 08/14/2025) (pdf) (341.9 KB)
- NOFO Getting Started Presentation (NOTE: Slide 11 - Applications DUE September 19, 2025)
- Common Errors to Avoid (pdf) (925.87 KB)
Training