EPA-REGIONS-LCRD-2024-01.pdf

FEDERAL AGENCY: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 4, Land, Chemicals and Redevelopment Division (LCRD)

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY TITLE: FY2024- FY2025 Regional Source Reduction Assistance Grants

ANNOUNCEMENT TYPE: Initial Announcement

ASSISTANCE LISTING NUMBER: 66.717

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY NUMBER: EPA-REGIONS-LCRD-2024-01

IMPORTANT DATES:

February 15, 2024 NOFO OPENS April 15, 2024 NOFO CLOSES September 30, 2024 ANTICIPATED NOTIFICATION OF SELECTION Before December 31, 2024 AWARD ISSUED

Applications are due by April 15, 2024, 11:59 pm, Eastern Time. EPA will receive applications electronically through Grants.gov. Applications will be electronically date and time stamped. Please refer to Section IV.A of this announcement for full information on the submission process. Applications must be submitted on time to be considered for funding.

https://www.grants.gov/

CONTENTS BY SECTION

I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

I.A. Background

I.B. Scope of Work

I.C. EPA Strategic Plan Linkage

I.D. Measuring Environmental Results: Anticipated Outputs and Outcomes

I.E. EPA Statutory Authorities

I.F. Additional Provisions For Applicants Incorporated Into The Solicitation

I.G. Minority Serving Institutions

II. AWARD INFORMATION

II.A. Number of Expected Awards and Federal Funding Amounts

II.B. Partial Funding Provision

II.C. Cooperative Agreement

II.D. Project Period

III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

III.A. Eligible Applicants

III.B. Cost Share/Matching Requirement

III.C. Threshold Eligibility Criteria

IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

IV.A. Application Submission Deadline:

IV.B. Applying through Grants.gov

IV.C. Application Materials

IV.D. Content of Application Package

IV.E. Coalition Coverage

V. APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

V.A. Evaluation Criteria

V.B. Review and Selection Process

VI. AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

VI.A. Award Notification

VI.B. Administrative Requirements

VI.C. Reporting Requirements

VI.D. Disputes

VII. AGENCY CONTACT

Appendix A: Budget Object Class Description Detail

Appendix B: Grants.gov Instructions and Limited Exception Procedures

I. FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

I.A. Background Applicants are strongly encouraged to read this announcement in its entirety. It provides important information on the goals and priorities of the program, explains statutory program requirements, explains criteria used to evaluate and score grant applications, and explains agency grant policies and procedures.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Regions 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10 (the Regions) are issuing a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to eligible entities to implement pollution prevention projects through the Source Reduction Assistance grant program. Source Reduction Assistance (SRA) grants can support research, investigation, experiments, surveys, studies, demonstration, education, and/or training using source reduction approaches (also known as “pollution prevention” or “P2”).

How Does EPA Define P2? Pollution prevention is any practice which reduces the amount of any hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant entering any waste stream or otherwise released into the environment (including fugitive emissions) prior to recycling of discarded material, treatment, or disposal. P2 reduces the hazards to public health and the environment associated with the release of those substances, pollutants, or contaminants. P2 practices include equipment or technology modifications, process or procedure modifications, reformulation or redesign of products, and substitution of raw materials. EPA has also interpreted P2 as including practices that increase efficient use of water, energy, raw materials, or other resources that may protect natural resources through conservation methods, or in-process recycling (i.e., process improvements to reuse materials within the same business/facility in the production process). Reducing the amount of pollution in the environment means producing less waste to control, treat, or dispose. Less pollution means fewer hazards posed to public health and the environment.

For more information about P2 please visit: https://www.epa.gov/p2

P2 is a powerful tool that can protect public health and the environment by:

• Reducing the use, release, and exposure to toxic chemicals

• Employing upstream solutions that reduce the need for, and costs of, environmental cleanup and pollution management

• Reducing the demand for virgin, raw materials

• Reducing the demand for, and cost of, utility services, such as electricity, water supply, and wastewater treatment due to increased energy and water efficiency

• Increasing the efficiency of materials use and reuse

• Reduction of single-use plastics

Practices that are not P2: Technical assistance on practices that are not considered P2 cannot serve as the basis for P2 grant funding. These include recycling of discarded materials, waste clean-up, disposal activities, managing or processing of non-hazardous solid waste (e.g., paper, cardboard, glass, plastics), and the implementation of Lean manufacturing activities that do not https://www.epa.gov/p2 involve reductions in the use/release of hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, greenhouse gas releases or water use. If any of these activities represent more than a small and ancillary part of the proposed project, EPA will not consider the application for an award. For assistance with recycling of discarded materials, waste clean-up, disposal and management or processing of non-hazardous solid waste activities, please refer to EPA’s Reduce, Reuse, Recycle website.1

I.B. Scope of Work

The Regions are particularly interested in receiving applications for projects that promote practical source reduction practices, tools, and training on P2 approaches to measurably improve human and environmental health by reducing the use of hazardous substances, reducing toxic pollutants, reducing resource use (e.g., water and energy), and reducing expenditures and liability costs to businesses, non-profit organizations and/or communities. Suggested project types are provided below, but they are not an exhaustive list. The Regions welcome innovative, bold strategies designed to accelerate and drive P2 and source reduction.

The Regions are especially interested to support projects in the following priority areas:

1. Prevention of Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Carry out P2 projects that are designed to achieve measurable reductions of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and/or energy efficiency through source reduction techniques.

Examples of projects under this priority area may include, but are not limited to:

• Demonstrating pollution prevention activities that could support energy efficiency measures.

• Offering technical assistance to reduce energy consumption from industrial processes such as lighting, hot water use, compressed air, natural gas, etc.

• Offering training and other assistance to help identify substitutions for chemicals and substances with significant environmental impacts including manufacture or use of chemicals that could result in GHG releases.

2. Hazardous Materials Source Reduction: Carry out research, studies, demonstrations, or training on approaches to hazardous materials source reduction activities that result in reduced generation and use of hazardous materials.

Example projects include but are not limited to:

• Providing technical assistance/training to help develop and adopt pollution prevention and toxics reduction practices.

• Identifying and targeting pollution sources within environmental justice communities and promoting source reduction approaches to reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous materials.

• Conducting research, demonstration, or training on innovative ways to design, manufacture, or improve markets for environmentally preferable products (e.g., 1 For more information on what is and is not P2, please refer to the PPA Section 66303 and 40 CFR 35.343 AND 35.662 https://www.epa.gov/recycle https://www.epa.gov/recycle participating in EPA's Safer Choice Program, using Safer Choice Labeled Products, using EPA's Safer Chemical Ingredients List, or using products conforming to EPA’s Recommendations for Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels).

• Amplifying Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) P2 Reporting and using TRI P2 data to target similar businesses or operations for similar P2 opportunities in hazardous materials source reduction.

• Creating community partnerships (between businesses and local municipalities, schools, etc.) to identify and reduce use of hazardous materials.

3. Innovative approaches to conservation of materials and resources: Carry out P2 projects to address pressing environmental challenges involving the reduction in the use of materials and natural resources such as energy or water.

Example projects include but are not limited to:

• Conducting projects focused on source reduction of materials contributing to marine plastics pollution.

• Providing P2 technical assistance to reduce water use and contaminants contributing to urban runoff.

• Conducting projects on built environment design for deconstruction and/or deconstruction to prevent pollution.

• Developing guidance and/or model standards to reduce construction and demolition debris.

• Conducting trainings, conferences, or roundtables to share pollution prevention best practices and/or demonstrate pollution prevention technologies.

4. Environmental Justice through P2 Actions: Carry out projects that support environmental justice for underserved communities. Environmental justice (EJ) is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. Fair treatment means no group of people should bear a disproportionate share of the negative environmental consequences resulting from industrial, governmental, and commercial operations or policies.

Meaningful involvement means people have an opportunity to participate in decisions about activities that may affect their environment and/or health; the public's contribution can influence the regulatory agency's decision; community concerns will be considered in the decision-making process; and decision makers will seek out and facilitate the involvement of those potentially affected. For purposes of this competition and the evaluation of applications, “underserved communities” per Executive Order 13985 means “populations sharing a particular characteristic, as well as geographic communities, that have been systematically denied a full opportunity to participate in aspects of economic, social, and civic life,” as exemplified by the list contained within the definition of 'equity' within Executive Order 13985. Pollution prevention is a powerful tool that can reduce the environmental and human health burdens experienced by underserved communities.

https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice/products https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice/products https://www.epa.gov/saferchoice/safer-ingredients https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/recommendations-specifications-standards-and-ecolabels-federal-purchasing https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/recommendations-specifications-standards-and-ecolabels-federal-purchasing https://www.epa.gov/greenerproducts/recommendations-specifications-standards-and-ecolabels-federal-purchasing https://www.epa.gov/toxics-release-inventory-tri-program https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/20/executive-order-advancing-racial-equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-government/

Underserved communities can be identified through The Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool (CEJST), which is a geospatial mapping tool developed by CEQ and using Supplemental Indexes available in both:

• EPA’s EJScreen tool, which is a tool that combines environmental and socioeconomic indicators in maps and reports; and,

• P2 EJ Facility Mapping Tool, which allows users to identify industrial businesses located in or adjacent to US Census tracts that meet the EJ socioeconomic indicators featured in EJScreen and the P2EJ Facility Mapping Tool.

Applicants may use other approaches and demographic indicators for identifying disadvantaged communities that may be appropriate for their state but must specify those approaches in their grant applications. Applicants from federally recognized Tribes and intertribal consortia will automatically be given full credit in the merit evaluation criteria for community identification and do not need to provide details on their identification process.

Where appropriate and feasible, EPA encourages applicants to design their projects to incorporate opportunities for meaningful community engagement to consider and address community concerns.

Some examples of recently funded projects include those found in the summary pages posted to the EPA P2 EJ in Communities Grants website and the EPA P2 EJ Through Safer and More Sustainable Products Grants website.

Example projects include, but are not limited to:

• Educating retailers on the Safer Choice program, and the EPA Recommendations for Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels to support the increase in availability and use of safer cleaning products and other environmentally preferable products.

• Providing P2 technical assistance in multiple languages.

• Partnering with schools and daycare facilities to improve indoor air quality through P2 actions.

• Building capacity for organizations or residents to understand pollution prevention techniques and approaches and transfer those lessons in their communities.

I.C. EPA Strategic Plan Linkage

The activities to be funded under this solicitation support the FY 2022-2026 EPA Strategic Plan.

Awards made under this solicitation will support Goal 7: Ensure Safety of Chemicals for People and the Environment, Objective 7.2: Promote Pollution Prevention of the Strategic Plan.

Application narratives must explain how the work proposed will support the EPA Strategic Plan goal and objective identified above.

I.D. Measuring Environmental Results: Anticipated Outputs and Outcomes Pursuant to EPA Order 5700.7 “Environmental Results under EPA Assistance Agreements,” EPA requires that all grant applicants and recipients adequately address environmental outputs and outcomes. Outputs and outcomes differ both in their nature https://screeningtool.geoplatform.gov/en/#3/33.47/-97.5 https://screeningtool.geoplatform.gov/en/#3/33.47/-97.5 https://www.epa.gov/ejscreen https://www.epa.gov/p2/p2-ej-facility-mapping-tool https://www.epa.gov/p2/pollution-prevention-grant-environmental-justice-communities https://www.epa.gov/p2/pollution-prevention-grant-environmental-justice-through-safer-and-more-sustainable-products https://www.epa.gov/p2/pollution-prevention-grant-environmental-justice-through-safer-and-more-sustainable-products https://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/strategicplan and in how they are measured. Applicants must discuss environmental outputs and outcomes in the Narrative. To estimate anticipated outcomes, applicants may use one or more of EPA’s P2 calculators on the EPA P2 website (click on “Calculators to Measure Outcomes”) or may use other methodologies provided those methodologies are described and referenced in the project narrative.

EPA encourages applicants to specify that outputs and outcomes will be reported to EPA in table or spreadsheet form. For the convenience of the recipients, Excel spreadsheet reporting template(s) are available on EPA’s P2 Program Grant Reporting page. Although the use of these Excel spreadsheets is not required, applicants should consider referring to these templates in their Reporting Plans as their planned method to collect, document and submit the required reporting to EPA.

1. Outputs: The term “output” means an activity, effort, and/or associated work product related to an environmental goal and objective that will be produced or provided over a specified period of time or by a specified date. Outputs must be measurable during an assistance agreement funding period. Outputs must be appropriate to the proposed project and project goals, so projects may not need to report on all outputs listed below.

Outputs include but are not limited to (report on those applicable to your project):

1. Number of organizations provided with P2 technical assistance.

2. Number of new P2 practices adopted resulting from technical assistance provided by the grantee.

3. Number of outreach materials developed (e.g., fact sheets, leaflets, social media posts, case studies).

4. Number of amplification activities (i.e., training, webinars, roundtables, distribution of outreach materials) that widely share P2 practices.

5. For each amplification activity, grantees will also be asked to report on:

a. topic(s) covered,

b. number of attendees,

c. increased participant understanding of topics and skills achieved during the event,

d. number of people in affected underserved communities served by outreach.

6. Any other outputs or metrics that the applicant deems relevant to demonstrate the success of the P2 project.

2. Outcomes: The term “outcome” means the result, effect, or consequence that will occur from carrying out an environmental program or activity that is related to an environmental or programmatic goal or objective. Outcomes may be qualitative or quantitative, and can be environmental, behavioral, health-related, or programmatic in nature. Applications must include a description of anticipated project outcomes resulting from the project outputs, even if the outcome to be achieved is beyond the assistance agreement funding period. Include the quantitative target associated with the outcome, as appropriate.

https://www.epa.gov/p2/pollution-prevention-tools-and-calculators https://www.epa.gov/p2/grant-reporting

Required EPA P2 program outcomes (please include all outcomes in the project narrative):

1. Due to P2 actions implemented as a result of technical assistance provided, reductions in:

a. pounds of hazardous materials used and of hazardous substances, pollutants and contaminants released at facilities

b. metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2e)

c. gallons of water used at facilities

d. Cost savings associated with reducing hazardous pounds, MTCO2e, and water consumption

I.E. EPA Statutory Authorities This grant opportunity is awarded under the following EPA statutory authorities: Clean Air Act, Section103(b)(3), as amended; Clean Water Act, Section 104(b)(3), as amended; Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, Section 20, as amended;

Safe Drinking Water Act, Section 1442 (a)(1) and (c), as amended; Solid Waste Disposal Act, Section 8001(a), as amended; and Toxic Substances Control Act, Section 10, as amended. All application activities must apply at least one of the statutory authorities listed above.

The grant authorities within each statute authorize the agency to award assistance agreements to

(1) conduct research, investigations, experiments, demonstrations, surveys, and studies related to the causes, effects (including health and welfare effects), extent, prevention, and control of air and/or water pollution; (2) conduct research, development, monitoring, public education, training, demonstrations, and studies on pesticides; (3) develop, expand, or carry out a program (that may combine training, education, and employment) for occupations relating to the public health aspects of providing safe drinking water; (4) conduct and promote the coordination of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, public education programs, and studies; and (5) conduct research, development, monitoring, public education, training, demonstrations, and studies on toxic substances.

I.F. Additional Provisions For Applicants Incorporated Into The Solicitation

Additional provisions that apply to sections III, IV, V, and VI of this solicitation and/or awards made under this solicitation, can be found at EPA Solicitation Clauses. These provisions are important for applying to this solicitation and applicants must review them when preparing applications for this solicitation. If you are unable to access these provisions electronically at the website above, please contact the EPA point of contact listed in Section VII of this solicitation to obtain the provisions.

I.G. Minority Serving Institutions

EPA recognizes that it is important to engage all available minds to address the environmental challenges the nation faces. At the same time, EPA seeks to expand the environmental conversation by including members of communities which may have not previously participated in such dialogues to participate in EPA programs. For this reason, EPA strongly encourages all eligible applicants identified in Section III, including minority serving institutions (MSIs), to apply under this opportunity.

https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses

For purposes of this solicitation, the following are considered MSIs:

1. Historically Black Colleges and Universities, as defined by the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. § 1061(2)). A list of these schools can be found at the White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity through Historically Black Colleges and Universities

2. Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), as defined by the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C.

§1059c(b)(3) and (d)(1)). A list of these schools can be found at the White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Native Americans and Strengthening Tribal Colleges and Universities

3. Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), as defined by the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. § 1101a(a)(5)). A list of these schools can be found at the White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Hispanic-Serving Institutions

4. Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions; (AANAPISIs), as defined by the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. § 1059g(b)(2)). A list of these schools can be found at Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions; and

5. Predominately Black Institutions (PBIs), as defined by the Higher Education Act of 2008, 20 U.S.C. 1059e(b)(6). A list of these schools can be found at Predominately Black Institutions.

II. AWARD INFORMATION

II.A. Number of Expected Awards and Federal Funding Amounts

EPA anticipates awarding 7 to 27 awards ranging from $40,000-$240,000, with up to a total of $1,500,000 in federal funds available across Regions 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10. The number of awards is subject to the availability of funds, the quality of applications received, and other applicable considerations. The following table indicates the amount and range of funding for each region.

Region Total Funding # of Awards Funding Range Per Award

3 $240,000 1-4 $40,000-$240,000 4 $240,000 1-4 $40,000-$240,000 5 $240,000 1-4 $40,000-$240,000 7 $180,000 1-4 $40,000-$180,000 8 $180,000 1-4 $40,000-$180,000 9 $200,000 1-3 $60,000-$200,000 10 $220,000 1-4 $55,000-$220,000

Awards may be fully or incrementally funded, as appropriate, based on funding availability, satisfactory performance, and other applicable considerations.

https://sites.ed.gov/whhbcu/one-hundred-and-five-historically-black-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/whhbcu/one-hundred-and-five-historically-black-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/whhbcu/one-hundred-and-five-historically-black-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/whhbcu/one-hundred-and-five-historically-black-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/whiaiane/tribes-tcus/tribal-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/whiaiane/tribes-tcus/tribal-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/whiaiane/tribes-tcus/tribal-colleges-and-universities/ https://sites.ed.gov/hispanic-initiative/hispanic-serving-institutions-hsis/ https://sites.ed.gov/hispanic-initiative/hispanic-serving-institutions-hsis/ https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1XVkOWKMDORm53pvU0L8EPsrJC94&msa=0&ie=UTF8&t=m&z=3&source=embed&ll=40.58644586187277%2C-148.28228249999984 https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1wlIi3j7gtlNq_w-0NKAb2bF2VmY&ie=UTF&msa=0&ll=37.35160769312532%2C-96.17229800000001&z=4

EPA reserves the right to make additional awards under this solicitation, consistent with Agency policy and guidance, if additional funding becomes available after the original selections are made. Any additional selections for awards will be made no later than 6 months after the original selection decisions.

