By Karl M. Glasener, ASA-CSSA-SSSA Director of Science Policy
Address all comments to Karl Glasener at:
kglasenersoils.org

Science Policy Report

04 March 2009

In This Issue:

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

~ Biomass Research and Development Initiative
~ Region 1 Wetland Program Development Grants
~ Enhancing Ecosystem Services From Agricultural Lands
~ Tribal Colleges Extension Program
~ ROSES 2009: Atmospheric Composition: Modeling and Analysis
~ Resident Instruction Grants Program
~ Noxious Weed Eradication
~ Science of Science and Innovation Policy
~ Hydrologic Sciences
~ Geophysics
~ Antarctic Research
~ Geomorphology and Land Use Dynamics
~ Earthscope

Congressional/Administration News

~ FY 2009 spending bills close to passage
~ Obama unveils broad funding categories in FY 2010 budget request

Conferences, Meetings and Reports

~ Renewing American Leadership in the Fight Against Hunger and Poverty report
~ What is the world's agricultural agenda for the next 50 years?
~ US Climate Change Research
~ Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data
~ Growing Crops for Biofuels Has Spillover Effects
~ Agricultural Baseline Data

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

(TOP) ~ Biomass Research and Development Initiative

The pre-application deadline for the USDA/Department of Energy (DOE) Biomass Research and Development Initiative has been extended from March 6 to March 10. USDA and DOE announced on January 30 they planned to jointly award up to $25 million in funding for research and development of technologies and processes to produce biofuels, bioenergy, and high-value biobased products, subject to annual appropriations. The funding opportunity announcement (FOA) aims to fund projects designed to increase the availability of alternative renewable fuels and biobased products. The projects will aim to create a diverse group of economically and environmentally sustainable sources of renewable biomass. Advanced biofuels produced from these types of sources are expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a minimum of 50 percent. The FOA will fund projects in the following three technical areas specified in the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act (FCEA) of 2008: feedstocks development, biofuels and biobased products development and biofuels development analysis. Award amounts are planned to range from $1 million to up to $5 million with project periods up to four years, subject to annual appropriations. Information about other USDA and DOE efforts: USDA's Energy webpage and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.

(TOP) ~ Region 1 Wetland Program Development Grants

Some awards may involve or relate to geospatial information. The Wetland Program Development Grants (WPDGs) for Regions, initiated in FY90, provide applicants an opportunity to carry out projects to develop and refine comprehensive wetland programs. The authority for the grant program is Section 104(b)(3) of the Clean Water Act (CWA) which restricts the use of these grant funds to improving wetland programs by conducting or promoting the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys, and studies relating to the causes, effects, extent, prevention, reduction, and elimination of water pollution. All proposed projects must be linked to environmental results and demonstrate how they will contribute to the ultimate goals of healthy communities and ecosystems. Deadline 13 April. http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=45531

(TOP) ~ Enhancing Ecosystem Services From Agricultural Lands

Enhancing Ecosystem Services From Agricultural Lands: Management, Quantification, And Developing Decision Support Tools. The U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), as part of its Agricultural and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Competitive Grants Program and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, are seeking applications proposing research on the ecosystem services provided by agricultural lands. Ecosystem services are the goods and services derived from natural and managed ecosystems upon which human welfare depends. Because of the global intensification of land use, these services are in decline, especially in agricultural ecosystems. Ecosystem services are essential in maintaining both human welfare as well as ecological integrity, yet these services can be affected by natural changes and management actions. In addition, agricultural lands are experiencing significant land use changes as demonstrated by the rapid conversion of these lands from traditional farming use, to alternate farming practices, to urban development, and to non-agricultural use. Deadline 26 May. http://es.epa.gov/ncer/rfa/2009/2009_star_ecosystem_services.html

(TOP) ~ Tribal Colleges Extension Program

The Tribal Colleges Extension Services Program provides funding to (1) increase Extension program capacity at 1994 Land-Grant Institutions; and (2) address special needs, take advantage of important opportunities, and/or demonstrate long-term sustained benefits of Extension projects at 1994 Land-Grant Institutions. Awards will be made to support one or more of the following Extension base program areas: Agriculture; Community Resources and Economic Development; Family Development and Resource Management; 4-H and Youth Development; Leadership and Volunteer Development; Natural Resources and Environmental Management; and Nutrition, Diet and Health. Deadline 13 Apr. http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=45385

(TOP) ~ ROSES 2009: Atmospheric Composition: Modeling and Analysis

This NASA Research Announcement (NRA) solicits proposals for supporting basic and applied research and technology across a broad range of Earth and space science program elements relevant to one or more of the following NASA Research Programs: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Planetary Science, and Astrophysics.This ROSES NRA covers all aspects of basic and applied supporting research and technology in space and Earth sciences, including, but not limited to: theory, modeling, and analysis of SMD science data; aircraft, stratospheric balloon, and suborbital rocket investigations; development of experiment techniques suitable for future SMD space missions; and more. Deadline 1 May. http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=45391

(TOP) ~ Resident Instruction Grants Program

The purpose of this program, Resident Instruction Grants Program for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Area, is to promote and strengthen the ability of Insular Area Institutions to carry out teaching and education programs within a broadly defined arena of food and agricultural sciences-related disciplines. By strengthening institutional educational capacities in instruction and curriculum, and enhancing the quality of teaching and learning, CSREES intends that this program will help Insular Area Institutions meet their unique needs. This program also will assist Insular Area Institutions to make more efficient use of existing educational funds by providing resources for partnerships between faculties at Insular Area and mainland institutions. Deadline 10 Apr. http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=45402

(TOP) ~ Noxious Weed Eradication

The goal of this program is to prioritize and target undesirable plant species or group of species to be located, controlled or contained within a specific geographic area in Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Deadline 31 May. http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=45423

(TOP) ~ Science of Science and Innovation Policy

The Science of Science & Innovation Policy (SciSIP) program supports research designed to advance the scientific basis of science and innovation policy. Research funded by the program thus develops, improves and expands models, analytical tools, data and metrics that can be applied in the science policy decision making process. For example, research proposals may develop behavioral and analytical conceptualizations, frameworks or models that have applications across a broad array of SciSIP challenges, including the relationship between broader participation and innovation or creativity. Proposals may also develop methodologies to analyze science and technology data, and to convey the information to a variety of audiences. Researchers are also encouraged to create or improve science and engineering data, metrics and indicators reflecting current discovery, particularly proposals that demonstrate the viability of collecting and analyzing data on knowledge generation and innovation in organizations. Deadline 9 Sep. http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=true&oppId=18759

(TOP) ~ Hydrologic Sciences

Hydrologic Sciences focuses on the flow of water and transport processes within streams, soils, and aquifers. Particular attention is given to spatial and temporal heterogeneity of fluxes and storages of water, particles, and chemicals coupling across interfaces with the landscape, microbial communities, and coastal environments, to upscaling and downscaling given these heterogeneities and interfaces and how these processes are altered by climate and land use changes. Studies may address aqueous geochemistry as well as physical, chemical, and biological processes within water bodies. These studies commonly involve expertise from many basic sciences and mathematics, and proposals often require joint review with related programs. Deadline 1 Jun. http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=true&oppId=18760

(TOP) ~ Geophysics

The Geophysics Program supports basic research in the physics of the solid earth to explore its composition, structure, and processes. Laboratory, field, theoretical, and computational studies are supported. Topics include seismicity, seismic wave propagation, and the nature and occurrence of earthquakes; the earth's magnetic, gravity, and electrical fields; the earth's thermal structure; and geodynamics. Supported research also includes geophysical studies of active deformation, including geodesy, and studies of the properties and behavior of earth materials in support of geophysical observation and theory. Deadline 5 Jun. http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=true&oppId=18761

(TOP) ~ Antarctic Research

Scientific research and operational support of that research are the principal activities supported by the United States Government in Antarctica. The goals are to expand fundamental knowledge of the region, to foster research on global and regional problems of current scientific importance, and to use Antarctica as a platform from which to support research. The U.S. Antarctic Program provides support for field work only when a compelling justification exists for doing the work in Antarctica (i.e., the work can only be done, or is best done, in Antarctica). The program also supports Antarctic-related analytical research performed at home organizations. NSF is the designated lead agency for the International Polar Year, 2007-2009, for the United States and has made a number of awards in response to IPY solicitations (see list of awards at http://www.nsf.gov/od/opp/ipy/ipy_awards_list.jsp). Proposals that make use of IPY datasets or that otherwise build on IPY investments are welcome in the regular programs. For information concerning other Federal agencies and their IPY programs, please go to the U.S. government interagency IPY site at http://www.us-ipy.gov/. Deadline 8 Jun. http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=true&oppId=18763

(TOP) ~ Geomorphology and Land Use Dynamics

Geomorphology and Land-Use Dynamics supports innovative research into processes that shape and modify landscapes over a variety of length and time scales. The program encourages research that investigates quantitatively the coupling and feedback among such processes, their rates, and their relative roles, especially in the contexts of variation in climatic and tectonic influences and in light of changes due to human impact. Deadline 16 Jul. http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=true&oppId=18764

(TOP) ~ Earthscope

EarthScope is an Earth science program to explore the 4-dimensional structure of the North American continent. The EarthScope Program provides a framework for broad, integrated studies across the Earth sciences, including research on fault properties and the earthquake process, strain transfer, magmatic and hydrous fluids in the crust and mantle, plate boundary processes, large-scale continental deformation, continental structure and evolution, and composition and structure of the deep-Earth. In addition, EarthScope offers a centralized forum for Earth science education at all levels and an excellent opportunity to develop cyberinfrastructure to integrate, distribute, and analyze diverse data sets. The EarthScope facilities, consisting of the Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO), the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD), and the USArray, are a multi-purpose array of instruments and observatories that greatly expands the observational capabilities of the Earth Sciences and permits us to advance our understanding of the structure, evolution and dynamics of the North American continent. This Solicitation calls for single or collaborative proposals to conduct scientific research associated with the EarthScope Facility and support activities that further the scientific and educational goals of EarthScope. Deadline 16 Jul. http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=true&oppId=18765

Congressional/Administration News

(TOP) ~ FY 2009 spending bills close to passage

Last week the full House passed the $410 billion FY 2009 Omnibus spending bill, a compilation of the nine remaining spending bills containing funding for USDA Agricultural Research Service and Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, National Science Foundation, US Geological Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA, Department of Energy Office of Science and other agencies supportive of the agronomic, crop and soil sciences. While the omnibus spending bill is expected to pass the Senate and then be signed into law by President Obama, one Senator, John McCain (R Arizona), upset with the more than 9,000 earmarks contained in the massive spending measure, has introduced an amendment which would extend expiring stopgap spending legislation through FY09 that would fund several government programs at FY08 levels and scrap the $410 billion omnibus FY09 appropriations bill. Searchable bill text and explanatory statements are available here: http://appropriations.house.gov/FY2009_consolidated.shtml

USDA Agricultural Research Service

USDA-Agricultural Research Service will be funded at $1,140,406,000, barely a 1.0% increase over the FY 2008 funding level of $1,128,944,000. The Agricultural Research Service, Buildings and Facilities account is funded at $46,752,000.

 

USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service

*Smith-Lever 3(b) and 3(c) are funded at $288,548,000, about a $14 million increase over FY 2008 levels.

*Hatch Act to be funded at $207,106,000 in FY 2009, a $12 million increase over FY 2008.

*Evans-Allen Program (Research) FY 2009, $45,504,000, a $4 million increase.

*McIntire-Stennis Cooperative Forestry FY 2009, $27,535,000, a $3 million increase over FY 2008.

*Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) FY 2009, $201,504,000, an $11 million increase over FY 2008.

*Institution Challenge Grants FY 2009 $5,644,00, a $300,000 increase over FY 2008.

Graduate Fellowship Grants FY 2009 $3,859,000, a $2 million increase over FY 2008.

*Integrated Research, Education and Extension (Sec 406) FY 2009, $41,990,000, a $300,000 cut from FY 2008.

*Sustainable agriculture research and education FY 2009 $14,399,000, $100,000 decrease from FY 2008.

