Opportunity Information: Apply for BOR LC 17 N005
This Notice of Intent to Award (Funding Opportunity Number BOR LC 17 N005) is a discretionary cooperative agreement issued by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, focused on improving how Reclamation plans for long-term operations of the Colorado River system under deep uncertainty. The core aim is to expand Reclamation's practical knowledge and analytical capability in Decision Making Under Uncertainty (DMDU) frameworks, especially as the 2007 Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages and Coordinated Operations of Lake Powell and Lake Mead were expected to be revisited before 2020. In plain terms, the agency is looking for a way to test and demonstrate, with a concrete proof of concept, how modern uncertainty-aware decision frameworks could help evaluate and design alternative reservoir operating policies for Lake Powell and Lake Mead in a more robust, forward-looking way.
The opportunity is grounded in prior major planning work, particularly the Colorado River Basin Water Supply and Demand Study completed in 2012, and it emphasizes building on that foundation rather than starting from scratch. Reclamation anticipates that DMDU methods will play a role in future guideline reevaluation and wants an approach that can be integrated into its planning practice. One specific method named as potentially useful is Many Objective Robust Decision Making, which is highlighted because it can add an optimization component that systematically generates and compares a wide range of policy alternatives. That optimization feature is intended to complement existing DMDU work by helping analysts and decision-makers explore many competing objectives and tradeoffs (for example, balancing water delivery reliability, storage protection, shortage risk, and other operational goals) while explicitly considering uncertain future conditions such as hydrology, demand, and climate-related shifts.
From a deliverables standpoint, the project is essentially asking for two things: (1) the design of an overall approach for applying DMDU to Reclamation's long-term planning questions around reservoir operations, and (2) a proof-of-concept demonstration showing how that approach would work in practice when exploring alternative operating policies. The emphasis on "proof of concept" signals that Reclamation is not only interested in academic discussion, but in a working demonstration that can show decision-relevant insights, illustrate how alternatives are generated and evaluated, and clarify how the framework could be used alongside existing planning tools and processes. The ultimate value to Reclamation is improved ability to stress-test policies, understand vulnerabilities, and identify options that perform acceptably across a wide range of plausible futures rather than optimizing for a single forecast.
Administratively, the award is structured as a cooperative agreement, meaning the Bureau of Reclamation expects to have substantial involvement during the project rather than operating at arm's length as in a standard grant. The eligible applicants are public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, indicating the intended recipient pool is universities and similar public academic institutions. The activity category is listed as Energy under CFDA 15.560, with an anticipated single award. The total funding ceiling is $58,000, suggesting a relatively small, targeted effort aimed at method development and demonstration rather than a large multi-year operational overhaul. The opportunity was created on May 19, 2017, with an original closing date of June 3, 2017.Apply for BOR LC 17 N005
- The Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation in the energy sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Notice of Intent to Award" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.560.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 19, 2017.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 03, 2017. (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 $58,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is this funding opportunity?
This is a Notice of Intent to Award under Funding Opportunity Number BOR LC 17 N005. It supports a discretionary cooperative agreement issued by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, focused on improving how Reclamation plans for long-term operations of the Colorado River system under deep uncertainty.
Which agency is offering the award?
The award is offered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation.
What problem is the project trying to address?
The project aims to strengthen Reclamation's practical knowledge and analytical capability in Decision Making Under Uncertainty (DMDU) so the agency can more effectively evaluate and design long-term reservoir operating policies for the Colorado River system (including Lake Powell and Lake Mead) when future conditions are highly uncertain.
What does "deep uncertainty" mean in this context?
Based on the information provided, deep uncertainty refers to situations where key drivers of future conditions cannot be confidently predicted, such as hydrology, demand, and climate-related shifts. The intent is to test policies against many plausible futures rather than relying on a single forecast.
What is DMDU and why is it important here?
