The purpose of this notice is to solicit grant proposals from National Estuarine Research Reserves (NERRS or Reserves) for coastal habitat restoration; coastal habitat restoration planning, engineering, and design; and coastal land conservation projects that help support the goals and intent of the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), the Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP), and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Public Law 117-58 (IIJA). For the purposes of this funding opportunity, coastal land conservation is defined as the acquisition of fee simple interest in real property or conservation easements.
NOAA anticipates that approximately $12 million in funding will be competitively awarded to Reserves’ designated state lead agency or university. For habitat restoration engineering, design and planning, it is anticipated that projects will range from approximately $200,000-$350,000. For habitat restoration, it is anticipated that projects will range from approximately $2 million to $4 million per project. For land conservation, it is anticipated that projects will range from approximately $500,000 to $1.5 million. Applicants may propose projects with a Federal funding request less than or more than these amounts, up to $4 million.
This competition is anticipated to fund a combination of habitat restoration and land conservation projects that are ready for construction or reasonably advanced in the acquisition due diligence process, as well as habitat restoration planning, engineering, and design projects that will create a pipeline of future projects. Proposals that include on-theground implementation will be given priority compared to those that include only preimplementation activities. NOAA aims to fund high-impact projects that can have a transformational effect on an ecosystem or community.
Each applicant may submit no more than 3 proposals (Letters of Intent) for this competition. Interested applicants from within Duke should contact dukeiln@duke.edu as early as possible.
Deadlines:
Eligible applicants are NERRS lead state agencies or universities designated to receive NERRS operations funding through a Memorandum of Understanding with NOAA in coastal states and territories including the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic Coast and Great Lakes. Eligible applicants should meet requirements as stated in the NERRS regulations codified at 15 CFR 921.32 which are available online at http://go.usa.gov/xkGEf. Each applicant may submit no more than three letters of intent for consideration under this competition.
Total anticipated funding for this Federal award announcement is approximately $12,000,000, subject to availability of funding and final administrative funding allocations. For habitat restoration engineering, design and planning, it is anticipated that projects ranging from approximately $200,000-$350,000 will be selected. For habitat restoration, it is anticipated that projects ranging from approximately $2 million to $4 million per project will be selected. For land conservation, it is anticipated that projects ranging from approximately $500,000 to $1.5 million will be selected. Applicants may propose projects with a Federal funding request less than or more than these amounts, up to $4 million.