 

National Science Foundation: $6.5 billion ($362.9 million increase from 2008), including $230.0 million to research climate change, carbon cycles, land use, and impacts on ecosystems; $101.2 million for plant genome research; $691.8 million for education; and $133 million to stimulate cooperative research across the country.

 

United States Geological Survey: $1.0 billion ($37.3 million increase from 2008), including $185.3 million for biological research; $10.0 million for the new National Global Warming and Wildlife Science Center; and $3.0 million to study geological and biological carbon sequestration.

 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: $4.4 billion ($376.7 million increase from 2008), including $394.0 million for climate sensors on satellites, climate computer models, and climate data access; $26.5 million for ocean observation; $32.3 million for education; and $15.8 million for external research grants on harmful algal blooms, hypoxia, and regional ocean ecosystems.

 

National Aeronautics and Space Administration: $17.8 billion ($380.5 million increase from 2008), including $1.3 billion for climate change research; $1.4 billion for earth science research; and $169.2 million for education.

 

Department of Energy Office of Science: $4.8 billion ($754.9 million increase from 2008), including $423.6 million for biological research and $177.9 million for climate change research.

(TOP) ~ Obama unveils broad funding categories in FY 2010 budget request

President Obama has submitted his FY 2010 budget message to Congress. Details provided in the 142 page budget document are minimal, covering only a handful of agencies including National Science Foundation, NOAA, EPA, NASA, Department of Energy Office of Science and Department of Interior. View budget: at: A New Era of Responsibility: Renewing America’s Promise and http://www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/index.html.

USDA Unfortunately, no specifics about agricultural research are included in the document except for two rural programs containing competitive research grants. The president does propose trimming back some of the crop subsidy programs. View ag section: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/Department_of_Agriculture1.pdf

 

National Science Foundation is slated for a $100 million increase which, when combined with the $3 billion in new funding provided in the economic stimulus bill, would bring total FY 2010 funding to $7 billion. The focus of the additional funding would be on graduate research fellowships and faculty early career development programs; strengthening the education of technicians in high-technology fields; encouraging promising high-risk research; and making climate change research and education a priority. http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/National_Science_Foundation1.pdf.

 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would receive increased funding to study climate change, including an additional $1.3 billion for weather and climate satellite acquisition.  Funding would also be included for research and monitoring of ocean acidification.  http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/Department_of_Commerce.pdf

 

Environmental Protection Agency would receive $10.5 billion in total funding, a 34-percent increase over the 2009 likely enacted level. Funds Great Lakes water projects, $3.9 billion for the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds and $475 million for a new Environmental Protection Agency-led, interagency Great Lakes restoration initiative, which will target the most significant problems in the region, including invasive aquatic species, non-point source pollution, and contaminated sediment. View budget http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/Environmental_Protection_Agency1.pdf

 

NASA is funded at $18.7 billion. Combined with the $1 billion provided to the agency in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, this represents a total increase of more than $2.4 billion over the 2008 level. Funds a program of space-based research that supports the Administration’s commitment to deploy a global climate change research and monitoring system. View budget http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/fy2010_new_era/National_Aeronautics_and_Space_Administration.pdf

 

Several other science agencies should also see budget increases in FY 2010. The Office of Science in the Department of Energy would receive see substantially increased support for climate science, expanding graduate fellowship programs, and international science and energy experiments.  The Department of Interior would receive funding to address climate change. An additional $130 million in funding would be used to monitor, adaptively manage, and assess the impacts of climate change on the nation's lands, fish, and wildlife.

Conferences, Meetings and Reports

(TOP) ~ Renewing American Leadership in the Fight Against Hunger and Poverty report

On 25 Feb, a group of bipartisan foreign policy and development leaders convened by The Chicago Council on Global Affairs called for a renewed U.S. commitment to alleviating global poverty through agricultural development in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, the two regions with more than 700 million of the world's poorest people, most of them small farmers and their families. The group's report, Renewing American Leadership in the Fight Against Hunger and Poverty: The Chicago Initiative on Global Agricultural Development, includes five recommendations and more than 20 specific suggestions for how the United States, through increased agricultural development assistance and partnerships at home and abroad, could help achieve the Millennium Development Goals and restore the United States as a force for positive change in the world. View report: http://www.thechicagocouncil.org/globalagdevelopment/pdf/gadp_final_report.pdf

(TOP) ~ What is the world's agricultural agenda for the next 50 years?

Recently, the World Bank, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, and over 110 countries and 900 participants came together to report on how our most pressing environmental and social issues will affect the future of food. After spending more than $11 million, a team of experts produced an exhaustive study of how science, agriculture knowledge, and technology impact hunger, poverty, nutrition, human health, and environmental and social sustainability with the International Assessment of Agriculture Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD), http://www.islandpress.org/iaastd.

(TOP) ~ US Climate Change Research

US Climate Change Research should address actions needed to cope with climate change-related problems and improve understanding of the causes and processes of climate change according to a new report from the National Research Council.The report calls for the US Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) to establish a U.S. climate observing system; develop new modeling capabilities for regional- and decadal-scale forecasts; strengthen research on adaptation, mitigation, and vulnerability; initiate a periodic national assessment of climate impacts and responses; and routinely provide policymakers with crucial scientific information, tools, and forecasts. The National Research Council report, "Restructuring Federal Climate Research to Meet the Challenges of Climate Change", can be viewed at: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12595

(TOP) ~ Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data

The General Accountability Office (GAO) has prepared a report on the quality of emissions data for the U.S. Congress as it considers cap-and-trade proposals to limit greenhouse gas emissions. The document, “High Quality Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data are a Cornerstone of Programs to Address Climate Change Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, Committee on Science and Technology, House of Representatives”, can be viewed at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09423t.pdf

(TOP) ~ Growing Crops for Biofuels Has Spillover Effects

Growing Crops for Biofuels Has Spillover Effects is the title of an article by USDA ERS which examines how growing demand for corn as biofuel feedstock will transform the agricultural landscape. Elements included in the article: * Federal mandates for biofuel production promote expanded crop acreage and shifts in cropping patterns and livestock production due to higher prices for corn and other grain crops. * An increase in the extent of agricultural land in production and intensity of input use increases the potential for environmental degradation. * Research that improves crop productivity and conversion efficiency, as well as conservation practices like no-till and buffer strips, could lessen the environmental impacts of biofuels. View article: http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/March09/Features/Biofuels.htm

(TOP) ~ Agricultural Baseline Data

USDA ERS has released its long run projections for the farm sector for the next 10 years, including agricultural commodities, agricultural trade, and aggregate indicators of the sector, such as farm income and food prices.Key results in the projections include: * Prices for corn, oilseeds, and many other crops remain well above their historical levels, although season-average annual prices are not projected to reach the record highs seen in the first half of 2008. * Over the next several years, the livestock sector continues to adjust to higher feed prices seen in 2007 and 2008. * Although net farm income initially declines from the highs of 2007 and 2008, it remains historically strong and rebounds to near-record levels in the latter part of the projections. * U.S. retail food prices increase more than general inflation through 2011, but return to the longer term relationship of rising less than the general inflation rate over the remainder of the projection period. The Agriculture Baseline Database is at http://www.ers.usda.gov/db/baseline/. Agricultural Baseline Projection Tables are at http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/MannUsda/viewDocumentInfo.do?documentID=1192. International Baseline Data are at http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/internationalbaseline/ . The USDA ERS Agricultural Baseline Projections Briefing Room is at http://www.ers.usda.gov/briefing/baseline/

Sources: Congressional Quarterly; E&E Daily; Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC

Vision: The Societies Washington, DC Science Policy Office (SPO) will advocate the importance and value of the agronomic, crop and soil sciences in developing national science policy and ensuring the necessary public-sector investment in the continued health of the environment for the well being of humanity. The SPO will assimilate, interpret, and disseminate in a timely manner to Society members information about relevant agricultural, natural resources and environmental legislation, rules and regulations under consideration by Congress and the Administration.

This page of the ASA-CSSA-SSSA web site will highlight current news items relevant to Science Policy. It is not an endorsement of any position.

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