Bat Conservation and Sagebrush Restoration in Great Basin National Park | P19AS00004

Opportunity Information: Apply for P19AS00004

The Bat Conservation and Sagebrush Restoration in Great Basin National Park opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number P19AS00004) is a National Park Service, Department of the Interior cooperative agreement focused on two connected conservation priorities in eastern Nevada: protecting bat populations from white-nose syndrome (WNS) and restoring sagebrush ecosystems that are being degraded by expanding conifer woodlands. The project is framed around producing practical scientific information that park and partner agencies can use to identify best management practices, while also supporting job creation in a remote rural area (White Pine County, Nevada). A central motivation is proactive conservation meant to reduce the risk that vulnerable bat species (threatened by WNS) and greater sage-grouse (threatened by loss of sagebrush habitat) end up needing federal listing under the Endangered Species Act.

On the bat side, the work emphasizes surveillance and management-relevant monitoring for WNS, a serious disease affecting bats in the United States and believed to have originated in Europe. The project highlights the need to track and document the disease and manage visitor-related risks in caves and roosting areas. Monitoring is expected to rely on multiple field and analytical methods, including mist netting, roost and exit counts, acoustic sampling, and structured data management and analysis using occupancy modeling frameworks. It also calls out public outreach as an important component, aimed at educating park visitors about how human activity can contribute to the spread of WNS and what they can do to reduce that risk.

On the sagebrush restoration side, the project targets conifer encroachment, a long-term ecological shift where trees such as Singleleaf pinyon pine and Utah juniper increasingly dominate areas that historically supported sagebrush, grasses, and forbs. The description explains that this expansion used to be constrained by natural disturbances like high-intensity fire, but has accelerated in recent decades due to a combination of fire exclusion, climate and atmospheric changes (including increased CO2, warmer temperatures, and changes in precipitation), and selective herbivory by livestock in the broader region. As conifers take over, ecosystems become less diverse and less productive for many wildlife species because more biomass is locked up in less palatable woody material, and because shrub and herbaceous plant communities that provide steadier forage, seeds, and insect diversity are reduced. The project specifically links these habitat changes to negative impacts on species such as sage-grouse, pygmy rabbits, and mule deer.

Restoration is centered on removing conifers as the primary tool for reversing encroachment and rebuilding sagebrush ecosystem function. The opportunity outlines several potential treatment approaches depending on stand density and site conditions, including chaining in high-density stands, lop-and-scatter in low-density areas, mechanical mastication, prescribed fire, and hand cutting with chainsaws. It also notes that restoration often includes seeding native shrubs and herbaceous plants to accelerate recovery of grasses, forbs, and sagebrush. Expected ecological outcomes include increased perennial grasses and reduced conifer cover, which can improve overall range conditions. Although livestock grazing is not allowed within the park, the rationale is that improved forage conditions can support wildlife and other non-livestock grazers within park boundaries, potentially easing forage competition pressures outside the park. The description also states that conifer removal can increase short-term water availability to downstream users by reducing tree water use.

A major feature of the project is its partnership-based, cross-boundary approach. The National Park Service points to close coordination with agencies such as the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Nevada Department of Wildlife. The intent is to leverage funding and expertise across administrative boundaries to improve efficiency, expand the geographic and scientific relevance of the work, and increase the overall return on investment. This aligns with Great Basin National Park's mission to protect a representative portion of the Great Basin for public enjoyment and scientific understanding, including maintaining resilient sagebrush and wetland ecosystems and conserving key components of biodiversity like bats that support ecosystem functioning and services.

Administratively, this announcement is not a competitive request for applications. It is a Notice of Intent to Award, issued to provide public notice that the National Park Service will fund the project under an existing cooperative agreement with GBI. The listed eligible applicant category is nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education). The award ceiling shown is $366,000, and the opportunity is categorized as discretionary funding under the Natural Resources activity area (CFDA 15.931).

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Bat Conservation and Sagebrush Restoration in Great Basin National Park" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.931.
• This funding opportunity was created on Feb 07, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Notice of Intent to Award. This is NOT a request for application. This funding announcement is to provide public notice that the National Park Service will fund the following project under an existing Cooperative Agreement with GBI.. (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 $366,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

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