Aquatic Invasive Species Operations at Lake Mead National Recreation Area | P19AS00164

Opportunity Information: Apply for P19AS00164

The Aquatic Invasive Species Operations at Lake Mead National Recreation Area opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number P19AS00164) is a National Park Service notice describing continued funding under an existing cooperative agreement with the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW). Its core purpose is to keep quagga mussels from spreading out of Lake Mead by sustaining and strengthening on-the-ground containment operations. Quagga mussels were first detected at Lake Mead in 2007, and the park has since relied on a risk-based approach focused on watercraft inspection, decontamination, and public outreach to reduce the chances that boats will transport mussels to other waters.

Operationally, the project supports two complementary strategies that have been central to Lake Mead's response plan. The first is mandatory inspection and decontamination for higher-risk vessels, especially slipped and moored boats that can harbor mussels for long periods, implemented in coordination with marina concessioners. The second is voluntary inspection and decontamination for lower-risk day-use vessels. On the Nevada side of the park, these services are provided to the public at no charge through the NPS-NDOW partnership. The announcement notes that this partnership has already produced measurable results, including fewer mussel-fouled vessels leaving Lake Mead and later being caught at downstream state inspection stations.

The funding is intended to cover the practical needs required to keep the program effective and safe: staffing, routine operating supplies, fuel, and replacement of aging equipment that is reaching the end of its service life. Specifically, funds will support NDOW contract staff who work at park launch ramps delivering public education and running inspection and decontamination services. It will also pay for replacement and upgraded field equipment such as vehicles, a travel trailer, golf carts, and radios, along with decontamination-support tools like boat jacks, boat stands, and lighting. Continued operation of fixed and mobile wash stations is a major emphasis, including the fuel and consumable supplies needed to run them reliably.

The roles of the partners are also spelled out in a practical way. NDOW personnel are the frontline workforce at launch ramps, providing both the service component (inspection and decontamination) and the outreach component (public information on aquatic invasive species and how to prevent their spread). The park, in turn, maintains key infrastructure and equipment needed for inspection and decontamination inside the recreation area, including fixed and mobile wash stations and related support gear. Park staff also collaborate with NDOW on consistent public messaging and help deliver outreach during high-traffic events such as fishing tournaments, where the risk of rapid spread can increase due to the number of boats moving between waters.

Programmatically, the work is framed as supporting broader National Park Service invasive species priorities, particularly those in the draft NPS Aquatic Invasive Species Strategic Plan. The project aligns with goals aimed at preventing the introduction and establishment of dreissenid mussels (including quagga and zebra mussels) and other aquatic invasive species in NPS waters. It specifically advances efforts to reduce the risk of AIS transport on recreational watercraft and to maintain containment-focused inspection and decontamination programs in waters where quagga or zebra mussels are already established, carried out in cooperation with federal, state, and local partners.

From an administrative standpoint, this is a discretionary funding action issued as a cooperative agreement by the U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, under CFDA 15.931. Eligible applicants are state governments, and the notice states it is a Notice of Intent to Award rather than a request for applications. In other words, it functions as public documentation that NPS plans to fund this work through its existing agreement with NDOW, rather than opening a competitive application process. The listed award ceiling is $833,669, and the posting indicates no expected competitive awards because the funding is tied to the existing partnership arrangement.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Aquatic Invasive Species Operations at Lake Mead National Recreation Area" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.931.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 06, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Notice of Intent to Award. This is NOT a request for application. This funding announcement is to provide public notice that the National Park Service will fund the following project under an existing Cooperative Agreement with NDOW.. (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 $833,669.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments.

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