PKG00263386-instructions.pdf

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – Region 10

Puget Sound Action Agenda — Strategic Initiative Implementation Leads

Request for Applications

September 9, 2020

COVID-19 Update: EPA is providing flexibilities to applicants experiencing challenges related to COVID-

19. Please see the Flexibilities Available to Organizations Impacted by COVID-19 clause in Section IV of https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses.

Federal Agency: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) – Region 10

Funding Opportunity Title: Puget Sound Action Agenda – Implementation Strategies and Actions for Vital Sign Recovery Assistance Program

Action: Request for Applications (RFA)

Funding Opportunity Number: EPA-R10-PS-2020-001

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 66.123

Statutory Authority: The statutory authority for the assistance agreements to be funded under this announcement is §320(g) of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. § 1330, Pub. L. No. 114-162, 130 Stat. 409).

Dates: The Request for Applications (RFA) opens on September 9, 2020 and the closing date and time for receipt of application submissions is November 9, 2020, by 11:59 P.M., Eastern Time (ET) in order to be considered for funding. Application packages must be submitted electronically to EPA through Grants.gov (https://www.grants.gov/) no later than the closing date and time.

Summary: This RFA announces the availability of funds and solicits applications from eligible applicants that are interested in acting as Strategic Initiative Implementation Leads, referred to from hereon as “Strategic Initiative Leads” (SILs), in coordination with the Puget Sound Partnership (PSP), EPA, and other relevant parties. The primary roles of the SILs are to:

1) Award and manage subawards to support the implementation of the Action Agenda with a focus on Implementation Strategies, and maintain Strategic Initiative Advisory Teams (SIATs) to advise in investment-related decision-making;

2) Serve as Implementation Strategy Leads for Vital Signs related to the Strategic Initiative and form technical (e.g., Interdisciplinary Teams) and/or policy workgroups to develop, refine, adaptively manage, and operationalize Implementation Strategies; and

3) Participate in PSP and National Estuary Program (NEP) Management Conference processes and work groups. Proactively coordinate with Local Integrating Organizations (LIOs) and tribal partners in order to accomplish SIL work.

SILs will also provide technical recommendations to the Puget Sound NEP Management Conference, develop and refine the technical criteria for selecting priority actions through deliberation with the SIATs, and select and manage subawards to implement the work endorsed by the NEP Management Conference. This work will be consistent with the 2018-2022 Puget Sound Action Agenda for the protection and restoration of Puget Sound and any future Action Agenda adopted by the PSP Leadership Council and approved by EPA during the project period of this award. The 2018-2022 Action i https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-solicitation-clauses https://www.grants.gov/ https://Grants.gov

Agenda can be found at https://psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php.

Funding Awards: EPA anticipates awarding one cooperative agreement for each of the three Strategic Initiative areas of focus described below for a total of three awards from this RFA subject to the availability of funds, the quality of applications received, and other applicable considerations. Funding for each award is expected to be provided incrementally over a five-year budget period with an initial total of awards of approximately $15,000,000 (combined for all awards) for the three Strategic Initiative areas of emphasis for the first year and subsequent incremental funding through year five.

Initial award amounts could vary among the three Strategic Initiatives based on the scope of each application and work plan and funding available from appropriations in year one. Each award could include up to five years of funding and an overall project period of up to seven years. Incremental funding after the initial period of the award is subject to future appropriations, satisfactory performance of work, adequate and timely expenditure of grant funds, EPA approval of SIL workplans, and other applicable considerations. The total estimated federal funding for this competitive opportunity is approximately $100,000,000 for the seven-year project period for all awards, subject to the availability of funding, the quality of applications, and other applicable considerations.

Initial funding will be awarded under federal fiscal year 2021 appropriations and, if applicable, subsequent appropriations, and the Clean Water Act, Title III, §320, (as amended). Successful applicants will be required to provide a non-federal match equal to the amount of federal financial assistance that would be provided in the assistance award, as described in Section III of this RFA.

Important Dates:

• September 9, 2020: RFA expected to be released and posted at: https://www.grants.gov/ and at: https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound;

• September 30, 2020: EPA Region 10 hosts a solicitation webinar to address questions about the

RFA;

• October 9, 2020: Applicants should have a current registration or have applied for registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) as well as having or applied for a Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) Data Universal Number System (DUNS) registration. The process for obtaining both could take a month or more and both are required for applying to this funding opportunity. Applicants must also be registered in Grants.gov (https://www.grants.gov/);

• November 9, 2020: Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov (https://www.grants.gov/) by November 9, 2020 by 11:59 PM (EST). See section IV of this RFA for more details;

• December 7, 2020: Selected successful applicants are notified and negotiate a final work plan and budget for the application;

• January 29, 2020: Final work plan, staffing plan and budget negotiated and approved by EPA;

and

• March 1, 2021: Award(s) made, subject to federal FY2021 appropriation and other applicable considerations.

