Forest Service Research Service Northern Research Station

The Department of Agriculture Forest Service Research Service Northern Research Station is a civilian sub-agency within the USDA that funds forest and natural-resource research through contracts and grants. The Northern Research Station conducts and sponsors research programs focused on forest ecosystem science, management practices, and environmental outcomes across the northern and central United States.

The Northern Research Station has awarded 2,764 federal contracts totaling $100.5 million combined potential value since 2005, with $89.7 million obligated to date. Recent contract activity has declined: 113 awards in 2022, 120 in 2023, 72 in 2024, 44 in 2025, and 28 year-to-date in 2026. The competitive base is highly fragmented — the top five primes by award count hold only 14 percent of recent awards, and the top five by potential value hold 11 percent, across 1,131 distinct prime contractors awarded over the portfolio history. DJM Ecological Services, Inc. leads by recent award count with 18 awards valued at $2.5 million combined potential, while Oak Ridge Associated Universities, Incorporated ranks first by value with six awards worth $3.9 million combined. The contract set-aside mix is dominated by unrestricted awards: 78 percent of contracts carry no set-aside designation, 19 percent are small-business set-asides (including both competitive and sole-source awards), and remaining awards span 8(a), WOSB, SDVOSB, HUBZone, and emerging small business in single-digit or sub-1-percent distributions.

The Northern Research Station has awarded 14 federal grants totaling $18.8 million in obligated federal dollars since 2013, with the most recent grant award closing on 2024-08-21. Grant activity is episodic and minimal: one award in 2020, one in 2021, one in 2023, and one in 2024, against three awards in 2016. All 14 grants are Project Grants. Grant recipients are highly concentrated — University of Vermont & State Agricultural College received all recent awards (2 grants, $11.7 million federal dollars obligated in the last five years) and holds 62 percent of lifetime federal dollars obligated across just four distinct recipients.

No recent federal contract opportunities or grant opportunities are recorded against the Northern Research Station in the source data. Contract activity volume has declined sharply in 2025 and 2026, suggesting reduced procurement tempo or potential administrative transitions.