Fairbanks Soil & Water Conservation Dist

Fairbanks Soil & Water Conservation District, a not-for-profit organization headquartered in Fairbanks, Alaska, operates as a prime recipient of federal grants focused on ecosystem restoration, aquatic invasive species management, youth workforce development, and agricultural education in interior and northern Alaska. The organization does not hold federal contracts; all federal work flows through grants and cooperative agreements from natural resource agencies, with 94% as prime recipient and 6% as sub-recipient work.

The organization's capability portfolio centers on invasive aquatic plant eradication, salmon habitat restoration, food waste reduction and diversion, native plant nursery development, youth conservation workforce programming, and agricultural education outreach. Representative work includes a $750,000 three-year award from the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (CFDA 10.310) beginning April 2026 for CULTIV8, a technology-focused agricultural curriculum and summer camp program engaging rural Alaska youth through partnerships with Purdue University, Effie Kokrine Charter School, and the Doyon Foundation. Fairbanks serves as prime recipient of a cooperative agreement from the Fish and Wildlife Service for eradication of the invasive aquatic plant Elodea from two Alaska sloughs through herbicide treatment and manual removal, restoring approximately 30 miles of salmon habitat. The organization also received a cooperative agreement from the Fish and Wildlife Service to establish a Northern Alaska Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area, coordinating quarterly meetings and early detection-rapid response activities across interior and northern Alaska in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Tanana Chiefs Conference. A $233,784 project grant funds three years of Elodea treatment in Pile Driver Slough and Manley Hot Springs Slough with public outreach on aquatic invasive species prevention (CFDA 15.608, Fish and Aquatic Conservation — Aquatic Invasive Species). Fairbanks also operates the Youth for Habitat program, providing habitat restoration, fish monitoring, and natural resource career pathway experiences to local youth since 2009.

The organization concentrates customer relationships with two interior and northern Alaska-focused Fish and Wildlife Service regional offices. The Fish and Wildlife Service Region 7 and Fish and Wildlife Service headquarters account for 37 awards combined across the prime and sub portfolios; the Department of Agriculture National Resources Conservation Service supplies four awards focused on conservation planning, food waste education, and snow survey data collection. These five customer agencies represent 90% of award volume. The organization also holds sub-recipient work under the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation on Elodea eradication and native plant nursery projects.

Activity has remained modest but consistent, with three awards in 2022 climbing to six in 2024, then declining to three in 2025 and one in 2026 (as of April). Three awards are scheduled for completion within the next twenty-four months, representing potential recompete opportunity. The organization's federal footprint is regional and specialized: all work targets Alaska natural resource management and workforce development, with no national or defense agency customers and no general-purpose IDIQs or government-wide vehicles in the portfolio.