The above dates are subject to change. EPA reserves the right to amend this solicitation. Amendments could be administrative (change of dates or location), technical (change in requirements), or affected ii https://psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound http://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov https://Grants.gov https://www.grants.gov https://Grants.gov https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound https://www.grants.gov https://psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php by the anticipated funding. EPA will post amendments on the web page for this solicitation which may be found at: Grants.gov (https://www.grants.gov/) and EPA Puget Sound NEP-Grants and Funding (https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound). Please check the web site periodically for changes.

Cost Sharing/Match Requirement: Matching funds of 50% of the total project cost are required under this competition based on the requirements of Section 320 of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. §1330. Accordingly, EPA is requiring applicants to identify the non-federal match of 50% on Form 424(A). A 50% match means EPA will fund a maximum of 50% of the total project cost, which is essentially an equal cost share of the total project cost with the applicant. Matching funds can come in the form of cash and in-kind contributions, such as the use of volunteers and/or donated time, equipment, etc., consistent with the regulations governing matching fund requirements (2 CFR §200.306) from your own organization and/or your project partners. Federal funds may not be used to meet the match requirement for this grant program unless authorized by the statute governing their use.

The §320 assistance agreement recipient is responsible for ensuring that this match requirement is met. If a recipient’s cooperative agreement structure includes multiple organizations which each receive a portion of funding, the combined match provided by those organizations must meet the §320

- 50% match requirement. Recipients of §320 assistance agreement funds are required to show how they will match those funds over the project period (i.e., the match must be verifiable and well documented and identified in the assistance agreement approved budget). At the end of the full project period, the total match provided by the NEP grantee is required to equal the total amount of §320 funds received during that period.

iii http://www.grants.gov/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound https://www.grants.gov

I. Funding Opportunity Description

A. Background Information and Program Summary

EPA is soliciting applications from eligible applicants under the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Listing number 66.123 (Puget Sound Action Agenda: Technical Investigations and Implementation Assistance Program) to act as SILs for the Puget Sound Action Agenda ‘Strategic Initiatives’ in coordination with PSP, EPA, and other relevant parties. PSP is the lead entity of the Puget Sound NEP Management Conference and works closely with the EPA Puget Sound Program. Under the awards expected to be made under this RFA, and as further described below, in close coordination with Puget Sound tribes and LIOs, applicants would be expected under each Strategic Initiative area described below to identify, assess, prioritize, and refine the investment activities proposed by stakeholders through the Management Conference, and recommend to the Management Conference other actions needed to address the Strategic Initiative sub strategies in the 2018 Action Agenda and anticipated shared priorities identified by the Management Conference in the 2022 Action Agenda for the protection and restoration of Puget Sound.

Additionally, under the awards expected to be made under this RFA, applicants would be expected to make and manage subawards and implement Strategic Initiative work approved through Management Conference processes such as the Action Agenda and Implementation Strategies. Applicants would also be expected to serve as Implementation Strategy Leads and build on the efforts of the work to-date by turning from development to communicating, adapting, and operationalizing the Implementation Strategies while increasingly working across the collective body of work and employing systems-thinking.

EPA, Washington State, tribes, local governments, and nonprofit organizations have partnered for over 30 years to protect and restore Puget Sound through the Clean Water Act (CWA) NEP. The Puget Sound NEP Management Conference includes the program administrator, representatives of state and nations including tribes, regional agencies, appropriate federal agencies, local governments, affected industries, academic institutions, and the public. PSP has been designated by the EPA and Washington State as the lead State agency for the Management Conference for the Puget Sound NEP under §320. PSP is defined in State legislation to include the Leadership Council, Ecosystem Coordination Board, Science Panel, and Executive Director with staff.

In 2008, PSP published the first Puget Sound Action Agenda, a strategy to clean up, restore, and protect Puget Sound. On July 15, 2009, EPA approved the Action Agenda as the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) for Puget Sound under §320. Since then, there have been four updates to the original Action Agenda, including 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018. These Action Agendas can be viewed at:

http://www.psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php.

As described in NEP guidance and policies, the Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan (CCMP) for each NEP is intended to be a living document. As such, EPA has requested that each NEP review and update its CCMP every three to five years to keep the CCMP current and most relevant. The Puget Sound Action Agenda, the CCMP for Puget Sound, underwent a major revision that was approved by EPA in 2018.

As part of the 2012 update of the Action Agenda, three areas of focus were identified in the Action Agenda that would deliver the most progress toward ecosystem recovery for the funds and effort invested. Termed “Strategic Initiatives”, these three priority topic areas are expected to provide the foundation of the Action Agenda through at least 2022.

http://www.psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php http://www.psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php

This RFA focuses on work to implement priority actions developed from the 2018 Action Agenda and to recommend and refine additional investment activities to advance environmental outcomes under the three Strategic Initiatives.

