Document ID: EPA-HQ-OPP-2003-0141-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Region III Strategic Agricultural Initiative Grants; Notice of Availability
Posted Date: 2003-06-27T04:00Z

38325
Federal
Register
/
Vol.
68,
No.
124
/
Friday,
June
27,
2003
/
Notices
Range
of
Alternatives
for
Amending
Land
and
Resources
Management
Plans,
Modoc,
Lasser,
Plumas,
Tahoe,
Eldorado,
Stanislaus,
Sequoia,
Sierra,
Inyo
and
Humboldt­
Toiyabe
National
Forests,
and
the
Lake
Tahoe
Basin
Management
Unit,
Several
Counties,
CA
and
NV,
Comment
Period
Ends:
September
12,
2003,
Contact:
Kathleen
Morse
(
707)
562
 
8822.
Revision
of
FR
Notice
Published
on
6/
13/
2003:
Correction
to
Contact
Telephone
Number.

Dated:
June
24,
2003.
Joseph
C.
Montgomery,
Director,
NEPA
Compliance
Division,
Office
of
Federal
Activities.
[
FR
Doc.
03
 
16334
Filed
6
 
26
 
03;
8:
45
am]

BILLING
CODE
6560
 
50
 
P
ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION
AGENCY
[
OPP
 
2003
 
0141;
FRL
 
7304
 
5]

Region
III
Strategic
Agricultural
Initiative
Grants;
Notice
of
Availability
AGENCY:
Environmental
Protection
Agency
(
EPA).
ACTION:
Notice.

SUMMARY:
EPA
is
soliciting
proposals
to
help
implement
the
Food
Quality
Protection
Act
(
FQPA)
and
to
support
``
transition''
to
using
less
and
lower
risk
pesticides
in
food
production.
The
program
supports
innovative
efforts
that
enable
growers
to
decrease
reliance
on
agricultural
pesticides
while
maintaining
economical
outcomes,
by
developing,
demonstrating
and/
or
applying
reduced
risk
alternatives
and
ecologically
based
integrated
approaches
to
pest
management.
This
grant
program
encourages
``
systems''
approaches
that
integrate
pest,
soil,
and
crop
management
practices.
Although
the
focus
is
on
reducing
dependency
on
pesticides
and
developing
alternatives
to
pesticides
targeted
under
FQPA,
a
broader
approach
to
problem
solving
is
encouraged
in
the
development
of
project
proposals
under
FQPA
and
section
20
of
the
Federal
Insecticide,
Fungicide,
and
Rodenticide
Act
(
FIFRA)
as
amended.
DATES:
Proposals
must
be
postmarked/
received
by
5
p.
m.
eastern
standard
time,
July
31,
2003.
ADDRESSES:
Proposals
may
be
submitted
electronically,
by
mail,
or
through
hand
delivery/
courier
to
John
Butler
at
the
address/
e­
mail
listed
under
FOR
FURTHER
INFORMATION
CONTACT.
FOR
FURTHER
INFORMATION
CONTACT:
John
Butler,
Environmental
Protection
Agency,
Region
III,
Mail
code
3WC32,
Waste
&
Chemicals
Management
Division,
1650
Arch
Street,
Philadelphia,
PA
19103
 
2029;
telephone
number:
(
215)
814
 
2127;
fax
number:
(
215)
814
 
3113;
e­
mail
address:
butler.
john@
epa.
gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION:

I.
General
Information
A.
Does
this
Action
Apply
to
Me?

This
action
is
directed
to
the
public
in
general.
This
action
may,
however,
be
of
interest
to
eligible
applicants
who
primarily
operate
out
of
and
will
conduct
the
project
in
one
of
the
following
Region
III
States:
Delaware,
Maryland,
Pennsylvania,
Virginia,
and
West
Virginia
or
the
District
of
Columbia.
Since
other
entities
may
also
be
interested,
the
Agency
has
not
attempted
to
describe
all
the
specific
entities
that
may
be
affected
by
this
action.
If
you
have
any
questions
regarding
the
applicability
of
this
action
to
a
particular
entity,
consult
the
person
listed
under
FOR
FURTHER
INFORMATION
CONTACT.

