Grants / Department of Defense / Engineer Research and Development Center

W81EWF-25-SOI-0004: Research and Development for Biological Control of Arundo Donax

Closed Closed April 14, 2025 Opportunity W81EWF-25-SOI-0004 ☆ Save

This grant is closed. A newer notice from the same program is open now: ERDC Broad Agency Announcement (W912HZ26S0001). Status: Closes January 1, 2027 (55 days left). It is in our archive of Engineer Research and Development Center notices from 2025.

• Award ceiling$120,000
• Total funding$395,000
• Expected awards1
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeCooperative Agreement

Key dates

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to the applicants described in the notice.

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

This opportunity is restricted to non-federal partners of the Californian Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU).

Is this a realistic fit?

• Past Basic, Applied, and Advanced Research in Science and Engineering awards averaged $1.1 million; this notice allows up to $120,000 per award.
• Most of the program's money (69% over five years) went to colleges and universities.
• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

A. Short Description of Funding Opportunity ERDC seeks applications for: evaluation of biological control for Arundo donax in southern California. There is potential for at least two distinct projects to arise from this opportunity, including determination of optimal release and monitoring strategies for A. donax biological controls, and evaluation of the impact of biological control on A. donax water-use efficiency, growth, and biomass allocation. B. Background Giant cane is a large (4-8m tall) perennial grass native to western Asia and likely introduced into North America from Spain in the early 1500s, but now is widespread with considerable capacity for expansion in North America (Figure 1; Moran and Goolsby 2022). Reproduction is solely clonal in the US and occurs through extensive rhizome networks or fragmentation. Large knotty rhizomes form underground masses up to three feet thick and provide a source of regrowth following management. Giant cane infests disturbed habitats near water and is particularly harmful in arid environments where it outcompetes other species and has extremely high water-use (Figure 2) (Seawright et al. 2009, Racelis et al. 2012, Goolsby et al. 2016). In fact, giant cane was estimated to transpire 56,200 acre-feet of water per year on the Santa Ana River alone, which equates to serving approximately 190,000 people in an area known for droughts and at a potential municipal cost of $25M in lost water (Iverson 1993). Figure 1. Habitat suitability for Arundo donax in the US, based on model outputs from INHABIT (USGS). (See FOA) Costs of giant cane management near Los Angeles can exceed $250K per acre, due to the effort required for repeated herbicide applications, then subsequent biomass and sediment management. Giant cane infestations have reduced the channel conveyance capacity of the Los Angeles River (at the Glendale neighborhood) from a 25-year storm event to a 2-year storm event where it impacts over 6000 people and risks $1B in property value. There is interest in using biological control as a sustaining management tool for giant cane in California, but a lack of information about whether agents could be used under the conditions present in project areas has prevented its widespread implementation. Figure 2. Representative giant cane infestations within the SPL AOR A) Los Angeles River at Glendale Narrows, B) Whittier Narrows, C) Santa Ana River, D) Rio Hondo.

Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

Applying now

This notice no longer takes applications. Apply under the newer notice, W912HZ26S0001, which is open now.

The notice on Grants.gov keeps its full text and attachments, which is useful for planning a resubmission.