Upper Delaware River Watershed Network

2025 Regrant Program

​The Upper Delaware River Network’s regrant program aims to sustain and enhance fish and wildlife habitat; improve and maintain water quality for fish, wildlife and people; sustain and enhance water management to benefit fish and wildlife; and improve outdoor recreational opportunities within the Upper Delaware River watershed in New York State. Through this program, three to five grants ranging in size from $30,000 - $100,000 will be awarded. It is anticipated that up to $232,500 in funding is available for the 2025 grant round.

These grants will be awarded to non-profit organizations; federal, state, interstate and local governments; Tribal governments and organizations; and educational institutions who have received funding through the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund to implement voluntary, on-the ground projects that achieve the goals of the Delaware River Basin Restoration Program Framework to: 1. Sustain and enhance fish and wildlife habitat; 2. Improve and maintain water quality for fish, wildlife, and people; 3. Sustain and enhance water management to benefit fish and wildlife; and 4. Improve outdoor recreational opportunities. 

This program is administered by Friends of the Upper Delaware River (FUDR).

Background:

The Upper Delaware River (UDR) Network Steering Committee is charged with administering the distribution of regrant funds provided by the State of New York in their annual budget process to develop and implement a comprehensive watershed planning effort in the UDR watershed. 

As part of this commitment, the UDR Network Steering Committee will administer a community based “re-grant program” where a portion of the annual state funding will be awarded as pass-through grants to qualified recipients to implement on the ground projects that advance the watershed protection and restoration goals of the program. 

The regrant program awards will closely follow the goals and objectives of the UDRN Action Agenda and the federal Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund (DWCF).

Purpose Statement:

The goal of the re-grant program is to advance the watershed protection and conservation in the UDR Watershed by implementing the goals outlined in the Action Agenda and to provide matching funds for the federal Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund (DWCF). 

Qualified Applicants: 

Eligible applicants include: non-profit 501(c) organizations; federal, state, interstate, local and municipal governments, Tribal governments and organizations, and educational institutions.

Timeline:

Applications are due by December 1, 2025, conditional awards made by the end of December 2025. These projects will be submitted to the NYS DEC for inclusion in the 2026 contract. No awards are considered final until the contract between FUDR and the NYSDEC is signed. Dates are subject to change based on USFWS/ NFWF grant award schedules. All applications should be emailed to regrantprogram@fudr.org .

Submission Instructions:

Kindly copy and paste the application questions/content below into a Word document. Word count maximums are listed within the application questions/ content. When completed create a single PDF including application questions and all required uploads to create a strong application. Email the single PDF document to regrantprogram@fudr.org no later than December 1, 2025 at 11:59 p.m.

Application Questions/ Content: 

  1. Project Title

  2. Eligible Projects MUST: 

    1. Be located ENTIRELY within the Upper Delaware River Watershed in New York State.

    2. Project funds MUST be spent in 2026.

    3. BEEN awarded funds for this project from the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund.

  3. Federal Grant ID number or name of local grant being used for match. 

  4. Project Description - 3500 chars max.

  5. Project Location (Can be address, GIS coordinates, written description)

  6. How does this advance one or more of the conservation goals of the UDR Network Action Agenda? (Habitat, Water Quality, Flood Mitigation, Recreation) 

    1. See the draft Action Agenda Here. Max 750 chars.

    2. Is the project named in another state, regional, or local plan?

      1. If Yes, please attach the plan pdf or link. 

  7. Does this project incorporate cross program activities? (engage the public, consider strategic planning, increase scientific capacity, conserve areas of regional significance). Max 750 chars.

  8. The project should be shovel-ready.  Max 1000 chars.

    1. Has landowner/ public buy-in. 

    2. What permits are needed? Are they all in place? 

    3. Do you have landowner approval in place? 

    4. Please outline the project work plan and timeline.

  9. What are the community and ecological needs and benefits? Max 500 Chars.

  10. Name the project partners, roles, and qualifications here. Strong projects will have all of the partners on board to support implementation in the contract period and to demonstrate project support from the community and landowners. Max 1000 chars.

  11. Describe how this project considers disadvantaged communities in the project area. Applicants should all include a narrative, but supporting uploads from EJ mapping tools or other relevant resources are welcome uploads. Max 500 chars.

  12. Total Project Budget & Budget Narrative

    1. Attach an upload

  13. Funding Request

  14. Match funding. Describe the funding package for the entire project. 

    1. How will you proceed if you do not receive all of the anticipated funding? Max 1000 chars.

  15. Optional Uploads - letters of support, designs, photos, permits, etc. 

    1. Please include all in 1 PDF attachment.

Application Scoring

  • A Subcommittee of the UDR Steering Committee will review and score the applications.

  • Projects will be scored based on how well they meet the objectives defined above.


2025 UDRN Regrant Scoring Rubric  

Criteria 

Score (1-9) 

Project Description (Q1-Q5) 

Advancement of Conservation Goals found in UDRN Action Agenda (Q6)

Incorporation of Cross Program Activities (Q7) 

Shovel Ready Project (Q8)

Community/ Ecological Benefits (Q9) 

Project Partners/ Support (Q10) 

Disadvantaged Community Considerations (Q11a-11d) 

Budget, Budget Narrative, & Match (Q12-Q14)

Supporting Document Uploads to Demonstrate the Readiness of the Project (Q15) 

Total Score:

The program is non-regulatory and intended to implement the goals of the UDR Watershed Network’s Action Agenda through coordinating conservation and restoration activities among partners to improve the efficiency and cost effectiveness of existing and future work.

The program supports shared strategic priorities through a grant-funding mechanism for projects that will complement existing efforts, as funds are appropriated.