Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit | G24AS00235

Opportunity Information: Apply for G24AS00235

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Fort Collins Science Center is offering a cooperative agreement to a partner organization affiliated with the Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU). The core purpose of the project is to take a clear, up-to-date look at how federal land and water management agencies currently measure recreation use, especially visitation numbers, and how they collect other visitor-related information such as demographics and satisfaction. The work is meant to summarize and compare existing approaches across agencies and then translate those findings into practical guidance that agencies can use to improve recreation monitoring.

The opportunity is driven by a familiar problem in public lands management: everyone agrees visitor data matters, but the methods and data quality are uneven across agencies and across sites. Estimating visitation on federally managed lands and waters is often difficult because many recreation areas have multiple entry points that are not monitored, and many locations are remote. At the same time, agencies have limited budgets and staffing, which puts pressure on them to pick methods that are efficient and defensible. Another complication is that there is no single best method for all places. Federal recreation settings range from heavily developed sites with clear entrances to dispersed, open-access landscapes and waterways, so the most accurate and cost-effective monitoring approach can vary widely depending on site characteristics and the kinds of recreation occurring there.

A key project element is updating and expanding a prior cross-agency comparison of visitation estimation methods published in 2017 (Leggett et al., 2017). Since recreation monitoring programs, technologies, and agency practices evolve over time, USGS is looking for a partner to build on that earlier work to improve transparency and comparability across federal recreation monitoring efforts. In practical terms, this suggests the selected CESU partner will be expected to inventory and synthesize what agencies are doing now, identify similarities and differences, highlight strengths and gaps, and develop guidance that can support more consistent decision-making without ignoring the reality that different sites require different tools.

The project will be conducted in partnership with the Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Policy Analysis (PPA) as well as USGS, reflecting a coordination-focused approach rather than a standalone research effort. The intended outcome is increased USGS and interagency understanding of how visitation and other visitor metrics are produced, along with products that federal agencies can use for planning at both the agency-wide level and the individual site level. Better visitation estimates are also framed as useful beyond government, since external service providers that support public lands visitors (for example, concessioners or local tourism-related businesses) can plan more effectively when visitation patterns and visitor characteristics are better understood.

Administratively, this is a discretionary funding opportunity using a cooperative agreement (meaning USGS will likely have substantial involvement during the project). It falls under the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category and is listed under CFDA 15.808. Eligibility is limited to participating partners of the Pacific Northwest CESU program. The opportunity number is G24AS00235. The maximum award amount listed is $138,000. The funding opportunity was created on January 22, 2024, and the original closing date for applications was February 22, 2024.

• The Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Pacific Northwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit" 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 2024-01-22.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-02-22. (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 $138,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for G24AS00235

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