Integrating geology, geophysics, and geochemistry to characterize metal transport in deep groundwater in a mineralized mountain watershed | USGS FA 17 0111

Opportunity Information: Apply for USGS FA 17 0111

This funding opportunity, titled "Integrating geology, geophysics, and geochemistry to characterize metal transport in deep groundwater in a mineralized mountain watershed," is a discretionary research grant issued by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) within the Department of the Interior. It is identified by the funding opportunity number USGS FA 17 0111 and falls under the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category. The associated CFDA (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance) number is 15.808, which corresponds to USGS research and related scientific support activities.

The announcement is explicitly a Notice of Intent to award a cooperative agreement, meaning the agency is signaling an expected award decision rather than running a fully open, competitive solicitation. In practice, a cooperative agreement differs from a standard grant because it anticipates substantial involvement by the federal agency during the project. That typically means USGS scientists and staff may actively collaborate with the recipient on project design refinement, field or laboratory methods, data management, interpretation, and dissemination of results, rather than simply providing funds and receiving periodic reports.

The scientific focus of the project is on understanding how metals move through deep groundwater systems in a mineralized mountain watershed. Mineralized mountain watersheds often contain naturally occurring metal-bearing rocks and, in some cases, legacy mining impacts. Deep groundwater can serve as an important transport pathway for dissolved metals and metal-bearing fluids, influencing water quality in springs, streams, and connected shallow aquifers. By integrating geology, geophysics, and geochemistry, the project aims to build a more complete and defensible picture of subsurface conditions and the processes controlling metal mobilization and transport. Geology contributes the structural and lithologic framework (such as rock types, faults, fractures, and alteration zones), geophysics helps characterize subsurface architecture and fluid pathways where direct sampling is limited, and geochemistry provides evidence of sources, reactions, and transport behavior through water chemistry and related tracers. The integration of these disciplines is commonly used to reduce uncertainty in conceptual site models and to connect physical flow paths with observed chemical signatures.

Eligibility is limited to public and state-controlled institutions of higher education. The notice specifies the Colorado School of Mines as the intended recipient, reinforcing that this is a targeted cooperative effort supporting joint research rather than a broad call for proposals. The opportunity anticipates a single award, with an award ceiling of $136,351, and the listing indicates Expected Awards: 1. The posting was created on March 22, 2017, with an original closing date of April 5, 2017, reflecting a short window typical of notices of intent or targeted funding actions.

Overall, this opportunity supports a focused USGS-academic collaboration to improve scientific understanding of metal transport in complex mountainous groundwater settings by combining multiple lines of evidence from Earth science disciplines. The expected outcome is a better characterization of where metals originate, how they move through deep subsurface pathways, and what conditions control their release, persistence, or attenuation, which can inform broader watershed assessments and water-quality science in mineralized terrains.

• The Department of the Interior, Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Integrating geology, geophysics, and geochemistry to characterize metal transport in deep groundwater in a mineralized mountain watershed" 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 Mar 22, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 05, 2017. (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 $136,351.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for USGS FA 17 0111

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