Determining drivers of floodplain forest regeneration success and failure on the Upper Mississippi River in Minnesota and Wisconsin | W81EWF 23 2 0010

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81EWF 23 2 0010

This grant opportunity supports applied research on why floodplain forests along the Upper Mississippi River are struggling to replace themselves with new trees, and what can be done to fix that trend before large areas shift into non-forest vegetation. The project area is the northern, navigable reach of the Upper Mississippi in Minnesota and Wisconsin (and it also references the broader Upper Mississippi floodplain including northeast Iowa), particularly UMR Pools 1 through 10. The core concern is that these forests are approaching ecological "tipping points" where gradual stressors suddenly trigger major and lasting changes in forest structure and composition, including conversion from forest to open or invasive-dominated cover types. Because floodplain forests help protect water quality, provide wildlife habitat, and support recreation, the loss of tree cover would have wide ecological and social impacts and would be expensive and difficult to reverse once it happens.

The opportunity is driven by alarming field inventory signals showing widespread regeneration failure. According to the description, regeneration is completely absent in more than half of inventory plots (57%), meaning many stands have little to no young trees coming up to replace aging canopy trees. Even where regeneration is present, a sizable portion is dominated by ash and elm (about 25% of plots with regeneration). That is not reassuring, because ash and elm have limited long-term prospects on these sites due to ongoing and emerging pests and diseases such as emerald ash borer and Dutch elm disease. The implication is that if new cohorts of long-lived, resilient species are not established soon, large portions of the current canopy will die over the coming decades without replacement, accelerating a shift toward non-forest conditions.

The grant frames regeneration failure as the result of multiple interacting pressures rather than a single cause. It highlights shifting climatic patterns, invasive plants (with reed canarygrass called out as a major competitor that can suppress seedling establishment), forest health threats, herbivory, low tree-species diversity, and the simple reality that many stands are old and not recruiting new trees. The proposal acknowledges a practical management challenge: land managers can attempt interventions to avoid future forest loss, but along this stretch of the Upper Mississippi there is limited local research and institutional knowledge about what actually drives successful seed-based regeneration for key floodplain species. As a result, well-intentioned regeneration efforts often fail, wasting time and funding while conditions continue to deteriorate.

The main objective of the funded work is to identify the factors within existing floodplain forests that are associated with successful establishment and growth of regeneration, both from natural seedfall and from planted seedlings. A central emphasis is on "light-seeded" floodplain tree species that typically rely on episodic recruitment opportunities, especially eastern cottonwood (Populus deltoides), silver maple (Acer saccharinum), and river birch (Betula nigra). The grant leaves room to include additional floodplain species if they are relevant to the study design and management questions. By focusing on these species, the project targets trees that can define floodplain forest structure and that often depend on specific combinations of disturbance, bare or suitable seedbeds, and hydrologic timing to regenerate successfully.

A second major component is testing management techniques, described as silvicultural approaches, aimed at promoting natural regeneration in this region. In other words, the work is not just observational; it is intended to evaluate practical treatments that managers could use to improve recruitment from seed under real floodplain constraints. The description points to the key environmental gradients that structure floodplain tree communities and will therefore structure the study: light availability, flood inundation, and soil saturation. Because floodplain forests are shaped by how long areas are underwater, how frequently they flood, and how wet soils remain through the growing season, the research is expected to assess regeneration success and failure across a range of these conditions, rather than treating the floodplain as a uniform habitat.

Administratively, this is a discretionary funding opportunity from the Department of Defense, specifically the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, offered as a cooperative agreement (meaning the federal sponsor may have substantial involvement during the project). The funding opportunity number is W81EWF 23 2 0010, with an award ceiling of $61,592 and an expectation of a single award. The activity category is Science and Technology and other Research and Development under CFDA 12.630. The posting was created on April 18, 2023, with an original closing date of June 16, 2023. Overall, the grant is aimed at producing actionable, place-based evidence on what conditions and treatments help cottonwood, silver maple, river birch, and potentially other floodplain species regenerate reliably, so managers can prevent broad conversion of Upper Mississippi floodplain forests into less resilient, non-forest states.

• The Department of Defense, Engineer Research and Development Center in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Determining drivers of floodplain forest regeneration success and failure on the Upper Mississippi River in Minnesota and Wisconsin" 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 Apr 18, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 16, 2023. (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 $61,592.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for W81EWF 23 2 0010

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