DMDU (Decision Making Under Uncertainty) refers to uncertainty-aware decision frameworks used to assess how different choices perform across a wide range of plausible future conditions. Reclamation is interested in DMDU because it can help stress-test reservoir operating policies, identify vulnerabilities, and highlight options that perform acceptably across many futures instead of being tuned to one expected scenario.
What specific DMDU method is mentioned?
The opportunity specifically highlights Many Objective Robust Decision Making as a potentially useful method, particularly because it can incorporate an optimization component to systematically generate and compare a wide range of policy alternatives across many competing objectives.
What does "Many Objective Robust Decision Making" add to the work?
As described, it adds an optimization feature that can systematically generate and compare many alternative policies. This is intended to complement existing DMDU work by helping analysts and decision-makers explore tradeoffs among multiple objectives while explicitly considering uncertain futures.
What kinds of objectives and tradeoffs are expected to be considered?
The notice describes examples such as balancing water delivery reliability, storage protection, shortage risk, and other operational goals. The method is expected to help compare alternatives across multiple objectives rather than focusing on a single performance measure.
Which reservoirs and operational context are central to the work?
The proof-of-concept is focused on exploring alternative reservoir operating policies for Lake Powell and Lake Mead, within the broader context of Colorado River system long-term operations planning.
How does this relate to the 2007 Interim Guidelines?
The notice states that the 2007 Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages and Coordinated Operations of Lake Powell and Lake Mead were expected to be revisited before 2020. The project is meant to demonstrate how modern DMDU frameworks could support the evaluation and design of alternative operating policies relevant to that kind of guideline reevaluation.
Is the project meant to start new planning work from scratch?
No. The opportunity emphasizes building on prior major planning work, particularly the Colorado River Basin Water Supply and Demand Study completed in 2012, rather than starting from scratch.
What are the main deliverables?
The project is described as asking for two primary deliverables: (1) the design of an overall approach for applying DMDU to Reclamation's long-term planning questions around reservoir operations, and (2) a proof-of-concept demonstration showing how that approach would work in practice when exploring alternative operating policies.
What does "proof of concept" mean for this opportunity?
It signals that Reclamation is looking for more than an academic discussion. The deliverable should be a working demonstration that can produce decision-relevant insights, show how alternatives are generated and evaluated, and clarify how the framework could be used alongside Reclamation's existing planning tools and processes.
What is Reclamation ultimately trying to gain from this work?
The ultimate value described is an improved ability to stress-test policies, understand vulnerabilities, and identify options that perform acceptably across a wide range of plausible futures, rather than optimizing for a single forecast.
What type of award instrument will be used?
The award is structured as a cooperative agreement.
What does a cooperative agreement imply for how the project will be run?
The notice states that Reclamation expects to have substantial involvement during the project, rather than operating at arm's length as in a standard grant.
Who is eligible to apply?
Eligible applicants are public and state-controlled institutions of higher education. In practical terms, the intended applicant pool is universities and similar public academic institutions.
How many awards are anticipated?
A single award is anticipated.
What is the maximum funding amount?
The total funding ceiling is $58,000.
What does the funding level suggest about the scope?
The notice characterizes this as a relatively small, targeted effort focused on method development and demonstration, not a large multi-year operational overhaul.
What is the CFDA number and activity category listed?
The opportunity lists CFDA 15.560, with the activity category shown as Energy.
When was the opportunity created and when did it close?
The opportunity was created on May 19, 2017, with an original closing date of June 3, 2017.
What is the geographic or system focus of the planning work?
The focus is the Colorado River system, specifically long-term operations planning with emphasis on Lake Powell and Lake Mead operating policies.
What types of uncertainties are explicitly mentioned?
The notice explicitly mentions uncertain future conditions such as hydrology, demand, and climate-related shifts.
How is success described for the approach being developed?
Success is framed as producing a practical approach that can be integrated into Reclamation's planning practice and demonstrated through a proof of concept that generates decision-relevant insights about policy vulnerabilities, tradeoffs, and robustness across many plausible futures.
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