The actual award amounts and number of projects awarded under each of the priorities described in Section I may differ from the estimated amounts for many reasons, including the number of meritorious applications received, agency priorities, and funding availability. In addition, EPA reserves the right to increase or decrease (including decreasing to zero) the total number and amount of awards under each priority.

II.B. Partial Funding Provision

In appropriate circumstances, EPA reserves the right to partially fund applications by funding discrete portions or phases of proposed projects. If EPA decides to partially fund an application, it will do so in a manner that does not prejudice any applicants or affect the basis upon which the application, or portion thereof, was evaluated and selected for award, and therefore maintains the integrity of the competition and selection process.

II.C. Cooperative Agreement

EPA intends to award cooperative agreements under this solicitation. Cooperative agreements provide for substantial involvement between the EPA Project Officer and the selected applicant(s) in the performance of the work supported. Although EPA will negotiate precise terms and conditions relating to substantial involvement as part of the award process, the anticipated substantial federal involvement for these projects may include, but is not limited to:

• close monitoring of the successful applicant’s performance to verify the results proposed by the applicant;

• collaboration during performance of the scope of work;

• in accordance with 2 CFR 200.317 and 2 CFR 200.318, review of proposed procurement;

• approving qualifications of key personnel (EPA will not select employees or contractors employed by the award recipient); and

• review and comment on reports prepared under the cooperative agreement

(the final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient).

EPA does not have the authority to select employees or contractors employed by the recipient. The final decision on the content of reports rests with the recipient.

II.D. Project Period

The estimated start date for projects resulting from this solicitation is January 1, 2025, although it could be sooner. Successful applicants will work with the Regional point of contact regarding start date for projects. All project activities must be completed within the negotiated project performance period of no longer than two years. The grant may possibly be extended if the grantee provides a specific reason, properly requests an extension before the grant end date, and the request is approved by the EPA Regional Office.

III. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

Note: Additional provisions that apply to this section can be found at EPA Solicitation Clauses.

III.A. Eligible Applicants Eligible applicants include States, local, interstate, and intrastate government agencies and instrumentalities, federally recognized Tribes, intertribal consortia, and non-profit organizations formed under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code (not 501(c)(4) organizations that lobby). All projects must take place within the geographic boundaries of one of the EPA Regions announcing this solicitation (3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10).

Consistent with the definition of Nonprofit organization at 2 CFR § 200.1, the term nonprofit organization means any corporation, trust, association, cooperative, or other organization that is operated mainly for scientific, educational, service, charitable, or similar purpose in the public interest and is not organized primarily for profit; and uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the operation of the organization. The term includes tax-exempt nonprofit neighborhood and labor organizations. Note that 2 CFR

200.1 specifically excludes Institutions of Higher Education from the definition of non-profit organization because they are separately defined in the regulation. While not considered to be a nonprofit organization(s) as defined by 2 CFR 200.1, public or nonprofit Institutions of Higher Education are, nevertheless, eligible to submit applications under this NOFO. Hospitals operated by State, Tribal, or local governments or that meet the definition of nonprofit at 2 CFR 200.1 are also eligible to apply as nonprofits or as instrumentalities of the unit of government depending on the applicable law. For-profit colleges, universities, trade schools, and hospitals are ineligible.

Nonprofit organizations that are not exempt from taxation under section 501 of the Internal Revenue Code must submit other forms of documentation of nonprofit status such as certificates of incorporation as nonprofit under State or Tribal law. Nonprofit organizations exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code that lobby are not eligible for EPA funding as provided in the Lobbying Disclosure Act, 2 U.S.C. 1611.

Encouraging Minority Serving Institutions to Compete EPA recognizes that scientific, technical, engineering and mathematical (STEM) competence is essential to the Nation's future well-being in terms of national security and competitive economic advantage. For instance, the health and vitality of the economy is predicated, in part, on the availability of an adequate supply of scientists, technicians, engineers and mathematicians, to develop innovative technologies and solutions. In other words, this country must engage all available minds to address the challenges it faces. Minorities, women, and persons with disabilities historically have been under-represented in the STEM fields. For this reason, EPA strongly encourages all eligible applicants including, women, minorities, and persons with disabilities to apply.

III.B. Cost Share/Matching Requirement Applications require a cost share/match of 5% of the total project cost. For example, if the total project cost is $100,000, the applicant must be able to provide $5,000 in cash or in-kind contributions to meet the 5% cost share/match requirement and be eligible to receive $95,000 in federal grant funding from EPA.

Federal Award: $95,000

+ Cost share/match requirement: $5,000 Total Project Cost = $100,000

Cost sharing and matching contributions may include but are not limited to: Cash; in-kind goods and services (e.g., volunteered time, photocopying and printing services), and third-party contributions consistent with 2 CFR 200.306. See 2 CFR 200.306(b) for a definition of match and a description of match criteria. Applicants must document in their budgets the type of match applied and how it will be used as described in Section IV.D.

III.C. Threshold Eligibility Criteria

All applications will be reviewed for eligibility and must meet the eligibility requirements described in Sections III.A., B., and C. to be considered eligible. Applications that fail to meet any one of the threshold criteria will not be considered further. Applicants deemed ineligible for funding consideration as a result of the threshold eligibility review will be notified within 15 calendar days of the ineligibility determination. Applications that successfully meet the threshold criteria will then be evaluated using the criteria described in Section V.A., Evaluation Criteria.

The threshold eligibility criteria are:

1. Demonstration of Applicant Eligibility - Provide information in the Cover Page described in Section IV that demonstrates how the applicant is an eligible entity as specified in Section III.A. B., and C.

2. Projects must meet the EPA definition of Pollution Prevention and must address one or more of the priority areas described in Section I.B (Scope of Work) of this announcement.

3. Federal funds requested must not exceed the funding cap identified by the

Region to which the application is submitted. Applicants must also demonstrate how they will meet the 5% cost share/match requirement.

4. Eligible projects must take place within one of the EPA Regions announcing this solicitation (EPA Regions 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, and 10). Applicants who wish to apply for projects in multiple regions must submit a separate application for each region, covering work done only in that region. If an application includes work in multiple regions, it will be deemed ineligible.

5. Applications must substantially comply with the application submission instructions and requirements set forth in Section IV of this announcement or else they will be rejected. Pages exceeding the page limitation (ten pages) for the Narrative (Cover Page and Criteria Responses) will not be reviewed. Applicants are advised that readability is of paramount importance and should take precedence in application format, including selecting a legible font type and size for use in the application. See Section IV.C for more details.

6. In addition, initial applications must be submitted through Grants.gov as stated in

Section IV.A of this announcement (except in the limited circumstances where another mode of submission is specifically allowed for as explained in Section IV.A.) on or before the application submission deadline published in Section IV of this announcement. Applicants are responsible for following the submission instructions in Section IV.A. of this announcement to ensure that their application is submitted properly. Please note that applicants experiencing technical issues with submitting through Grants.gov should follow the instructions provided in Section IV, which include both the requirement to contact Grants.gov and email a full application to EPA prior to the deadline.

7. Applications submitted outside of Grants.gov will be deemed ineligible without further consideration unless the applicant can clearly demonstrate that it was due to EPA mishandling or technical problems associated with Grants.gov or SAM.gov. An applicant’s failure to timely submit their application through Grants.gov because they did not timely or properly register in SAM.gov or Grants.gov will not be considered an acceptable reason to consider a submission outside of Grants.gov.

8. Ineligible activities: If an application is submitted that includes any ineligible tasks or activities2, that portion of the application will be ineligible for funding and may, depending on the extent to which it affects the application, render the entire application ineligible for funding.

IV. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

IV.A. Application Submission Deadline:

The submission deadline is April 15, 2024, 11:59 pm (ET). To apply, the applicant’s Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must submit a complete application package electronically to EPA through Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov). Instructions for applying through Grants.gov are provided in Appendix B of this announcement.

Please reserve enough time to successfully submit your application in the event unexpected errors require you to resubmit your application.

2 Refer to Section 1.A. for examples of ineligible activities https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.sam.gov/SAM/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.sam.gov/SAM/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses http://www.grants.gov/

Applications submitted through Grants.gov will be time and date stamped electronically.

If you have not received a confirmation of receipt from EPA (not Grants.gov) within 30 days of the application deadline, please contact the EPA representative listed in Section VII. Failure to do so may result in your application not being reviewed.

IV.B. Applying through Grants.gov

Applicants must:

1. Have an active System for Award Management (SAM) account (https://www.sam.gov/SAM/).

2. Be registered in Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov).

3. Designate an Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) as the individual who will submit the application through Grants.gov.

Note: The registration process for applying through Grants.gov may take a month or more to complete. Please register early. The electronic submission of your application must be made by the AOR of the organization who is registered with Grants.gov and is authorized to sign applications for federal funding assistance. If you do not have the technical capability to apply electronically through Grants.gov because of limited or no Internet access which prevents you from being able to upload the required application materials to Grants.gov, an alternate submission exception request may be made – see Appendix B for instructions. If you submit more than one application for the identical project (either in error or to replace a previously submitted application), EPA will only review the most recently submitted application, unless you notify Audrey Reever (reever.audrey@epa.gov) and specify which application you want EPA to review.