B.
How
Can
I
Get
Additional
Information,
Including
Copies
of
this
Document
and
Other
Related
Documents?

1.
Docket.
EPA
has
established
an
official
public
docket
for
this
action
under
docket
identification
(
ID)
number
OPP
 
2003
 
0141.
The
official
public
docket
consists
of
the
documents
specifically
referenced
in
this
action,
any
public
comments
received,
and
other
information
related
to
this
action.
Although
a
part
of
the
official
docket,
the
public
docket
does
not
include
Confidential
Business
Information
(
CBI)
or
other
information
whose
disclosure
is
restricted
by
statute.
The
official
public
docket
is
the
collection
of
materials
that
is
available
for
public
viewing
at
the
Public
Information
and
Records
Integrity
Branch
(
PIRIB),
Rm.
119,
Crystal
Mall
#
2,
1921
Jefferson
Davis
Hwy.,
Arlington,
VA.
This
docket
facility
is
open
from
8:
30
a.
m.
to
4
p.
m.,
Monday
through
Friday,
excluding
legal
holidays.
The
docket
telephone
number
is
(
703)
305
 
5805.
2.
Electronic
access.
You
may
access
this
Federal
Register
document
electronically
through
the
EPA
Internet
under
the
``
Federal
Register''
listings
at
http://
www.
epa.
gov/
fedrgstr/.
Additional
information
is
available
on
EPA's
PESP
website
at
http://
www.
epa.
gov/
oppbppd1/
PESP/
regional_
grants.
htm.
An
electronic
version
of
the
public
docket
is
available
through
EPA's
electronic
public
docket
and
comment
system,
EPA
Dockets.
You
may
use
EPA
Dockets
at
http://
www.
epa.
gov/
edocket/
to
submit
or
view
public
comments,
access
the
index
listing
of
the
contents
of
the
official
public
docket,
and
to
access
those
documents
in
the
public
docket
that
are
available
electronically.
Once
in
the
system,
select
``
search,''
then
key
in
the
appropriate
docket
ID
number.
3.
By
mail
or
in
person.
Contact
the
person
listed
under
FOR
FURTHER
INFORMATION
CONTACT.

II.
Purpose
of
this
Request
EPA's,
Waste
&
Chemicals
Management
Division,
Pesticides/
Asbestos
Programs
&
Enforcement
Branch,
Region
III,
is
requesting
proposals
which
will
help
implement
requirements
of
FQPA,
and
to
support
the
transition
to
using
less
and
lower
risk
pesticides
in
food
production.
The
program
supports
innovative
efforts
that
enable
growers
to
decrease
reliance
on
agricultural
pesticides
while
maintaining
economical
outcomes,
by
developing,
demonstration
and/
or
applying
reduced
risk
alternatives
and
ecologically
based
integrated
approaches
to
pest
management.
This
program
is
included
in
the
catalog
of
Federal
Domestic
Assistance
under
number
66.716.

III.
High
Priority
Areas
for
Consideration
EPA
will
award
Food
Quality
Protection
Act
Strategic
Agricultural
Initiative
grants
under
the
authority
of
section
20
of
FIFRA
as
amended
by
FQPA,
for
projects
involving
research,
development,
monitoring,
public
education,
training,
demonstrations
and
studies
that
enable
growers
to
decrease
reliance
on
agricultural
pesticides
while
maintaining
economical
outcomes,
by
developing,
demonstration
and/
or
applying
reduced
risk
alternatives
and
ecologically
based
integrated
approaches
to
pest
management.
These
proposals
should
incorporate
the
following
techniques:
1.
Utilize
demonstration
projects,
outreach
and/
or
education
to
increase
the
adoption
of
integrated
or
sustainable
agricultural
production
practices
which
provide
alternatives
to
pesticides
impacted
negatively
by
FQPA
decisions.
2.
Work
collaboratively
with
producers,
commodity
groups,
and
other
stakeholders
by
making
the
best
use
of
expert
field
consultants,
USDA
research,
EPA's
safer
substitutes,
and
university
technical
support
on
alternatives
and
integrated
pest
management
practices.
3.
Actively
engage
scientists,
farmers,
industry,
and
local,
State
and
Federal
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27,
2003
/
Notices
partners
in
the
specifics
of
implementing
FQPA.
4.
Demonstrate
region­
specific
pest
management
technologies
and
integrated
crop
management
systems
to
replace
pesticide
uses
which
may
be
canceled
under
FQPA.
5.
Use
``
farmer
to
farmer''
training
and
communication
methods,
community
participation,
and/
or
other
forms
of
public­
private
cooperation.

IV.
Grant
Specifics
1.
Amount
of
funding
available.
A
total
of
approximately
$
100,000
in
Federal
funds
is
available
to
award
for
projects
in
Region
III.
The
number
of
awards
will
depend
on
individual
proposal
cost;
the
final
aggregate
amount
of
Federal
funding
for
all
proposals;
and
the
total
amount
of
Federal
funding
available.
Should
additional
funding
become
available
for
award,
the
Agency
may
award
additional
grants
based
on
this
solicitation
and
in
accordance
with
the
final
selection
process,
without
further
notice
of
competition.
2.
Funding
type.
The
funding
for
selected
award
projects
is
in
the
form
of
a
grant
awarded
under
FIFRA.
3.
Right
to
reject
all
initial
proposals.
The
Agency
reserves
the
right
to
reject
all
proposals
and
make
no
awards.
4.
Matching/
cost
share
requirements.
There
are
no
cost
share
requirements
for
these
projects.
However,
matching
funds
are
encouraged.
5.
Project
period
time
frame.
The
project
period
time
frame
should
not
exceed
2
years.
6.
Eligible
applicants.
Grant
funds
are
available
to
non­
profit
groups,
including
commodity
groups/
associations
and
farmers'
groups,
State
agencies,
Tribal
governments,
cooperative
extension,
universities,
and
institutes
of
higher
learning.
Ineligible
groups
are
encouraged
to
work
with
an
eligible
organization
to
submit
proposals.
Implementation
of
all
projects
must
occur
within
one
of
the
States
of
EPA
Region
III
(
Delaware,
Maryland,
Pennsylvania,
Virginia,
West
Virginia)
or
the
District
of
Columbia.
EPA
will
consider
only
one
proposal
by
an
applicant.
7.
Proposal
submittal.
All
proposals
should
be
mailed
or
hand
delivered
to:
John
Butler,
Environmental
Protection
Agency,
Region
III,
Waste
&
Chemicals
Management
Division,
Mail
code
(
3WC32),
1650
Arch
Street,
Philadelphia,
PA
19103
 
2029.
8.
Due
dates.
EPA
will
consider
all
proposals
which
are
postmarked
by
the
U.
S.
Postal
Service,
hand
delivered,
or
electronically
delivered
to
the
Agency,
or
include
official
delivery
service
documentation
indicating
EPA
acceptance
from
a
delivery
service,
on
or
before
the
deadline
published
in
the
request
for
initial
proposals.
This
due
date
is
on
or
before
5
p.
m.
eastern
standard
time,
July
31,
2003.
Proposals
received
after
the
due
date
will
not
be
considered
for
funding.
9.
Statutory
and
regulatory
authorities.
Strategic
Agricultural
Initiative
Grants
will
be
awarded
under
the
authority
of
section
20
of
FIFRA,
as
amended,
for
research,
public
education,
training,
monitoring,
demonstration
and
studies.
The
regulations
governing
the
award
and
administration
of
these
grants
can
be
found
at
40
CFR
part
30
for
institutions
of
higher
education,
colleges
and
universities,
and
non­
profit
organizations;
and
40
CFR
part
31
for
States
and
local
governments.
10.
Allowable
costs.
EPA
grant
funds
may
only
be
used
for
the
purposes
set
forth
in
the
grant
agreement,
and
must
be
consistent
with
the
statutory
authority
for
the
award.
Grant
funds
may
not
be
used
for
matching
funds
for
other
Federal
grants,
lobbying,
or
intervention
in
Federal
regulatory
or
adjudicatory
proceedings.
In
addition,
Federal
funds
may
not
be
used
to
sue
the
Federal
government
or
any
other
government
entity.
All
costs
identified
in
the
budget
must
conform
to
applicable
Federal
Cost
Principles
contained
in
OMB
Circular
A
 