The next update to the Action Agenda and its work plan is scheduled for 2022. EPA’s Puget Sound program will review the 2022 Action Agenda update as part of the required CCMP Approval process and ensure that Action Agenda work plan updates remain consistent with the three Strategic Initiatives.

The Action Agenda addresses each Strategic Initiative by setting targets for recovery- termed Vital Signs in the Action Agenda- that are based on scientific understandings of the ecosystem. A complete description of the Puget Sound Action Agenda Vital Signs can be found at: http://www.psp.wa.gov/vitalsigns/index.php.

The recovery targets are used to guide refinement and content revisions to the Action Agenda, recommend allocations of funding and other resources to specific strategies and actions, and evaluate Action Agenda implementation progress.

This RFA solicits applications from eligible applicants that are interested in acting, in coordination with the PSP, EPA, Puget Sound tribes, LIOs, and other relevant parties, as SILs for each of the following three Strategic Initiatives. These initiatives are summarized below:

This RFA solicits applications from eligible applicants that are interested in acting, in coordination with the PSP, EPA, Puget Sound tribes, and Local Integrating Organizations, and other relevant parties, as SILs for each of the following three Strategic Initiatives summarized below and that are discussed in greater detail in subsequent sections of this RFA. Applicants may submit applications for more than one Strategic Initiative area but may only submit one application to be a SIL per area. Each application must address only one Strategic Initiative.

• Protect and Restore Habitat

The overarching objective of the Habitat Strategic Initiative is to identify, protect, and restore the lands, waters, and ecological processes essential to Puget Sound communities, tribal treaty rights, and resources. Protecting and restoring damaged shorelines and salmon habitats along the rivers and streams that flow into Puget Sound is necessary to sustain the many beneficial uses of Puget Sound. A priority beneficial use is the protection and recovery of local salmon runs and the commercial, recreational, and tribal treaty rights associated with these valuable fisheries and their respective roles in supporting larger food-webs in the ecosystem, including Orca.

The 2018 Action Agenda and the 2020 Vital Signs update identifies four primary Vital Signs for protecting and restoring aquatic habitats under this Strategic Initiative including: estuaries, beaches, marine vegetation, streams, floodplains (including riparian areas and changes in hydrology), forests, and wetlands.

Associated actions under this lead area are likely to include: protecting habitats through regulations, protecting and restoring habitats through incentives, removing barriers to broader habitat protection and restoration efforts, more effectively managing land development from further degrading local aquatic ecosystems and contributing habitat types, and supporting development and funding of integrated actions identified in respective Vital Sign Implementation Strategies.

• Prevent pollution from stormwater runoff from developed lands Many streams that drain into Puget Sound are threatened from stormwater runoff due to pollution http://www.psp.wa.gov/vitalsigns/index.php http://www.psp.wa.gov/vitalsigns/index.php from impervious surfaces, altered flow regimes, and resulting habitat degradation. These stressors result in the alteration of the quality and quantity of water flowing in a stream channel such that organisms are exposed to more rapid and severe changes in water flows, elevated levels of contaminants, nutrients, altered channel stability, and morphology. In short, polluted runoff from roads, roofs, parking lots, other paved areas, and from working lands, is considered one of the biggest threats to the water quality of Puget Sound and its contributing streams and rivers. Although we have many tools, technologies, and practices for reducing stormwater pollution, we need to use them much more widely across the many local jurisdictions within the Puget Sound Basin.

The 2018 Puget Sound Action Agenda identified four primary Vital Signs associated with improving stormwater management, reducing impacts to receiving waters, and beneficial uses: improving overall water quality in fresh water, improving water quality in marine waters, improving the quality of associated bottom sediments, and reducing the levels of toxics in fish and aquatic food-webs.

Associated actions under this lead area are likely to include: taking a watershed or catchment-scale approach to managing stormwater by guiding changes in land uses and practices; preventing new runoff problems; fixing existing problems in a prioritized way; continuing to control sources of pollution; continuing to educate local communities, public utilities, and land managers; supporting the critical toxics and stormwater research necessary to effectively target policy interventions; and supporting development and funding of integrated actions identified in respective Vital Sign Implementation Strategies.

• Protect, Restore, and Re-open shellfish beds Shellfish harvesting is a major economic sector in Puget Sound supporting over 3,200 local jobs and bringing in an estimated $180 million dollars to the region each year. It is also a tribal treaty right and a treasured tradition for countless Northwest families.

But harvests are threatened by bacterial pollution that has closed more than 100,000 acres of Puget Sound beaches from commercial, recreational, and tribal harvest. The health of our local shellfish beds begins on the land, through reduction of pollution from contaminated runoff, failing on-site sewage systems, and emerging threats to shellfish beds such as microplastics and ocean acidification.

Supporting actions under this lead area are likely to include: preventing bacterial pollution through existing monitoring and regulatory programs; including Pollution Identification and Correction (PIC) and with agricultural landowners; preventing pollution through local planning, incentives, and implementation of improved management practices; encouraging the recognition of the important beneficial use of shellfish; and supporting development and funding of integrated actions identified in respective Vital Sign Implementation Strategies.

