Ensuring clean and safe drinking water is important for protecting human health and the environment. While Manganese (Mn) occurs naturally in groundwater and surface water, higher concentrations, previously considered safe, have been found to potentially lead to negative neurological health impacts in vulnerable populations (World Health Organization, 2021). In addition to health concerns, aesthetic issues such as water color and taste, and Mn accumulation in the distribution systems make Mn treatment a priority for many drinking water utilities. Small utilities find Mn treatment challenging due to the complexities of the treatment process, costs, and aging infrastructure. Several technologies have proven to be effective in Mn removal (U.S. EPA, 2021); however, small utilities find it challenging to implement many of these technologies. This Request for Applications (RFA) seeks research demonstrations that evaluate the effectiveness of common Mn treatment technologies in small drinking water systems and provide states, Tribes and small utilities with an improved ability to adopt and implement common Mn treatment technologies.
The Innovative Water Technology Grant Program’s goal is to accelerate “the development and deployment of innovative water technologies that address pressing drinking water supply, quality, treatment, or security challenges of public water systems, areas served by private wells, or source waters.” Under the program, EPA shall make grants “(1) to develop, test, and deploy innovative water technologies; or (2) to provide technical assistance to deploy demonstrated innovative water technologies.”
Deadline: Nov. 15, 2023
Public water systems, institutions of higher education (IHEs), research institutions or foundations, regional water organizations and certain nonprofit organizations as further described below, located in the U.S. or its territories or possessions are eligible to apply. Profitmaking firms and individuals are not eligible to apply.
If an applicant submits more than one application under this announcement, each application must be submitted separately, and the scope of work proposed in each application must be significantly different from the other application(s) in order for them to all be deemed eligible. If applications are submitted with scopes of work that do not significantly differ, then EPA will only accept the most recently submitted application and all other applications will be deemed ineligible.
It is anticipated that a total of approximately $1 million will be awarded under this announcement, depending on the availability of funds, quality of applications received and other applicable considerations. The EPA anticipates funding one award under this RFA. Requests for amounts in excess of a total of $1,000,000 in federal funding, including direct and indirect costs, will not be considered. In addition, a minimum non-federal cost share/match of 35% of the total project costs which is equivalent at a minimum to 53.846% of the federal funds awarded (which may include in-kind contributions - see Section III.B. for more details), must be included. The minimum 35% non-federal cost share/match, equal to a minimum of $538,462 (assuming the applicant requests $1,000,000 in EPA funds) must be included. Including matching, total project costs can exceed $1,538,462 (if the applicant proposes more than the minimum required nonfederal cost share/match), however, the federally-funded portion of the budget must not exceed $1,000,000. Applications which do not demonstrate how the applicant will provide the minimum non-federal cost share/match will be deemed ineligible. The total project period requested in an application submitted for this RFA may not exceed 4 years.