Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Piedmont-South Atlantic Coast CESU | G19AS00132

Opportunity Information: Apply for G19AS00132

The Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Piedmont-South Atlantic Coast opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number G19AS00132) is a US Geological Survey (USGS) research grant offered through the John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis within the Department of the Interior. It supports a focused, applied research effort in science and technology/research and development (CFDA 15.808) and is issued as a cooperative agreement, meaning recipients should expect substantive involvement and collaboration with USGS staff during the project rather than a purely hands-off grant.

The core purpose of the opportunity is to improve understanding of how human-driven changes to watersheds and rivers alter flood behavior, specifically flood frequency and, by extension, flood risk. The project is anchored in the Budyko framework, a widely used hydrologic approach that links long-term water and energy balances (often using precipitation and potential evapotranspiration) to partition water between evapotranspiration and runoff. Here, the intent is to extend Budyko-type relationships beyond their traditional use and apply them to a practical management question: how land surface modification and river engineering influence the likelihood of flood events.

The opportunity highlights three broad categories of human modification. First is land use change, especially urbanization, which increases impervious surface area and tends to speed up runoff delivery to streams. Second is infrastructure such as transportation networks, which can restructure drainage patterns through road embankments, culverts, stormwater systems, and altered connectivity between hillslopes and channels. Third is direct river modification and regulation, including dams, diversions, and levees, all of which can change flow timing, attenuate or amplify peaks, shift floodplain connectivity, and modify downstream flood frequency in ways that may differ from unregulated basins.

A central deliverable described in the announcement is the creation of a database of streamflow and flood information built from paired sets of stream gages. The pairing concept is meant to enable cleaner comparisons by matching gages in basins that are similar in key natural characteristics but differ in the presence or intensity of human modification. By compiling and organizing these gage pairs across multiple settings, the project aims to support systematic evaluation of how different types of modifications (for example, urban development versus dam regulation) correspond to measurable differences in flood frequency metrics. In practice, this database would likely be used to compute and compare flood statistics derived from gaged records and to relate those statistics back to watershed and river-alteration attributes in a consistent analytical framework.

The work is positioned as an applied extension of ongoing Budyko-based research rather than an exploratory effort starting from scratch. In other words, the program is looking for a project that leverages existing Budyko relationships and adapts them to quantify the influence of human alteration on flood frequency and severity. The underlying theme is decision relevance: translating hydrologic theory and national monitoring data into clearer, evidence-based insight about how development and water-management infrastructure may change flood hazards.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity was posted on August 22, 2019, with an original closing date of September 10, 2019. The expected number of awards was one, with a maximum award amount (ceiling) of $25,000, indicating a small, targeted project scope, often consistent with a pilot study, focused synthesis, or database/analysis deliverable rather than a large multi-year field campaign. Eligibility is listed as "Others," with additional eligibility details referenced in the full announcement, which is typical for CESU opportunities that often route eligibility through CESU network membership or specified partner categories.

• The Department of the Interior, U. S. Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Piedmont-South Atlantic Coast CESU" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.808.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 22, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 10, 2019. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $25,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for G19AS00132

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