EPA is seeking applications from eligible applicants and applicant coalitions to serve as leads for each Strategic Initiative area of emphasis described above. Applicants should clearly identify which Strategic Initiative area of emphasis they are applying for in their application submittal. EPA intends to select a Strategic Initiative Lead for each of the SIL areas described above. The selected Strategic Initiative Implementation Leads will have a common set of activities applicable to all three areas and each Lead will also have work activities and projects that may be unique because of the different technical requirements of specific Strategic Initiative sub strategies as identified in the 2018 Action Agenda, as well as future shared priorities identified in the 2022 Action Agenda.

SILs will be expected to engage in Puget Sound Management Conference processes and to award and manage subawards providing financial assistance for activities implementing priority actions for Strategic Initiative Implementation Strategies and sub strategies identified or referenced in the 2018 Action Agenda, and shared objectives identified in the 2022 Action Agenda. SILs will be expected to work and coordinate together on a variety of tasks to ensure consistency, timely communication, and transparency on behalf of all three Initiatives.

While applicants may submit applications for more than one Strategic Initiative area, they can only submit one application to be a SIL per area (for example, they can submit separate applications for all three areas but they cannot submit two applications to be a lead for one area). A complete separate application must be submitted for each Strategic Initiative for which an applicant wants to submit an application. Each application must address only one Strategic Initiative and applications that address more than one Strategic Initiative will be rejected and determined ineligible for award under this RFA. If EPA receives more than one submission per area from the same applicant, they will be contacted prior to the review process to determine which one to withdraw. Each eligible application will be evaluated based on the process and criteria in Section V of this RFA and EPA intends to select the highest ranked application for each Strategic Initiative topic area for award.

Eligible applicants may be selected for more than one award. Managing more than one Strategic Initiative topic area would require a significantly higher level of diverse technical expertise, program administration experience, and increased subaward management and monitoring capacity.

Groups of two or more eligible applicants are encouraged to form a coalition and submit a single application under this RFA. Please note that even though only one entity can be responsible for administering the Cooperative Agreement and is held accountable to EPA per its EPA approved workplan, the applications are evaluated on the basis of the coalition and there is a strong expectation that the primary recipient will work with all co-applicants in a collaborative and not directive manner. Coalitions must identify which eligible organization will be the primary recipient of the Cooperative Agreement, and which eligible organization(s) will be sub-awardees of the primary recipient from a financial standpoint. For SIL applicant coalitions, please describe how the coalition plans to collaborate and to bring out the best that each of the coalition partners has to offer.

Implementation Strategies A key role of the SILs is to serve as Implementation Strategy Leads for Vital Signs related to the Strategic Initiative and form technical (e.g., Interdisciplinary Teams) and/or policy workgroups to develop, refine, adaptively manage, and operationalize Implementation Strategies. Implementation Strategies are plans for addressing pressures so that specific ecosystem targets for the Puget Sound Vital Sign indicators, which are adopted by the Leadership Council and the NEP Management Conference, may be achieved. They describe the sequence of steps, activities, intermediate progress measures, and the interim results needed to move closer to a recovery goal. Implementation Strategies are developed by Interdisciplinary Teams which include broad expertise, including ongoing programs, and serve as a collective vision of the roadmap to recovery.

They are meant to serve as hubs where other plans (e.g., Science Work Plan, LIO plans, Orca Task Force recommendations, the Kelp Conservation and Recovery Plan, etc.) are incorporated so that issues can be addressed in a comprehensive manner.

http://www.psp.wa.gov/implementation-strategies.php http://www.psp.wa.gov/vitalsigns/

Implementation Strategies assist in decisions about what to prioritize in the Puget Sound Action Agenda, and they help the Strategic Initiative Advisory Teams to hone those priorities and recommend and select specific investments to fund that will make the greatest difference in Puget Sound with EPA Geographic Funds. Aligning all work and ongoing programs with the strategies helps the entire Puget Sound community work toward common ecosystem goals.

To-date, EPA has funded collaborative processes to develop Implementation Strategies for a set of priority Vital Signs recommended by the Leadership Council. These include:

• Shellfish Beds (Shellfish Strategic Initiative);

• Estuaries (Habitat Strategic Initiative);

• Land Development and Land Cover (Habitat Strategic Initiative);

• Floodplains (Habitat Strategic Initiative);

• Shoreline Armoring (Habitat Strategic Initiative);

• Chinook (PSP);

• Freshwater Quality, B-IBI indicator (Stormwater Strategic Initiative);

• Toxics in Fish (Stormwater Strategic Initiative); and

• Marine Water Quality (Department of Ecology).

