Visitor Use Monitoring for Glacier National Park | P17AS00297

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00297

The grant opportunity titled "Visitor Use Monitoring for Glacier National Park" (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00297) is a National Park Service discretionary funding announcement under the U.S. Department of the Interior. It uses a cooperative agreement as the funding instrument, which typically means the Park Service expects substantial involvement in carrying out the work rather than simply issuing funds and stepping back. The overall focus falls within the Natural Resources activity category (CFDA 15.945) and is aimed at strengthening Glacier National Park's ability to track, understand, and respond to visitor use as the park approaches a major operational transition tied to the completion of the Going-to-the-Sun Road (GTSR) rehabilitation project.

The central purpose of the project is to help Glacier National Park prepare for a shift toward an adaptive visitor management system. As the GTSR rehabilitation nears completion, the park anticipates a need for more responsive, data-driven management of visitor use patterns, congestion, and impacts. To support that shift, the project’s work is positioned as foundational planning support, specifically feeding into two upcoming planning efforts: (1) creation of a new backcountry and wilderness stewardship plan for Glacier National Park, and (2) collaboration with the Flathead National Forest to develop a new Comprehensive Wild and Scenic River Management Plan. In practical terms, the monitoring system developed through this award is meant to provide credible, consistent information on how visitors are using key areas, which can then be used to set thresholds, identify problem areas, evaluate management actions, and justify future decisions in formal planning documents.

A key element of the opportunity is the development of a visitor use monitoring system by University of Montana faculty working in partnership with Glacier National Park managers. The announcement indicates this work occurs during FY16 and is designed to complement an existing monitoring program that has been in place in the GTSR corridor since 2005. That detail is important because it frames the effort as an expansion and integration exercise rather than starting from scratch: the intent is to build a broader, coherent monitoring approach that aligns with the long-running corridor monitoring and helps the park maintain continuity in data collection and interpretation across time. The monitoring system is therefore expected to connect to established baselines and methods while expanding the park’s capacity to measure visitor use in ways that are relevant for backcountry, wilderness stewardship, and river corridor management needs.

Eligibility is limited to public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, which aligns with the stated plan for University of Montana involvement and indicates that the project is structured around academic-public land management collaboration. The opportunity anticipated a single award (Expected Awards: 1) with an award ceiling of $60,846, suggesting a relatively focused scope of work likely centered on designing the monitoring framework, selecting indicators and methods, and coordinating implementation planning with park staff rather than large-scale infrastructure deployment. The posting lists a creation date of May 25, 2017, and an original closing date of June 3, 2017, indicating a short application window typical of targeted or partner-specific cooperative agreements.

In summary, this grant is about equipping Glacier National Park with an improved, complementary visitor use monitoring system at a pivotal moment when the park is moving from a major road rehabilitation phase into a future that may require more active, adaptive management of visitor demand and impacts. The deliverable is not just data for data’s sake; it is monitoring designed to directly inform and strengthen forthcoming wilderness/backcountry stewardship planning and interagency river management planning, ensuring those efforts are grounded in systematic, defensible information about how people are using the park.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Visitor Use Monitoring for Glacier National Park" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 25, 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 $60,846.00 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.

Apply for P17AS00297

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