Lewiston Orchards Water Exchange Project Lead | BOR PN 17 N018

Opportunity Information: Apply for BOR PN 17 N018

The Lewiston Orchards Water Exchange Project Lead grant is a Bureau of Reclamation discretionary funding opportunity focused on resolving long-running water supply, infrastructure, and environmental conflicts tied to the Lewiston Orchards Project (LOP) near Lewiston, Idaho. The LOP is a federal Reclamation project operated by the Lewiston Orchards Irrigation District (LOID) that delivers residential irrigation water to roughly 22,000 patrons across about 3,828 acres. Much of the project infrastructure and its gravity-fed conveyance system sit on the Nez Perce Tribe Reservation within the Lapwai Creek watershed, a tributary to the Clearwater River in the Columbia River basin. Because the system relies on seasonal surface-water diversions and storage (including Waha Lake and Soldiers Meadow Reservoir) that reduce flows and connectivity in Lapwai Creek, it has created conflicts with tribal cultural and natural resource interests and has harmed ESA-listed Snake River steelhead. Water availability is also frequently inadequate for LOID demand, leading to patron restrictions, while aging facilities require costly repair or replacement.

The central purpose of the broader effort described in the notice is a transition away from the existing surface-water diversion and gravity conveyance approach and toward a multi-well groundwater supply. Reclamation’s long-term direction is to incrementally replace the surface-water system with groundwater wells, decommission the surface diversion system, and protect the “exchanged” surface water instream to improve watershed conditions and reduce impacts on steelhead. This work builds on earlier collaborative planning under the Lower Clearwater Exchange Project (LCEP), including a 2009 Memorandum of Understanding and a 2011 appraisal study that evaluated options to achieve a more reliable water supply for LOID while addressing ESA compliance and federal tribal trust responsibilities. A pilot well jointly funded by Reclamation and LOID has already demonstrated the targeted production rate, suggesting the regional aquifer can support additional wells, and the project is moving into a new phase that includes building a power substation and constructing additional wells.

The grant specifically targets support for the Nez Perce Tribe (as the eligible applicant group is federally recognized tribal governments) to serve as a key technical and coordination lead during this next phase. The work outlined centers on six major duties. First, the Tribe would act as the primary technical contact, participate in regular project coordination meetings, help organize and share information among parties, and assist with developing legislation and partnerships needed for title transfers. Second, the Tribe would support development of management agreements, including recreation and fishing arrangements for Reservoir A, Soldiers Meadow Reservoir, and Lake Waha (in coordination with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game), and also help the Bureau of Indian Affairs and LOID establish management and operations terms for Reservoir A. Third, during construction, the Tribe would assist LOID with potential land acquisition for wells, pipelines, and related facilities; help navigate permitting and requirements across city, county, state, and federal levels; and support efforts to secure electrical service and a substation for the well field. Fourth, the Tribe would help create interim annual operating plans for LOID, using modeling and analysis to characterize each water year and anticipate how operations will meet flow needs as additional wells come online, with a planning milestone described as April 1 each year. Fifth, the Tribe would assist with implementing and reviewing the methodology used to calculate water exchange values, including coordinating with LOID, NOAA, and Reclamation to set annual bypass flows at the Sweetwater and Webb Creek diversions and develop an allocation plan for available water between those creeks. Sixth, the Tribe would help secure and formalize water rights arrangements by developing an agreement that clearly defines how LOP water rights would transfer from Reclamation to the Bureau of Indian Affairs in trust for the contractor, enabling permanent protection of the water right consistent with the water exchange and intended benefits to the Nez Perce Tribe and its members.

Key administrative details in the opportunity listing include a funding opportunity number BOR PN 17 N018, CFDA 15.519, activity category Natural Resources, and a grant instrument type. The award ceiling is listed as $160,000, the original closing date was September 19, 2017, and eligibility is limited to federally recognized Native American tribal governments. The notice also states that there is no anticipated involvement from Reclamation for this award, even though the overall project context heavily references Reclamation’s broader objectives and prior collaboration with LOID.

• The Bureau of Reclamation in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Lewiston Orchards Water Exchange Project Lead" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.519.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-09-05.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-09-19. (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 $160,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized).

Apply for BOR PN 17 N018

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: