Effects of Navigation Locks on Threatened and Endangered Species | W81EWF 21 SOI 0017

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81EWF 21 SOI 0017

The grant opportunity titled "Effects of Navigation Locks on Threatened and Endangered Species" is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers research and development project focused on how changes in navigation lock operations on low-use waterways affect fish that depend on river movement to complete their life cycles. The central setting is the Alabama River system, where navigation dams and locks can serve as both barriers and potential passage routes for fish. The project is motivated by concerns that reduced lock operations, or the elimination of lockages in low-traffic areas, may be disrupting seasonal migrations for endangered and threatened species as well as important game fish, especially during critical spawning periods when connectivity between upstream and downstream habitats matters most.

At its core, the project aims to measure and explain how fish behave around navigation locks and how operational changes influence their ability to move past dams. Preliminary findings cited in the opportunity suggest that reduced lock operations are already affecting migration on certain waterways, and that workable mitigation approaches exist. The next step, and the reason for this funding, is to build a clearer evidence base and identify practical strategies that can be implemented without shutting down or fundamentally compromising existing navigation functions. A key emphasis is not just whether fish can pass, but how to increase the number of fish that actually enter the lock chamber and how to encourage them to remain inside long enough for a lock cycle to transport them through the dam. If successful, these improvements could help re-establish more natural long-distance river migrations that historically occurred before major river regulation and dam construction.

The opportunity envisions a blended research approach combining field studies, supporting laboratory work, and modeling. In practice, this could include tracking fish movement and timing near lock approaches, evaluating cues that influence attraction and entry (such as flow patterns or operational schedules), and testing operational or structural adjustments that make lock passage more effective. Modeling components are intended to help scale findings beyond individual observations, predict outcomes under different operational scenarios, and support decision-making about how lock management might contribute to long-term population recovery for listed species. Importantly, the scope is not limited to biological outcomes; it also explicitly includes an evaluation of economic costs and benefits associated with modified lock operations. That means the research is expected to speak to real-world tradeoffs, such as how changes in lock scheduling or operation might affect navigation efficiency and costs, and whether those changes deliver measurable ecological benefits.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary funding opportunity offered as a cooperative agreement under CFDA 12.630 (science and technology/research and development). The funding opportunity number is W81EWF 21 SOI 0017, with an award ceiling of $900,000. The original closing date listed was 2021-06-18. Eligibility is restricted: only non-federal partners of the Gulf Coast Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU) may apply, which narrows applicants to participating institutions within that cooperative network. Overall, the grant is designed to produce actionable guidance on whether and how navigation infrastructure on the Alabama River can be managed to improve fish passage, mitigate unintended harm caused by reduced lock operations, and contribute meaningfully to recovery and sustainability goals for endangered, threatened, and valued sport fish populations.

• The Dept. of the Army -- Corps of Engineers in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Effects of Navigation Locks on Threatened and Endangered Species" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.630.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-04-17.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-06-18. (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 $900,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for W81EWF 21 SOI 0017

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