Water Resources Research Act Program Subactivity

Institute Evaluations-The Water Resources Research Act, as amended, requires that each Institute be evaluated at intervals not to exceed 5 years. Detailed evaluations of all 54 Institutes were conducted in 1994 to determine their eligibility to receive grants under the Act. The independent panel which conducted the evaluations based on evaluation reports submitted by the Institutes and site visits to four Institutes concluded that: "For a modest investment each year, an effective program of multidisciplinary research, education, and information transfer occurs in each of the 54 Water Resources Research Institutes or Centers. The Institute evaluation reports give a clear sense of a vigorous nationwide program resulting in substantial accomplishments."

Publications-A publication describing all reports produced by the Institute program since it came under the auspices of the USGS in 1984 was updated and published in 1995 in cooperation with NIWR. The publication summarizes all of the reports and contains a diskette so that the report citations can be accessed by personal computer. The data base describing the reports is also available on the Internet through the Universities Council Water Resources' UWIN.

A report describing the FY 1997 research program of the Institutes will be published in cooperation with NIWR; similar reports were published in FY 1996 and earlier.

The NIWR, in cooperation with the USGS and drawing on Institute-sponsored research, will continue publication of the Water Science Reporter, a brief, layoriented, publication that discuss water issues of national interest and methods of addressing them.

The FY 1998 program provides continued Federal support for the 54 Water
Resources Research Institutes located at universities in each State, the District of
Columbia, and U.S. territories. In light of the recent reauthorization of the Water
Resources Research Act in Public Law 104-147, one-half of the funds requested
in FY 1998 will be used to support in each State program in research, education,
and information and technology transfer that have been developed in collaboration
with each Institute's State advisory panel. These funds are to be matched on a
two-to-one basis as provided in law. The remainder of the funds will be used to
initiate a competitive program of interstate or regional research and water
research information synthesis as authorized under Section 104(g) of the Water
Resources Research Act. These funds are to be matched on a one-to-one basis
as provided by Section 104(g).

Competitive Grant Process-In FY 1996, Congress recommended (H.R. Report
104-300, p. 36) that each Institute receive a base grant of $20,000, and that the
remainder of the funds ($3.22 million) be allocated on a competitive basis
(Figure W-10, page 206). USGS structured a regional competitive grant program
whereby the funds to be competitively allocated were divided equally among four
regions. Within each region a lead Institute, working under guidelines developed

U.S. Geological Survey

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UIS

Water Resources Research Act Program Subactivity

by USGS and in cooperation with the other Institutes in each region, solicited, reviewed, and selected research and information transfer projects to be funded. The lead Institute in each region solicited proposals seeking a maximum of at least $250,000 in Federal funds, which must be matched with two dollars from non Federal sources for each Federal dollar received under the grant. Any university or college could apply for a grant through an Institute. The solicitation, review, and selection process in each region received prior approval by USGS. USGS awarded the grants, which could be for work over a period of up to 3 years. In accordance with Congressional direction, the FY 1996 process was structured to include a competitive regional process for grant award. As a result, 60 universities received awards either as an Institute or as a sub-grantee under an Institute. The universities carried out a successful program of collaboration to identify expertise within a given State, interstate, and inter-regional in nature.

Performance for Customers

Grants made under this program support the activities of universities throughout the Nation. The universities are in partnership with USGS, and are the organizations that deliver results to the customer base. Recent program results demonstrate aid to the following customers in achieving their objectives:

Ground-Water/Surface-Water Interactions-Virginia Water Resources Center investigators are conducting research to improve understanding of interaction between stream water and ground water in forested catchments underlain by weathered bedrock. Results of this study are applicable to improved management of surface and ground water resources in the Piedmont region of the Eastern United States, which covers parts of 10 States, including Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, New York, Alabama, Delaware, and New Jersey.

Permafrost-Alaska Water Research Center personnel are using a

supercomputer to model the effects of discontinuous (patchy) permafrost on subsurface hydrology and contamination transport. The information is being used at Fort Wainwright, a U.S. Army base near Fairbanks, to characterize contaminant transport. The military is very interested in this technology because of its application throughout Alaska and other areas with permafrost conditions. This capability benefits customers who need this knowledge for construction or operation of large facilities, such as communities and industries.

Dam Safety Rehabilitation-Researchers at the Utah Water Research Center are using the results of investigations to provide cost-saving methods for improving the performance of spillways, which can be expected to play an important role in future dam safety rehabilitation in the State. Based on an improved determination of probable maximum floods, the State Engineer estimated lower costs for the spillways, for those dams controlled by the State. Savings of several million dollars have already been reported by the Utah Power and Light Company, which applied dam safety evaluation procedures developed by the university.

Note: States not listed here received no regional competitive grant funds. They received only a base grant of $20K to the Water Institute in each State.

Water Resources Research Act Program Subactivity

Montana Drinking Water Assistance Program—The Montana Water Institute
has established a Drinking Water Assistance Program. This program responds to
small community systems needing low-cost treatment technologies, to regulatory
agencies needing credible third party performance data, and to entrepreneurs
needing assistance in pilot technologies. Projects include advanced computer
design techniques, evaluation of alternative on-site wastewater treatment systems,
and technical assistance in wellhead protection for small communities.
Improved Farming Practices-Mississippi Water Resources Research Institute
faculty are assessing agricultural activities which affect water quality in the
Mississippi River Delta, through the evaluation and improved design of Best
Management Practices (BMPs) for farming systems. The study will be conducted
at sites within three Delta watersheds, primarily cotton producing. Comparisons
will be made using runoff, shallow ground water, soils, and lake ecology in the
watersheds.

Pesticides-Contamination of ground water by atrazine and its by-products in
corn growing areas exceeds federal standards and creates serious cancer
concerns. Based on university research, the Wisconsin Water Resources Center
has developed a working plan to curb further pollution through improved
management practices--such as changes in atrazine application methods,
amounts, and timing--and through the creation of atrazine moratorium areas.
Pollution Recovery Techniques-Five ship builders and six marinas have been
chosen by the Rhode Island Water Resources Research Institute for waste
auditing and assessment. Potential pollution prevention techniques tested in these
facilities include acetone recovery, solvent substitution, more efficient molding
techniques, and better solvent management procedures. Significant reduction of
waste and savings in production costs can be achieved in all facilities. The result
can be applied to the Northeast region and the entire Nation not only in marine
industries, but also to other industries which use fiberglass reinforcement
technologies.

Program Change

FY 1998
Request

Program
Change

$000
FTE

1,750

2

-2,803
0

A decrease of $2,803,000 is proposed for this program. The decrease will allow for redirection of funds to higher priority, mission-related activities. The total amount available for Institute grants will be $1,660,000, with the remaining $90,000 reserved for program administration activities at USGS. At this level of funding, equal grants will be awarded to each of the 54 Institutes, thereby reducing administrative costs. Federal financial assistance to about 1,400 graduate and undergraduate students would be decreased, along with support to about 150 principal investigators. About one-third of the Institutes receive all or most of their funding from this Federal appropriation and associated matching funds, so that this action could result in the closure of some Institutes that have not been able to find non-Federal or other funding sources.

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a/

The former activity, Natural Resources Research, has been renamed Biological Research, and three subactivities have been created as part of the budget structure under this newly named activity.

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