Walker Basin Conservancy

Walker Basin Conservancy is a Nevada-based nonprofit environmental conservation organization registered with the federal government since October 2017, with its current SAM.gov registration expiring in July 2026. The Conservancy specializes in ecosystem restoration, habitat management, and native plant conservation throughout the Great Basin region and Walker River Basin. It serves as a key federal partner providing specialized services in native seed production, habitat restoration, wildlife conservation, watershed management, and environmental monitoring to support federal land management objectives across multiple Department of Interior agencies.

Through federal contract awards, Walker Basin Conservancy has demonstrated specialized expertise in native seed production and habitat restoration services. The Conservancy received a $40,000 firm fixed-price purchase order from the Bureau of Land Management's National Office for sagebrush steppe seed production through July 2030, under which it produces seven native plant species sourced from specific Great Basin geographic regions, with all seeds delivered to the BLM National Seed Warehouse in Boise, Idaho in 50-pound bags according to government specifications. Additionally, the Conservancy was awarded a $210,385.40 firm fixed-price purchase order from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Region 1 for the Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge Complex Plant Project, with performance in Fallon, Nevada and completion by July 1, 2027. Both awards were made without set-aside designations on an unrestricted basis. These contracts reflect the Conservancy's established capabilities in implementing restoration initiatives that have previously included seed production efforts, spring rehabilitation, and sagebrush ecosystem restoration.

Through federal grant awards, Walker Basin Conservancy has secured substantial funding across multiple programs and agencies to support conservation and research activities. The Conservancy holds cooperative agreements with the Bureau of Land Management's Nevada and California regions for Assessment, Inventory, and Monitoring (AIM) framework implementation, including upland and riparian habitat assessments in the Carson City District with seasonal field crews, and landscape-scale monitoring of BLM lands in Eastern California. A $299,918 project grant from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation under the Cooperative Watershed Management Program (CFDA 15.554) supports establishment of the Walker River Basin Watershed Group focused on stakeholder engagement and integrated watershed management planning through December 2027. The Conservancy collaborates with the U.S. Geological Survey on a cooperative agreement studying biological soil crusts (biocrusts) and their role in maintaining native plant communities, with research objectives addressing disturbance responses and restoration protocols. Additional U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service cooperative agreements include a $250,000 grant for sagebrush ecosystem restoration and conservation under the Partners for Fish and Wildlife program, a $262,790 Candidate Species Conservation award focused on increasing locally adapted native plant materials for habitat restoration, and programs addressing monarch butterfly conservation, drought-adapted milkweeds, western yellow-billed cuckoo recovery, spring restoration for sage-grouse, and native seed equipment network development. The Conservancy has also received cooperative agreements from the Fish and Wildlife Service Region 8 for native seed increase trials in arid desert regions and wildlife-friendly spring and riparian protection projects. As a sub-grantee, Walker Basin Conservancy has partnered with Nevada Department of Wildlife for native seed collection and ecological data analysis, with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation for monarch butterfly and pollinator habitat restoration targeting 75 acres of restoration and 2,395 acres of improvement, and with Nevada Volunteers to manage AmeriCorps members conducting conservation and environmental education activities across the Walker River Basin, with programs leveraging 60 to 64 AmeriCorps members annually to enhance public lands and engage local community volunteers.