OR Feasibility Study Grants

The OR Feasibility Study Grants program, managed by the Oregon Water Resources Department, aims to support water conservation, reuse, and storage projects across the state. With around $750,000 available for the 2023-2024 funding cycle, eligible applicants include local governments and tribes. The funding is intended for studies assessing project feasibility, ensuring communities can effectively address their unique water challenges before proceeding with implementation.

Background
Across Oregon, every place has its water challenges that, if left unaddressed, may increase in the future. As recommended in Oregon’s 2012 Integrated Water Resources Strategy, the Water Resources Development Program seeks to help individuals and communities address instream and out-of-stream needs now and into the future. The program includes three components, which fit together as key steps in the water development process: Placed-Based Planning, Feasibility Study Grants, and Water Project Grants and Loans. Feasibility Study Grants provide match funding for project planning studies performed to evaluate the feasibility of developing water conservation, reuse, or storage projects.
What is a feasibility study?
A feasibility study is an assessment of a proposed project. Feasibility Study Grants fund qualifying costs of studies that evaluate the feasibility of a proposed conservation, reuse, or storage project that appears to have merit but is lacking important details necessary to determine whether or not to proceed with implementation. The feasibility study focuses on helping to answer the essential question of, “should we proceed with the proposed project idea?” All activities of the study are directed toward helping answer this question. ​
Funding
OWRD anticipates there will be approximately $750,000 in funding for the 2023-2024 funding cycle of Feasibility Study Grants. Because the source of funding for the studies is General Fund all funded studies must be completed by June 30, 2025.

Eligibility

Who can apply?Local government as defined in ORS 174.116, Indian tribe as defined in ORS 391.802, or
person as defined in ORS 536.007 may apply for funding. “Person” includes individuals, corporations, associations, firms, partnerships, joint stock companies, public and municipal corporations, political subdivisions, the state and any agencies thereof, and the federal government and any agencies thereof.Eligible studies examine the feasibility of water conservation, reuse, and storage projects.Eligible studies include, but are not limited to the following:​Analyses of hydrological refill capacity; Water needs analyses; Refined hydrological analyses; Engineering and financial feasibility studies; Geologic analyses; Water exchange studies; Analyses of by-pass, optimum peak, flushing and other ecological flows of the affected stream and the impact of a proposed water conservation, reuse or storage project on those flows; Comparative analyses of alternative means of supplying water, including but not limited to the costs and benefits of conservation and efficiency alternatives and the extent to which long-term water supply needs may be met using those alternatives; Analyses of environmental harm or impacts from a proposed water conservation, reuse or storage project; Analyses of public benefits accruing from a proposed water conservation, reuse or storage project; Fiscal analyses of a proposed water conservation, reuse or storage project, including estimated project costs, financing for the project and projected financial returns from the project; Hydrological analyses of a proposed water conservation, reuse or storage project, including the anticipated effects of climate change on hydrological refill capacity; and Analyses of potential water quality impacts of the project.