IV.C. Application Materials

1. Mandatory Documents: The following forms and documents are required under this announcement.

a. Application for Federal Assistance (SF-424)

b. Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs (SF-424A)

c. EPA Key Contacts Form 5700-54

d. EPA Form 4700-4 Preaward Compliance Review Report

e. Narrative - Project Narrative Attachment Form in Grants.gov. This must include the Cover Page and Criteria Responses, which cannot exceed ten pages in total, as described in Section IV.D.

2. Optional Attachments: Please consider supplementing your project narrative with the following documentation, submitted through the Other Attachments form in grants.gov. These items are not included in the 10-page limit.

a. Letters of Support: To describe the service(s) the grant partner(s) will provide to help carry out and enhance the project activity.

b. Staff resumes: To reflect the knowledge, experience and/or expertise to conduct the proposed work.

c. Illustrative graphs, charts or tables of budgets and timelines: To provide an illustrative example of your budget or of your projected timeline to highlight milestones for completing proposed work, if you believe this https://www.sam.gov/SAM/ http://www.grants.gov/ mailto:reever.audrey@epa.gov information will aid your application.

If you have not received a confirmation of receipt from EPA (not from grants.gov) within 30 days of the application deadline, please contact the EPA representative listed in Section VII. Failure to do so may result in your application not being reviewed.

IV.D. Content of Application Package

The following documents comprising the Narrative (Cover Page and Criteria Responses) are required for all application packages. All documents must be in English and submitted in Grants.gov, per Section IV.A. The Narrative must explicitly describe the applicant’s project and specifically address each of the elements below and the evaluation criteria described in Section V.A. The Narrative (Cover Page and Criteria Responses) must not exceed 10 single-spaced standard letter-sized (8.5 x 11-inch) pages with a minimum font size of 12. Any pages submitted exceeding the page limit will not be reviewed. The Optional Attachments listed in Section IV.C.

are not included in the 10 page limit.

Cover Page - The Cover Page (should not exceed one page) must include:

• Project Title

• Applicant Name. Identify the name of the organization submitting the application.

• Organization’s Unique Entity Identifier

• Project Summary. Briefly describe the project in one to four sentences and identify the jurisdiction of your project or community you plan to serve and where the project will be performed.

• EPA Region in which the project will take place

• Project Leader. Include contact name, title, address, email address, and phone number. Applicant can also list an administrative contact.

• Total Project Cost. Specify total cost of the project. Identify funding from other sources and in-kind contributions, including the required 5% match.

• Funding Requested. Specify the amount of federal funding requested from EPA.

• Demonstration of how the Applicant is an eligible entity per Section III.A.

Narrative Criteria Responses

The Narrative must include clear, concise, and factual responses to all elements below.

The Narrative must provide sufficient detail to allow for an evaluation of the merits of the application. If a criterion does not apply, include a response which explains why it does not apply. Any criterion left unanswered may result in zero points given for that criterion.

Responses to the criteria should include the criteria number and title but need not restate the entire text of the criteria.

1. Project Summary and Approach

a. Project Description

Provide a clear and detailed description of the project and project goals.

b. Pollution Prevention to Address Environmental and/or Human Health

Concerns Provide a clear and detailed explanation describing how the project addresses an environmental and/or human health concern through the implementation of pollution prevention and source reduction.

c. Scope of Work

Provide a clear and detailed explanation of how the project promotes source reduction to address one or more of the stated priority areas in Section I.B; and, where and if applicable, describes any innovative aspect(s) of the source reduction project (i.e., techniques, processes, tools, or strategies).

If applying to work under priority area 4, Environmental Justice through P2 Actions, provide a clear and detailed demonstration of how the project will address the disproportionate and adverse (see below) human health, environmental, climate-related and other cumulative impacts, as well as the accompanying economic challenges of such impacts, resulting from industrial, governmental, commercial and/or other actions that have affected and/or currently affect a community, including the affected underserved communities described in Section I.B.4 of the solicitation. Applications will be evaluated based on:

• How the project benefits the affected underserved communities, including those that have experienced a lack of resources or other impediments to addressing the impacts identified above that affect their community, and

• The extent to which the project addresses engagement with these communities, especially local residents in these communities who will be affected by the project, to ensure meaningful participation with respect to the design, project planning, and performance of the project.

Disproportionate and adverse environmental, human health, climate-related and other cumulative impacts, as well the accompanying economic challenges of such impacts, may result when greater pollution burdens and/or consequences, and the impact of them, are more likely to affect or have affected the community, including the affected underserved communities described in this solicitation. The impacts may result from various factors, including but not limited to historical trends and policy decisions.

Factors that may indicate disproportionate and adverse impacts include differential proximity and exposure to adverse environmental hazards; greater susceptibility to adverse effects from environmental hazards (due to causes such as age, chronic medical conditions, lack of health care access, or limited access to quality nutrition); unique environmental exposures because of practices linked to cultural background or socioeconomic status (for example, subsistence fishing or farming); cumulative effects from multiple stressors;

reduced ability to effectively participate in decision-making processes;

degraded physical infrastructure, such as poor housing, poorly maintained public buildings (e.g., schools), and/or lack of access to transportation.

Please refer to Section I.B.4 for resources on identifying underserved

d. Workplan

Provide a detailed workplan that clearly describes the project tasks and subtasks, and key personnel roles and responsibilities for each project task and subtask.

e. Strategic Plan Linkage

Provide a clear and detailed explanation of how the project addresses the requirements in Section I.C (Strategic Plan Linkage).

f. Partnerships and Stakeholders

Provide a clear and detailed plan to use the resources and expertise of partners and stakeholders in the project, including a description of how each partner will contribute to the success of the project. Letter(s) of support from partners and/or stakeholders will be considered. If partners and stakeholders will not be used in the project, the application will be evaluated based on whether it demonstrates that the project can be efficiently and effectively performed without partner and stakeholder involvement.

2. Sustainable Project Strategy and Transferability

a. Sustainable Project Strategy

Provide a clear and detailed description of the strategy to ensure that project outcomes will continue for the target beneficiaries after EPA funding for this project has ended.

b. Replicability and Transferability Provide a clear and detailed description demonstrating that this project is replicable and how knowledge gained during this project will be shared with other organizations and

3. Budget, Timeline, and Measuring Success

a. Budget Description

Provide a clear and detailed budget showing that costs that are eligible, appropriate, reasonable, and realistic to perform the project. The budget should clearly correlate costs with the tasks and include costs for each project budget category (i.e., personnel, fringe benefits, travel, equipment, supplies, contractual, other direct costs, and indirect costs). The budget should describe how the cost estimates for each task were developed including costs per unit. The cost share/match requirement should be clearly described (i.e., source of match and how it will be used). Please see Appendix A and EPA’s Interim General Budget Development Guidance for Applicants and Recipients of EPA Financial Assistance for more information.

https://www.epa.gov/grants/rain-2019-g02 https://www.epa.gov/grants/rain-2019-g02 https://www.epa.gov/grants/rain-2019-g02

b. Timeline

Provide a clear, detailed, and reasonable schedule with identified dates of milestones for significant tasks, demonstrating that the project goals and objectives will be completed within the two-year project period of performance.

The timeline should clearly describe an approach, procedures, and controls for ensuring that awarded grant funds will be expended in a timely and efficient manner.

c. Outputs and Outcomes

Provide a clear and detailed description of the plan for measuring progress toward achieving the expected project outcomes and outputs for each project task consistent with the outputs and outcomes described in Section 1.D. Measuring Environmental Results: Anticipated Outputs and Outcomes. The description should include the following quantitative output and outcome targets, as well as any other relevant outputs and outcomes:

• pounds of hazardous materials or substances reduced

• metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (MTCO2e) reduced

• gallons of water reduced

• dollars saved by implementing P2 practices.

4. Programmatic Capability and Past Performance

a. Past Performance

Provide a clear and detailed demonstration successfully completing and managing current or previous federal assistance agreements. List up to 5 federally and/or non-federally funded assistance agreements (assistance agreements include grants and cooperative agreements but not contracts) that your organization performed within the last three years, preferably EPA agreements.

b. History of Meeting Reporting Requirements Provide a clear and detailed description of your history of meeting the reporting requirements under the assistance agreements identified above in Section IV.D.4.a, including whether progress towards achieving expected outputs and outcomes was adequately reported on time. If not, explain why not. Also explain whether acceptable final technical reports, as required under the agreements, were submitted on time.

c. Organizational Experience

Provide a clear and detailed description of the organization’s experience and the plan for timely and successfully achieving the objectives of the proposed project.

d. Staff Expertise

Provide a clear and detailed description of staff expertise/qualifications, staff knowledge, and resources (or the ability to obtain them) to successfully achieve the goals of the proposed project.

In evaluating applicants under these factors in Section V, EPA will consider the information provided by the applicant and may also consider relevant information from other sources, including information from EPA files and from current/prior grantors (e.g., to verify and/or supplement the information provided by the applicant). If you do not have any relevant or available past performance or past reporting information, please indicate this in the application and you will receive a neutral score for these factors (a neutral score is half of the total points available in a subset of possible points). If you do not provide any response for these items, you may receive a score of 0 for these factors.

IV.E. Coalition Coverage

Groups of two or more eligible applicants located within the same EPA Region, may choose to form a coalition and submit a single application under this NOFO; however, one entity must be responsible for the grant. Coalitions must identify which eligible organization will be the recipient of the grant and which eligible organization(s) will be subrecipients of the recipient (the “pass-through entity”).