Assessing Climate Vulnerability and Adaption Opportunities in Apostle Islands Wetlands | NOIP16AC01387 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOIP16AC01387 001

The grant opportunity titled "Assessing Climate Vulnerability and Adaption Opportunities in Apostle Islands Wetlands" is a National Park Service (NPS) cooperative agreement focused on understanding how climate change could affect coastal wetlands within Apostle Islands National Lakeshore (APIS) in Lake Superior. APIS includes a mainland unit plus 21 islands and contains several high-quality wetland types such as lagoons, bogs, freshwater estuaries, fringing marshes, and peatlands. Because many of these wetlands are on protected lands and located on islands with relatively limited direct human disturbance, the project treats them as especially valuable "sentinel sites" that can reveal early or clear signals of climate-driven ecological change across the broader Great Lakes region.

The core purpose of the project is to fill key data gaps that currently limit proactive wetland management under changing climate conditions. Even though the wetlands are protected from many typical development pressures, they remain vulnerable to climate-related stressors including changes in Lake Superior water levels, more frequent and intense storms, increasing wave energy, and rising air and water temperatures. The opportunity calls for a comprehensive assessment of 11 major coastal wetlands in the park, combining current field measurements with comparisons to historic conditions where existing datasets allow. By pairing present-day observations with past records, the project aims to detect trends and understand how wetland hydrology, water quality, and biological communities are already shifting or may shift in the future.

The work is organized around three main applied research questions. First, the study will identify which APIS wetlands are most at risk from climate-related change, with special attention to hydroperiod dynamics (how long and how often areas are flooded or saturated) and how wetland size, shape, and connectivity to Lake Superior may change under altered lake levels and storm patterns. Second, it will determine which wetland biota are most likely to be affected, considering both individual species and broader community types, and it specifically asks whether any impacted species or communities are rare or uniquely important. This part of the project also requires thinking beyond diagnosis and into adaptation: what practical actions or management approaches could help wetland organisms persist or adjust as conditions change. Third, the project will develop a framework for using APIS as a long-term coastal wetland sentinel site for the Great Lakes, including recommendations on which wetlands and which biological or environmental indicators should be tracked over time, and how to measure those indicators efficiently and consistently for long-term monitoring.

Deliverables are expected to be both technical and management-oriented. The recipient (noted in the description as Northland College, selected for its expertise and proximity) is responsible for project oversight, study design, fieldwork, data analysis, and a final synthesis that translates findings into specific long-term adaptive management recommendations for NPS. The synthesis is also expected to incorporate results from bird and amphibian sampling conducted by project partners, ensuring that key wildlife components are integrated into the overall wetland vulnerability picture. In addition to providing data to NPS, the recipient is expected to communicate results to the broader scientific and resource management communities through presentations at conferences or symposia and through peer-reviewed publications, helping ensure the work informs Great Lakes wetland science beyond the Apostle Islands.

The NPS role is described as active collaboration rather than a hands-off grantor relationship, which is consistent with a cooperative agreement. NPS will jointly develop and refine the scope of work with the recipient, assign a technical representative to assist as needed, and review and approve modifications or any sub-awards before they are issued. NPS also retains authority to redirect work if necessary due to connections with other projects, and to halt activities if performance specifications are not met. The description emphasizes close monitoring and operational involvement during performance, including oversight related to staffing, organizational structures, and logistics, reflecting the shared-responsibility nature of the agreement.

Administratively, this opportunity is listed as discretionary funding through a cooperative agreement under the Department of the Interior, National Park Service, with activity aligned to natural resources (CFDA 15.945). The opportunity number is NOIP16AC01387 001. The posting indicates an award ceiling of $152,000 and an expectation of one award. It also notes that the underlying task agreement (P16AC01387) originally funded $75,921 and that a modification adding $2,500 was required to support current project activities, situating this opportunity as part of an ongoing effort under the Great Lakes-Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (GLNF-CESU) master cooperative agreement (P12AC31164). The original posting dates show a creation date of July 31, 2017, and an original closing date of August 10, 2017, indicating the timeframe for the competition or award action.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Assessing Climate Vulnerability and Adaption Opportunities in Apostle Islands Wetlands" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 31, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 10, 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 $152,000.00 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 NOIP16AC01387 001

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