87;
A
 
122;
and
A
 
21,
as
appropriate.
11.
Federal
requirements.
An
applicant
whose
proposal
is
selected
for
Federal
funding
must
complete
additional
forms
prior
to
award
(
see
40
CFR
30.12
and
31.10).
In
addition,
successful
applicants
will
be
required
to
certify
that
they
have
not
been
debarred
or
suspended
from
participation
in
Federal
assistance
awards
in
accordance
with
40
CFR
part
32.
12.
Intergovernmental
review.
Applicants
must
comply
with
the
Intergovernmental
Review
Process
and/
or
consultation
provisions
of
Executive
Order
12372
or
section
204
of
the
Demonstration
Cities
and
Metropolitan
Development
Act,
if
applicable,
which
are
contained
in
40
CFR
part
29.
Further
information
regarding
this
requirement
will
be
provided
if
your
proposal
is
selected
for
funding.
13.
Pre­
application
assistance.
None
planned.

V.
Proposal
Format
and
Contents
Proposals
must
be
typewritten,
double
spaced
in
12
point
or
larger
print
using
8.5
x
11
inch
paper
with
minimum
1
inch
horizontal
and
vertical
margins.
Pages
must
be
numbered
in
order
starting
with
the
cover
page
and
continuing
through
the
appendices.
One
original
and
one
electronic
copy
(
e­
mail
or
disk)
is
required.
All
proposals
must
include:
1.
Completed
Standard
Form
SF
424*,
Application
for
Federal
Assistance.
Please
include
organization
fax
number
and
e­
mail
address.
2.
Completed
Section
B­­
Budget
Categories,
on
page
1
of
Standard
Form
SF
424A*,
(
See
Unit
IV.
10.­­
Allowable
Cost).
Blank
forms
may
be
located
at
http://
www.
epa.
gov/
region03/
grants/
appforms.
htm.
3.
Detailed
itemization
of
the
amounts
budgeted
by
individual
Object
Class
Categories
(
See
Unit
IV.
10.­­
Allowable
Cost).
4.
Statement
regarding
whether
this
proposal
is
a
continuation
of
a
previously
funded
project.
If
so,
please
provide
the
assistance
number
and
status
of
the
current
grant/
cooperative
agreement.
5.
Executive
Summary.
The
Executive
Summary
shall
be
a
stand
alone
document,
not
to
exceed
one
page,
containing
the
specifics
of
what
is
proposed
and
what
you
expect
to
accomplish
regarding
measuring
or
movement
toward
achieving
project
goals.
This
summary
should
identify
the
measurable
environmental
results
you
expect
including
potential
human
health
and
ecological
benefits.
6.
Table
of
contents.
A
one
page
table
listing
the
different
parts
of
your
proposal
and
the
page
number
on
which
each
part
begins.
7.
Proposal
narrative.
Includes
Parts
I
 
VI
(
Parts
I
through
VI
listed
below
are
not
to
exceed
10
pages).
 
Part
I­­
Project
title.
Self
explanatory.
 
Part
II­­
Objectives.
A
numbered
list
(
1,
2,
etc.)
of
concisely
written
project
objectives,
in
most
cases,
each
objective
can
be
stated
in
a
single
sentence.
 
