Feral Ungulate and Invasive Plant Monitoring and Management at the Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex | F19AS00067

Opportunity Information: Apply for F19AS00067

The grant opportunity titled "Feral Ungulate and Invasive Plant Monitoring and Management at the Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex" (Funding Opportunity Number F19AS00067) was a discretionary funding announcement from the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. It was offered as a cooperative agreement, which generally means the agency expected to have substantial involvement in the work alongside the recipient rather than simply issuing funds with minimal interaction. The opportunity was posted on December 14, 2018, and originally closed on December 21, 2018. By the time of the notice, a recipient had already been selected, indicating it was no longer open for competition.

The project focus centered on urgent natural resource management needs at the Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex in Hawaii. The core activities included monitoring and management of Rapid Ohia Death, eradication of feral pigs (feral ungulates), and control of invasive plant species. Rapid Ohia Death is a serious disease affecting ohia (Metrosideros polymorpha), a foundational native tree species in Hawaiian ecosystems, so monitoring and active management are aimed at tracking spread, reducing risk of new infections, and protecting habitat quality. Feral pigs are a major driver of habitat degradation in Hawaii because they root and wallow, disturb soils, damage native vegetation, and create conditions that help invasive plants spread. Invasive plant control complements pig eradication by targeting the species that often take advantage of disturbed ground and outcompete native plants, reducing the ecological gains made through restoration.

A key theme of the announcement was the immediacy of the management need. The description emphasizes that aggressive strategies were required to avoid losing ground after recent habitat improvements. In practical terms, this signals that prior restoration or protection actions had begun to show results, but those gains were at risk of being reversed if Rapid Ohia Death, feral pig impacts, and invasive plant encroachment were not addressed quickly and intensively. The grant was structured to support that kind of rapid, hands-on conservation response rather than slow, incremental measures.

Funding for the project was relatively modest but targeted: the award ceiling was $60,000, with an expectation of a single award. The listing associated the opportunity with CFDA number 15.678, and it was categorized across several activity areas including disaster prevention and relief, education, environment, information and statistics, natural resources, and science and technology/research and development. Eligibility was listed as unrestricted, meaning it was open to a wide range of applicants (public agencies, tribes, nonprofits, universities, and potentially other entities), subject to any additional constraints that may have been provided in the full eligibility text. Overall, the opportunity funded a focused conservation effort aimed at protecting refuge habitats on the Big Island by combining disease monitoring and response with on-the-ground removal of damaging feral animals and suppression of invasive plants to preserve and build on prior restoration progress.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the disaster prevention and relief, education, environment, information and statistics, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Feral Ungulate and Invasive Plant Monitoring and Management at the Big Island National Wildlife Refuge Complex" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.678.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 14, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Dec 21, 2018 The recipient has been selected.. (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 $60,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for F19AS00067

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