Wildlife Research

Grants Program

Seattle City Light is offering wildlife research funds to qualifying applicants. The Wildlife Research Program (WRP) was established in response to federal licensing requirements related to the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project. The primary goal of the WRP is to facilitate the development of improved methods for the understanding, management, and protection of wildlife resources in the North Cascades ecosystem, with an emphasis on the Skagit River Watershed. A secondary goal of the program is to contribute to the training of new researchers and investigators. Since 1995, SCL has funded a wide range of research projects including riparian plant communities, aquatic invertebrates, shorebirds in the Skagit River Delta, lynx ecology, land bird monitoring, mountain goats, American pika, wolverines, amphibians, and grizzly bear. WRP has projects located throughout western Washington and into southern British Columbia (see map) as long as the projects had direct relevance to the Skagit River watershed.

Key criteria to qualify for research funds:

• Projects must meet all of the WRP's goals as outlined in the Mission and Goals statement;
• Selected projects should complement, contribute to, or build onto the existing body of wildlife research;
• Professional standards must be met for all research funded;
• Projects may not duplicate or substitute for usual agency responsibilities and programs;
• Due to the limited grant budget, applicants are strongly encouraged to contribute in-kind services and obtain co-funding from other sources;
• The application process is competitive through the pre-proposal and full proposal stages. If an applicant is invited to submit a full proposal, there is no guarantee that an award will be made for that project.

Program funding:

• The annual WRP budget is approximately $95,000 through 2025. The amount of funds disbursed in a given year will depend on the number and quality of the proposals received and overall budget status;
• if qualifying proposals are not received, the funds for that year will be added to the next year's budget;
• Grant can range from $5,000 to $75,000, depending on the project scope and quality of the proposal. In certain circumstances, the Wildlife Research Advisory Committee (WRAC) may choose to commit future funds to a proposal received in a given year. If this happens, one or more years may pass before additional funds become available.

Process:

• The WRAC, which oversees the WRP, will review and select pre-proposals that best meet the program's goals. All applicants will be notified in writing of their pre-proposal status;
• Applicants with pre-proposals that pass the initial screening will be invited to submit a complete proposal. Full proposal guidelines will be mailed to all qualifying applicants. The WRAC may ask some qualifying applicants to modify their proposals;
• The full proposals will be distributed to independent peer reviewers for scientific review. The WRAC will make final selection and funding decisions;
• These decisions will be based on how well the proposal meets the WRP's goals and whether the peer reviews are favorable;
• Successful applicants will be required to enter into a grant agreement with Seattle City Light.
  

Schedule:

Proposals will be accepted according to the schedule outlined below. Please note that these dates are approximate and may shift so check this website periodically:

Contracts and funding:

Successful proponents must enter into a contract with Seattle City Light that stipulates the conditions that must be met during the term of the funding award. Indirect costs cannot comprise more than 15% of the total grant amount. Ten percent (10%) of the final contract amount will be withheld until the applicant has completed all contract requirements and submitted a final invoice. Researchers may only submit invoices for work that has actually been completed (monthly or quarterly); no up-front payments will be made.

While there may be more than one principal investigator for a project, one agency/organization must assume the lead role. For each project, Seattle City Light will enter into a grant agreement with only one agency/organization; multi-party agreements are not permissible.

The WRAC will prioritize research proposals that address issues that are of particular interest to resource agencies in the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project Area, the Skagit River watershed, and North Cascades/western Okanogan ecoregions. The proposals should either include study areas within these ecoregions or if located elsewhere, have directly applicable application to management in the region. We strongly encourage applicants to consult with the WRAC prior to proposal development to appropriately focus proposals. Below are some of the current priorities:

• " Federal candidate, threatened or endangered wildlife species in the North Cascades (includes spotted owl, marbled murrelet, wolverine, fisher, grizzly bear, gray wolf): habitat use, population estimates, and/or demographic rates of these species.

• " Priority species or animal aggregations, as identified by federal or state agencies or tribes for the North Cascades, because of their population status, sensitivity to hydrologic conditions or habitat alteration, and/or recreational, commercial, or tribal importance (elk, mountain goats, etc.)

• Wildlife or ecosystem relationships for WDFW's Priority habitats in the Skagit watershed (see http://wdfw.wa.gov/hab/phspage.htm)

• Impacts of climate change on wildlife and responses of wildlife to climate change For example:

  • What species are expected to be most affected by climate change or the combination of climate change and on-going habitat conversion?
  • Are high-elevation pollinator populations changing?
  • How is climate or the combination of climate and habitat fragmentation influencing the distribution of predators?
  • And how will changes in predator distributions change prey abundance and distribution - is this already occurring?
  • How will or is climate affecting high-elevation mammal populations such as marmots, pikas, heather voles?
  • What is the status of ptarmigan populations? Will they be or are they already affected by climate change?
  • Are species that are on the edge of their range changing in distribution or abundance due to climate change (e.g. red squirrels and Columbia ground squirrels)? ?
  • Are hybridization rates along suture lines (such as red squirrel and Douglas squirrel) changing with the influence of climate change?
  
  

• Barred owl/spotted owl (Strix occidentalis/Strix varia) interactions in western Washington.

• Impacts/benefits of the hydroelectric projects in the Skagit watershed on wildlife.

• Effects of noise and human disturbance on wildlife habitat use, behavior, and productivity.

• Forest carnivore habitat use, population estimate, abundance of potential prey, and demographic rates in the North Cascades

• Mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus) demographic rates

• Evaluation of Oregon spotted frog (Rana pretiosa) reintroduction sites. Abundance, distribution, and genetic diversity of the Cascade frog (Rana cascadae) within the North Cascades

• Abundance, distribution, habitat use, and/or demographic rates of wolves in the North Cascades National Park Service Complex. Is there a breeding pack of wolves within the park?

• Abundance and distribution of coyotes (Canis latrans). Is their distribution expanding due to climate change and development?

• Are wildlife species (deer, elk, goats, bear, etc) being hunted at sustainable levels?

To apply for a Research Grant

To submit a pre-proposal for consideration by the WRAC, follow the Pre-Proposals Guidelines

For more information, please contact:

Ron Tressler, WRP Manager
Email address: ron.tressler@seattle.gov
Phone: 206.386.4506
Fax: 206.386.4589
Mailing address:
Seattle City Light - Environmental Affairs Division
Attn: Ron Tressler
PO BOX 34023
Seattle, WA 98124-4023

List of funded projects. The kinds of projects we have funded in the past.

Sample of completed projects

• Habitat Selection by Lynx in the North Cascades
  
• Genetic Diversity of Long-toed Salamanders
  
• Grizzly Bear Outreach Evaluation
  
• Macroinvertebrate Drift
  
• North Cascade Grizzly Bears
  
• Wolverine Distribution and Ecology
  
• Landbird Inventory
  
• Landbird Monitoring
  
• Mountain Goat Movement
  

Other potential funding sources:

Project proponents are encouraged to contact the following organizations for grant information:

• Skagit Environmental Endowment Commission
  
• Earthwatch Institute
  
• National Fish and Wildlife Foundation