Part
III­­
Justification.
For
each
objective
listed
in
Part
II,
discuss
the
potential
outcome
in
terms
of
environmental,
human
health,
pesticide
risk
and/
or
use
reduction
or
pollution
prevention.
If
appropriate,
the
target
pest(
s)
and
crop(
s)
should
be
explicitly
stated.
This
section
should
be
numbered
with
a
justification
corresponding
to
each
objective.
 
Part
IV­­
Literature
review.
Briefly,
describe
relevant
information
currently
available.
This
should
also
include
information
on
projects
currently
in
progress
that
are
relevant
to
or
provide
the
basis
for
either
the
experimental
design
or
the
validation
of
a
new
approach
to
pest
management.
 
Part
V­­
Approach
and
methods.
Describe
in
detail
how
the
program
will
be
carried
out.
Describe
how
the
system
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or
approach
will
support
the
program
goals.
 
Part
VI­­
Impact
assessment.
Please
state
how
you
will
evaluate
the
success
of
the
program
in
terms
of
measurable
environmental
results.
How
and
with
what
measures
will
humans
or
ecosystems
be
better
protected
as
a
result
of
the
program.
8.
Proposal
appendices.
These
appendices
must
be
included
in
the
grant
proposal.
Additional
appendices
are
not
permitted.
 
Literature
cited.
List
cited
key
literature
references
alphabetically
by
author.
 
Timetable.
A
timetable
that
includes
what
will
be
accomplished
under
each
of
the
objectives
during
the
project
and
when
completion
of
each
objective
is
anticipated.
 
Major
participants.
This
appendix
should
list
all
farmers,
farm
organizations,
researchers,
educators,
and
conservationists
and
others
having
a
major
role
in
the
proposal.
Provide
name,
organizational
affiliation
or
occupation
(
such
as
farmer)
and
a
description
of
the
role
each
will
play
in
the
project.
A
brief
resume
(
not
to
exceed
two
pages)
should
be
submitted
for
each
major
researcher
or
other
educator.
9.
Electronic
copy.
The
electronic
copy
should
be
e­
mailed
to
butler.
john@
epa.
gov
or
submitted
on
a
3.5
disk,
IBM
compatible,
readable
in
Word
Perfect
WP6/
7/
8
for
Windows.
The
electronic
copy
should
be
consolidated
into
a
single
file.
Original
copy
and
disk
should
be
sent
to:
John
Butler,
Environmental
Protection
Agency,
Region
III,
Waste
&
Chemicals
Management
Division,
1650
Arch
Street,
Mail
Code
(
3WC32),
Philadelphia,
PA
19103
 
2029.
Disks
will
be
checked
for
computer
viruses.
Proposals
that
are
submitted
with
viruses
will
be
disqualified.
To
be
considered,
both
the
paper
and
electronic
copy
must
be
received
by
the
due
date.

VI.
Preliminary
Eligibility
Screening
Requirements
To
be
eligible
for
consideration,
applicants
must
meet
all
of
the
following
criteria.
Failure
to
meet
the
following
criteria
will
result
in
the
automatic
disqualification
of
the
proposal
for
funding
consideration:
1.
Be
a
applicant
who
is
eligible
to
receive
funding
under
this
announcement.
2.
The
proposal
must
address
one
of
more
of
the
High
Priority
Areas
for
Consideration.
3.
The
proposal
must
meet
all
format
and
content
requirements
contained
in
this
notice.
4.
The
proposal
must
comply
with
the
directions
for
submittal
contained
in
this
notice.

VII.
Proposed
Evaluation
Criteria
All
proposals
will
be
evaluated
based
on
the
following
criteria
and
weights
(
Total:
100
points)
:
1.
Qualification
and
experience
of
the
applicant
relative
to
the
proposed
project
activity.
(
Weighting:
30
points)
2.
Project
proposal
is
consistent
with
the
goals
of
the
FQPA
Strategic
Agricultural
Initiative.
(
Weighting:
30
points)
3.
Provisions
for
a
quantitative
or
qualitative
evaluation
of
the
project
success
at
achieving
stated
goals.
(
Weighting:
20
points)
4.
Likelihood
that
the
project
can
be
replicated
in
other
areas
by
other
organizations
to
their
benefit.
(
Weighting:
20
points)

VIII.
Processes
A.
Evaluation
Process
Applicants
will
be
screened
to
ensure
that
they
meet
all
eligibility
criteria
and
will
be
disqualified
if
they
do
not
meet
the
criteria.
All
proposals
will
be
reviewed,
evaluated,
and
ranked
by
a
selected
panel
of
EPA
reviewers
based
on
the
evaluation
criteria
listed
in
Unit
VII.

B.
Selection
Process
The
funding
decision
will
be
made
from
the
group
of
top
rated
proposals
based
on
the
following
additional
factors:
 
Region
III's
environmental
priorities
which
include
preventing
pollution
from
one
media
to
another
and
to
strive
towards
the
reduction
or
elimination
of
environmental
contamination.
 
The
extent
of
anticipated
environmental
impact
of
the
project
in
Region
III.
1.
Selection
official.
The
final
selection
of
initial
proposals
will
be
made
by
the
Region
III,
Director,
Waste
&
Chemicals
Management
Division.
2.
Notification.
The
Region
III
EPA
Office
will
mail
acknowledgments
to
applicants
upon
receipt
of
the
proposal.
Once
proposals
have
been
reviewed,
evaluated,
and
ranked,
applicants
will
be
notified
regarding
the
outcome
of
the
competition.
A
listing
of
the
successful
proposals
will
be
posted
on
the
Region
III
website
address
at
the
conclusion
of
the
competition.
This
website
may
also
contain
additional
information
about
this
announcement
including
information
concerning
deadline
extensions
or
other
modifications.
C.
Dispute
Resolution
Process
The
procedures
for
dispute
resolution
at
40
CFR
30.63
and
40
CFR
31.70
apply.

IX.
Confidential
Business
Information
Applicants
should
clearly
mark
information
contained
in
their
proposal
which
they
consider
confidential
business
information.
EPA
reserves
the
right
to
make
final
confidentially
decisions
in
accordance
with
Agency
regulations
at
40
CFR
part
2,
subpart
B.
If
no
such
claim
accompanies
the
proposal
when
it
is
received
by
EPA,
it
may
be
made
available
to
the
public
by
EPA
without
further
notice
to
the
applicant.

X.
Congressional
Review
Act
Under
the
Agency's
current
interpretation
of
the
definition
of
a
``
rule,''
grant
solicitations
such
as
this
which
are
competitively
awarded
on
the
basis
of
selection
criteria,
are
considered
rules
for
the
purpose
of
the
Congressional
Review
Act
(
CRA).
The
CRA,
5
U.
S.
C.
801
et
seq.,
as
added
by
the
Small
Business
Regulatory
Enforcement
Fairness
Act
of
1996
(
SBREFA),
generally
provides
that
before
a
rule
may
take
effect,
the
agency
promulgating
the
rules
must
submit
a
rule
report,
which
includes
a
copy
of
the
rule,
to
each
House
of
the
Congress
and
to
the
Comptroller
General
of
the
United
States.
EPA
will
submit
a
report
containing
this
rule
and
other
required
information
to
the
U.
S.
Senate,
the
U.
S.
House
of
Representatives,
and
the
Comptroller
General
of
the
United
States
prior
to
publication
of
the
rule
in
the
Federal
Register.
This
rule
is
not
a
``
major
rule''
as
defined
by
5
U.
S.
C.
804(
2).

List
of
Subjects
Environmental
protection,
Administrative
practice
and
procedure,
Agricultural
commodities,
Pesticides
and
pests,
Reporting
and
recordkeeping
requirements.

Dated:
June
6,
2003.

Thomas
C.
Voltaggio,

Acting
Regional
Administrator,
Region
III.
[
FR
Doc.
03
 
16332
Filed
6
 
26
 
03;
8:
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am]

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