A tenth Vital Sign included in the Leadership Council’s priority set is Summer Stream Flows. Lack of clarity about how best to proceed has prevented initiation of strategy design. Work is underway that is expected to inform this process, in the form of a Study Panel tasked to recommend how instream flows can be made sufficient for biological needs, given potential stresses expected such as human population growth. Finally, an Eelgrass Implementation Strategy was started as a proof of concept and currently exists as a recovery strategy.

B. Objective and Vision Statement

This RFA is aimed at supporting activities, broadened collaborations and communications to increase the Puget Sound Management Conference’s capacity to successfully implement the current 2018 Action Agenda and to inform future modifications to that plan. The overarching goal of the Action Agenda is to restore and protect the Puget Sound ecosystem.

This RFA also emphasizes a greater level of effort to build upon the development and use of the Implementation Strategies assigned to the SILs throughout the 2016-2021 EPA Puget Sound NEP Funding Model in ways that will achieve the vision of Implementation Strategies as hubs for collaboration and collective thinking by all partners around the various sources and types of information for achieving specific Vital Sign targets and objectives. This, in turn, can be used to identify priority pressures, strategies, uncertainties, and barriers related to a specific Vital Sign.

Ultimately, this will provide a system where individual SIL teams have created Implementation Strategies that address one, or possibly more than one, Vital Sign objective and establish mechanisms for adapting, refining, communicating, operationalizing, and implementing the resulting strategies.

It will be essential to work with broad partner networks to identify ongoing programs, as well as propose new activities and programs, that can support the work identified in the strategies to address priority http://psp.wa.gov/action_agenda_center.php https://pspwa.box.com/s/1re990d2v8hzq553bjkh2nfyjkm8xulz https://pspwa.box.com/v/est-readme https://pspwa.box.com/v/ldc-readme https://pspwa.box.com/v/floodplains-readme https://pspwa.box.com/v/sa-readme https://pspwa.box.com/v/PublicIS-Chinook https://www.eopugetsound.org/magazine/is/stream-bugs http://pugetsoundstreambenthos.org/About-BIBI.aspx https://pspwa.box.com/v/ToxicsInFishIS-Public pressures, and make connections across individual Implementation Strategies so as to identify common strategies and activities that will provide multiple benefits.

This approach will support a shift away from investing in Near Term Actions towards collective investment portfolios with greater synergy among activities, and where the outcomes are greater than the sum of each output. As part of this role, each SIL would be required to work with PSP to keep the information in the Miradi Share database system (https://www.miradishare.org) up to date. Utilizing the Miradi Share project management software will continue to be an essential work process for tracking and coordinating the collaboration among SILs and respective Implementation Strategy teams and the specific progress in implementing those strategies.

The 2018 Action Agenda contains sub strategies under the three main priority Strategic Initiatives discussed in this RFA. Related actions from the Action Agenda are prioritized to make the greatest progress toward ecosystem recovery targets for the time and resources spent, and balancing ecological, economic, and human well-being factors. The Strategic Initiatives help direct investments and resources and, along with Puget Sound tribes, LIOs, and other partners, help guide PSP’s work with other partners to increase engagement, pursue implementation funding, seek policy changes, report successes, and challenges, and engage in the recovery effort. As identified above, the three Strategic Initiatives for which EPA is seeking “leads” for under this RFA are:

1. Preventing pollution from stormwater runoff by developing and implementing plans and practices emphasizing Green Infrastructure and Low-Impact Development. Strategies and actions are organized into six themes which should be addressed in each application:

a) Take a watershed approach to stormwater management by encouraging cross jurisdictional coordination and guiding land use changes and practices;

b) Preventing new problems, particularly in areas where there are strong development pressures in currently rural working lands;

c) Fixing existing problems in key watersheds;

d) Generally controlling sources of pollution associated with urbanization and road systems;

e) Collaborating with local stormwater managers both within and outside of NPDES permitted communities to educate individuals and communities about ways they can become part of the solution and reduce polluted stormwater runoff; and

f) Identify opportunities to influence Growth Management policies as they relate to stormwater management and downstream beneficial uses.

2. Protecting and restoring habitat by focusing on systems of habitats such as re-connecting floodplains, re-establishing riparian corridors, approaching shoreline protection/restoration from a drift cell scale, and considering land-use patterns and controls. Strategies and actions are organized into three themes which should be addressed in each application:

a) Protecting habitats through regulations;

b) Protecting and restoring habitats through incentives (including acquisition);

c) Removing barriers to restoration of key habitats such as shorelines (e.g.

prevent and respond to invasive species and update goals for in-stream flow rates); and https://www.miradishare.org/

d) Identify opportunities to influence Growth Management policies as they relate to habitat and species protection and recovery.1

3. Protecting, restoring, and re-opening shellfish beds. Strategies and actions are organized into four themes which should be addressed in each application:

a) Preventing bacterial pollution of shellfish beds through existing regulations and programs;

b) Preventing bacterial pollution of shellfish beds through incentives, education, and outreach;

c) Supporting monitoring and diagnostic efforts such as PIC, onsite sewage systems, and livestock programs in shellfish watersheds; and

d) Considering the long-term implications of Growth Management policies in watersheds upstream of shellfish growing waters and areas.

