The Next Generation of Evaporation Pans | BOR UC 17 N010

Opportunity Information: Apply for BOR UC 17 N010

The Next Generation of Evaporation Pans is a Bureau of Reclamation (Department of the Interior) grant opportunity focused on improving how open-water evaporation is measured on lakes and reservoirs. The core problem it targets is that existing evaporation measurements and estimation methods can be too uncertain for today s water management needs, especially as water demand rises and supply becomes more constrained. Because evaporation losses directly affect how much water is available for agriculture, municipal users, ranching, and environmental restoration, the opportunity is framed around producing a method that is more accurate and more precise than what is commonly used now.

The project aim is to finalize the design, deploy, and validate a new measurement approach centered on a semi-submerged Floating Evaporation Pan (FEP). Unlike conventional land-based or shore-based pans, the FEP is intended to sit on the water body itself so it better experiences the same heat storage, wind, humidity, and wave conditions that drive real reservoir evaporation. The design is meant to include an adjustable freeboard (so the height of the pan above the waterline can be tuned for conditions and performance) and a protective wave guard (to reduce bias and measurement noise caused by wave action and splashing). Testing is planned at Cochiti Lake, with an emphasis on moving from concept and prototype toward a field-ready instrument.

A key feature of the opportunity is the plan to validate the accuracy of the floating pan using a hemispherical evaporation chamber. That chamber functions as an independent reference tool to check whether the FEP is measuring evaporation correctly under real outdoor conditions. The validation is designed to occur over a full year at Cochiti Lake to capture seasonal variability, including changes in temperature, solar radiation, wind regimes, humidity, and reservoir conditions. In addition to direct pan measurements, the FEP would carry micrometeorological instrumentation so evaporation can also be computed using multiple equation-based approaches. This matters because it allows the study to separate errors tied to the measurement device from errors tied to the assumptions inside commonly used evaporation models.

The work is organized into three main objectives. First, the recipient would complete and finalize the FEP design, including the adjustable freeboard and wave guard, and then test the system at Cochiti Lake. Second, while the FEP is deployed for one year, the project would evaluate its accuracy against the hemispherical evaporation chamber and also calculate evaporation using several established equations supported by the on-board micrometeorological sensors. Third, the project would translate the measurements into practical water-accounting terms by computing monthly evaporated volumes and comparing results across the FEP, a nearby Class A evaporation pan, and common energy-budget, temperature-based, and aerodynamic (bulk-aerodynamic) methods over the same year-long period.

The expected outcome is a clear assessment of whether this next-generation floating pan improves reliability, accuracy, and precision compared with current tools and modeling approaches. If successful, the project would give water managers a better way to quantify evaporation losses from reservoirs and lakes, which can improve planning, allocation, and operational decisions in water-limited regions.

Administratively, the opportunity is offered as a cooperative agreement under the Natural Resources activity category (CFDA 15.560). The funding opportunity number is BOR UC 17 N010, with an award ceiling of 312,637 dollars and one expected award. It was created on June 22, 2017, with an original closing date of July 7, 2017. Eligible applicants are listed as Others, with additional eligibility details referenced in the full announcement.

• The Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "The Next Generation of Evaporation Pans" 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 Jun 22, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 07, 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 $312,637.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for BOR UC 17 N010

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: