National Ground-Water Monitoring Network

To support data providers for the National Ground-Water Monitoring Network. The National Ground-Water Monitoring Network (NGWMN) is a cooperative, integrated system of data collection, management, and reporting that will provide data needed to addres

The Groundwater and Streamflow Information Program of the USGS offers a cooperative agreement funding opportunity to tribal, state, and local water-resources agencies that collect groundwater data to participate in the National Ground-Water Monitoring Network (NGWMN). The NGWMN is designed to be a compilation of selected wells and springs from existing monitoring efforts to create a network to assess long-term water-level and water-quality trends at a national scale. The focus and goal of the NGWMN is on long-term data collected at a sufficient frequency to determine seasonal and long-term effects. Water-level and water-quality data from both wells and springs are included in the NGWMN. The NGWMN allows water managers to share their water-level and water-quality monitoring data to help monitor current conditions and avoid future water conflicts that may result from changes in the environment. The NGWMN focuses on monitoring groundwater in the Nation's most productive aquifers. The NGWMN is designed primarily to help answer questions of groundwater availability at a principal or major aquifer scale. The NGWMN focuses on serving data at actively monitored sites to help answer current groundwater availability questions. To create a unified network, field and data management techniques need to be as consistent as possible and sites need to be selected and classified in a common manner. The NGWMN serves data from the data providers' databases. To accomplish this, the data providers must set up and maintain persistent web services for their databases. The data elements from these web services are mapped to the Portal elements so that data can be retrieved to answer questions at a regional scale that crosses data provider boundaries.

Proposals will be accepted from interstate, State, U.S. territory or possession, local, public nonprofit water-resource agencies/organizations which collect and maintain groundwater-level or groundwater-quality data. Various elements of the data which are required for the National Ground-Water Monitoring Network are often available from different agencies within a state. Each agency within a state which wishes to participate in the Network can submit a proposal for their part of the work. States may also submit a single proposal that covers the work of multiple state agencies. Coordination of agencies within a state is strongly encouraged.

Federal, State, Federally recognized Indian Tribal, and local governments, public nonprofit institutions/organizations, private nonprofit institutions/organizations, profit organizations, industry and public decision makers, research scientists, engineers, and the general public will ultimately benefit from data made available through the program.

Funding will be used to 1) help new data providers participate in the network, and 2) support existing data providers. Funding for new providers primarily is intended to support data providers to select and categorize their data in accordance with the Framework document guidelines, and to make data for selected sites available to the NGWMN. Funding for existing data providers will support work to keep their connections to the NGWMN data portal up to date and to enhance their networks to improve data available to the NGWMN. This can include updating data on their wells, performing maintenance or repairs on wells to maintain the ability to collect reliable data, drilling new or replacement wells for the NGWMN.

Program obligates funds and sends a notice of award to successful applicants. Recipients request funds in accordance with 2 CFR 200, Subpart E-Cost Principles, unless otherwise dictated by program-specific legislation or special award terms. Program will include any special payment terms and conditions in the notice of award.

Discussions regarding funding availability and program interest are strongly encouraged, as limited funding is available for new projects.

Each objective applied for within a proposal will be reviewed according to four Criteria: Proposal Quality, Relevance, Technical Quality, and Budget. A score or 1 to 10 is given for each criterion. Proposals will be reviewed and scored by the NGWMN Program Board. The Program Board will make funding recommendations on each proposal to the USGS.

Notification of an award is by receipt of a grant or cooperative agreement from a U.S. Geological Survey contracting officer.

Applications will be accepted from mid-September 2026 through mid-January 2027.

From 60 to 120 days

All projects have a limited duration not to exceed two years.