The Action Agenda addresses each Strategic Initiative by setting targets for recovery (termed Vital Signs in the Action Agenda) that are based on scientific understandings of the ecosystem. These recovery targets are used to focus and guide development of strategies, policies, and actions needed to achieve the respective environmental outcomes as well as to inform needed revisions to the Action Agenda through adaptive management.

For each Strategic Initiative, SILs will lead the collaborative effort to identify and fund actions to be implemented in the near term, lead development of longer term sequences of actions identified through Implementation Strategies with an emphasis on working with partners to identify sustainable support through ongoing programs, recommend allocations of funding, and other resources to implement the specific strategies and actions and the evaluation of progress toward identified targets. SILs should play a convening role to bring together specific communities of practitioners to share best practices, lessons learned, and create space for developing specific networks of professionals who are critical to Puget Sound recovery.

It is important to note that seventeen of the 19 federally recognized Puget Sound tribes have formal natural resource co-manager status with State agencies in Washington. The ongoing programs mentioned above include tribal natural resource and environmental departments and all other programs that support the co-manager role. Leads will be expected to use appropriate mechanisms for reflecting tribal co-management status and ongoing programs in its efforts. In addition, and in every aspect of its Puget Sound recovery work, EPA recognizes tribal sovereignty and strives to uphold tribal treaty obligations and its trust responsibility to tribes.

In addition, SILs will work together to both broaden their scope to address issues that don’t fit neatly into the three defined Strategic Initiative domains, including efforts to improve resiliency, Marine Water Quality and to prevent and reduce the negative impacts of land use change and habitat destruction. Efforts to address these broader indicators of ecosystem health will require collaboration and will result in cumulative positive effects across the Strategic Initiatives.

1 Specific elements of habitat protection include guiding land use changes or practices to protect critical areas, building connectivities across habitats, preventing oil spills, and controlling invasive species.

Bold and creative systems thinking, innovation, structured decision making, and a focus on increasing the resilience of Puget Sound will all be required to accomplish the primary objective and achieve the vision of this RFA.

C. Eligible Activities: Strategic Initiative Implementation Leads and Scope of Assistance Program

This RFA is focused on supporting the functions that will enable efficient and timely implementation of the Puget Sound Action Agenda and builds the foundation for development of future updates to the Action Agenda.

There are common sets of activities applicable to all three of the Strategic Initiatives described in this RFA and there will also be activities and projects that are unique to each Strategic Initiative, as identified in the Action Agenda. These commonalities and differences are described below.

In general, the common set of activities include:

• Engaging in Puget Sound Management Conference processes and work groups;

• Serving as Implementation Strategy Leads;

• Working directly with tribes, LIOs, and other key partners to collaboratively develop processes related to prioritization and funding recommendations, coordinating amongst each other on communication, timelines, and transparency;

• The administrative activities and technical expertise associated with managing a subaward program to implement actions funded under each Strategic Initiative area; and

• Reporting on progress, outputs, and outcomes.

The unique components for each area or topics of emphasis will be the specific projects and activities that selected SILs will award and manage through subawards for implementing priority actions identified in the Action Agenda. The characteristics of these subawards will vary because of the different technical and programmatic requirements inherent in each of the three Strategic Initiative topics and areas of emphasis.

The organizing themes of work and examples of strategies and actions for each Strategic Initiative area of emphasis are listed in Sections I A and B above.

Applicants should describe in their application how they will address and/or perform the following:

• Activities common to all three SIL areas:

o Manage the EPA Cooperative Agreement awarded under this RFA to accomplish Puget Sound Action Agenda objectives;

o Work cooperatively and continually within and across SIL partnerships, with the EPA Puget Sound program, with PSP, the NEP Management Conference, the Tribal Implementation Lead, respective tribes, the Puget Sound Federal Task Force, and LIOs. Demonstrate how prospective SIL applicants would plan on working efficiently and effectively with Puget Sound tribes and stakeholders supporting the Strategic Initiatives to implement and refine the FY2021 Puget Sound funding model as released by EPA in February 2020. Additional information on this funding model can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound;

https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound o Work cooperatively and continually within and across SIL partnerships, with the EPA Puget Sound program, with PSP, the NEP Management Conference, the Tribal Implementation Lead, respective tribes, the Puget Sound Federal Task Force, and LIOs. Demonstrate how prospective SIL applicants would plan on working efficiently and effectively with Puget Sound tribes and stakeholders supporting the Strategic Initiatives to implement and refine the FY2021 Puget Sound funding model as released by EPA in February 2020. Additional information on this funding model can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/puget-sound/funding-and-grants-puget-sound;

o Work with the PSP and NEP Management Conference boards to provide expert opinion and recommendations to inform future modifications to the Action Agenda. Utilize technical expertise at a variety of scales and scopes to analyze results of related scientific investigations, ecosystem and project monitoring data, effectiveness monitoring, and other relevant sources of information, drawing upon feasibility, partnerships, and political savvy wherever possible. Support the PSP in its role as NEP Management Conference Lead by delivering time critical decisions and recommendations for Action Agenda refinements and updates;

o Lead the oversight of longstanding Strategic Initiative Advisory Teams that form the foundation of the SIL’s assessment, technical review and advisory roles;

o Collaborate among the other SILs, PSP, tribes, tribal consortia, and LIOs to make technically supported recommendations of prioritization and sequencing of activities and investments in support of the operationalization and implementation of Implementation Strategies, in support of Action Agenda goals and objectives. Using analytical and Structured Decision Making (SDM) approaches, to help inform decision-making and directing allocation and sequencing of resources among basin-wide projects and to geographically specific actions;

o Regularly update necessary information in all of the required reporting networks, including PSP’s Miradi Share system, Puget Sound Info, NEP Atlas, and national reporting of restored/permanently protected habitat acres and annual net change in shellfish conditions;

o Efficiently and effectively implement and manage a subaward program based on resource allocation decisions to support the Strategic Initiative that the award addresses and other related projects and actions described in this RFA. Subawards should be competitively awarded based on relevant criteria for achieving program objectives. Fair and impartial processes must be used to evaluate applications, using appropriate evaluation criteria, to make subawards. The subaward program should provide accountability, transparency, predictability, appropriately rigorous technical standards, and utilize federal funding efficiently by making subawards as soon as possible after federal appropriations are awarded;

o Work with the PSP, the NEP Management Conference, and with EPA to develop ways to synchronize, consolidate, and/or streamline the Action Agenda subaward processes so that an efficient subaward funding system and a consistent funding cycle is achieved for funding implementation of Action Agenda actions and projects;

o Monitor subaward performance to ensure that the subawards are achieving the objectives of the program and expected outputs and outcomes and are being produced in efficient and effective ways. Appropriately work with subaward recipients to ensure timely and expeditious use of funds to minimize the extent of unliquidated obligations (ULOs). Track and share progress towards meeting outputs and outcomes, utilizing the Puget Sound Fiscal Ecosystem Accountability Tracking System (FEATS) or other reporting mechanism as directed by EPA;

o Work with the PSP, the Puget Sound Management Conference boards and stakeholders, using the data and results obtained by the monitoring of previous subawards to adaptively manage the implementation and future updates of specific Implementation Strategies and the overall Action Agenda; and o Involve all partners early on in decision-making processes through strategic and priority-driven communication efforts (meetings, discussions, workshops, listening sessions, briefings, etc.).

• Activities common to all three SILs but which will be tailored to the technical and/or programmatic requirements of each Strategic Initiative’s area of emphasis and related subaward priorities:

o As described in the Implementation Strategy guidance and additional protocols, lead the formation and oversight of technical workgroups as needed to develop or refine Implementation Strategies to achieve Action Agenda Vital Sign targets within the area of emphasis for each Strategic Initiative;

o Work closely with the recipients of the Implementation Strategies-Science cooperative agreement on refinements to and analyses of the Implementation Strategies, and on innovative approaches for continuous improvement of both content and processes with the goals being: a) to connect across Implementation Strategies; b) to implement priority strategies; c) to broaden engagement with the recovery community, and d) to inform and influence Action Agenda development and implementation;

o Work with PSP to develop and implement targeted and innovative communication, education, and outreach strategies to reach out to people and groups that are critical to the success of Implementation Strategies;

o Fund and advance the priorities identified in the Action Agenda, Implementation Strategies, and the Science Work Plan to refine approaches, monitor progress toward and help achieve identified Vital Sign targets. Provide the level of technical guidance needed to ensure that subaward workplans are scoped to meet targeted environmental outcomes. This includes sequencing and targeting of analytical, planning and implementation activities that support Implementation Strategies for achieving respective prioritized goals. Provide evidence to the Management Conference that subawards are reflecting a multi-year or geographic sequencing planning process;

o For sub-awards within each Strategic Initiative, incorporate processes to guide and solicit actions that study, evaluate, model, plan, and increase socio-ecological resiliency in Puget Sound ecosystem protection and restoration activities. SILs should apply their technical expertise where applicable to help sub-awardees to integrate resiliency adaptation into project design and implementation. These actions will be used to help and inform PSP’s Puget Sound program work to meet the Agency-wide requirement that all NEPs conduct a broad, risk-based assessment, and integrate resiliency considerations into their revised or updated Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plans; and o Work with EPA and PSP to develop and implement a shared communications strategy for NEP/Geographic Program investments that includes website(s), fact sheets, events, press releases, social media, and similar activities to share information, lessons learned and the value of the projects and programs supported by the SILs.

D. Strategic Plan Linkages, Anticipated Outcomes, Outputs and Performance Measures

Pursuant to paragraph 6.a. of EPA Order 5700.7A1, “Environmental Results under EPA Assistance Agreements,” EPA must link proposed assistance agreements to EPA’s strategic goals (see EPA Order 5700.7A1, Environmental Results under EPA Assistance Agreements, https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-order-57007a1-epas-policy-environmental-results-under-epa-assistance-agreements). EPA also requires that applicants and recipients adequately describe environmental outputs, environmental outcomes, and performance measurements to be achieved under assistance agreements. These linkages, outputs, outcomes, and performance measures are described below.

Linkage to EPA Strategic Plan The activities to be funded under this announcement support EPA’s FY2018-22 Strategic Plan. Assistance agreements to be awarded under this RFA will be linked to EPA’s Strategic Plan Goal 1 Core Mission: Deliver real results to provide Americans with clean air, land, and water and ensure chemical safety. Objective 1.2:

Provide for Clean and Safe Water — Ensure that waters are clean through improved water infrastructure and, in partnership with states and tribes, sustainably manage programs to support drinking water, aquatic ecosystems, and recreational, economic, and subsistence activities.

Please read EPA’s FY2018-2022 Strategic Plan (www.epa.gov/planandbudget/strategicplan) for more information.

The priority of the assistance agreements is to ensure successful implementation of the Puget Sound Action Agenda as the approved CCMP under CWA §320.

Outputs The term “output” means an environmental activity, effort, and/or associated work product related to an environmental goal and objective that will be produced or provided over a period of time or by a specified date. Outputs must be measurable during an assistance agreement funding period. Examples of expected outputs from the activities and project(s) to be funded under this announcement may include, but are not limited to, the following examples:

• Outputs that could be common across all three SIL areas:

o Provide funding for projects that seek to support Implementation Strategies or NTAs identified in the 2018 CCMP/Action Agenda. The number of activities funded would be reported as a quantifiable output;

o Provide subaward monitoring and performance reports and analysis to inform annual or biennial adaptive management processes; collaborate with PSP to implement adaptive management;

o Enter information on a regular (e.g., weekly) basis into Miradi Share and other http://www.epa.gov/ogd/epa_order_5700_7a1.pdf http://www.epa.gov/ogd/epa_order_5700_7a1.pdf http://www.epa.gov/ogd/epa_order_5700_7a1.pdf https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-order-57007a1-epas-policy-environmental-results-under-epa-assistance-agreements https://www.epa.gov/grants/epa-order-57007a1-epas-policy-environmental-results-under-epa-assistance-agreements http://www.epa.gov/planandbudget/strategicplan requested reporting formats;

o Staff facilitate and maintain long-standing Strategic Initiative technical and advisory teams including the SIATs;

o Identify and recommend appropriate Vital Sign Implementation Strategies for development or refinement in Action Agenda planning cycle;

o Form technical workgroups to adaptively manage Implementation Strategies for Management Conference adopted Vital Signs, and to communicate and operationalize the Implementation Strategies;

o Identify and recommend to the Management Conference boards the appropriate Science and Monitoring activities critical to current implementation strategies and Near-Term Actions;

o Manage the EPA Puget Sound assistance agreement to meet all required terms and conditions, including quality assurance and financial reporting and project performance monitoring;

o Create and maintain SIL shared website "Partners in Puget Sound Recovery" with timelines, funding processes, funding recommendations, and up to date technical team lists. Also, project, program fact sheets, annual press releases, social media plans, etc;

o Identify and recommend a set of initiatives and priorities for the Management Conference to work on operationalizing the Implementation Strategies, including tribes, LIOs, partner agencies, and the PSP Boards with a focus on engaging and working with ongoing programs; and o Ensure, through appropriate training, that staff teams are aware of and reflect an understanding of tribal sovereignty, trust, treaty, and co-management status and rights in Washington. Such training could include NWIFC’s 2020 training offered to

PSP.

• Outputs and activities that could be specific to a particular Strategic Initiative and associated subawards include but are not limited to:

o Stormwater Strategic Initiative

▪ County comprehensive plans revised, with a focus on protecting rural lands and preventing urban sprawl and land conversion that creates more impervious surfaces and generates greater stormwater loadings;

▪ Cross jurisdictional planning and coordination to protect watershed-scale processes and conditions;

▪ Emphasize Green Infrastructure design and Low Impact Development practices (LID) in planning, project design, and construction to reduce downstream impacts;

▪ Workshops and trainings held for Puget Sound jurisdictions to improve stormwater management practices;

▪ Resiliency planning or project construction to address stormwater impacts;

▪ Toxics and nutrient reduction programs to reduce pollutant loading to receiving waters through stormwater runoff and non-point source pollution;

and

▪ Address, in a comprehensive way, contaminants that have been proven harmful to Puget Sound aquatic life.

o Habitat Strategic Initiative

▪ Number of volunteer stewards who are trained in oil spill response.