[Federal Register: March 20, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 54)]
[Notices]
[Page 12971-12976]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr20mr02-64]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[Docket No. 020213030-2030-01; I.D. No. 012202C ]
Announcement of Funding Opportunity to Submit Proposals for the
Monitoring and Event Response for Harmful Algal Blooms (MERHAB) Program
AGENCY: Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research/Coastal Ocean
Program (CSCOR/COP), National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Commerce (DOC).
ACTION: Notice of funding availability for financial assistance for
project grants and cooperative agreements.
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SUMMARY: The purpose of this document is to advise the public that
CSCOR/COP is soliciting proposals for two types of projects: targeted
research and regional intensive monitoring.
CSCOR/COP is soliciting targeted research proposals for one to
three years of research and development of tools, approaches and
technologies that could be included as routine components of existing
Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) monitoring programs. CSCOR/COP is also
soliciting proposals from regional multi-investigator partnerships of
one to five years for intensive monitoring of HABs that build the
capacity of existing local, state, tribal, or regional coastal
monitoring programs to provide early warning of HAB events to coastal
communities and increase regional ability to rapidly respond to HAB
events. Funding is contingent upon the availability of Federal
appropriations. Projects funded under this announcement are anticipated
to have a September 1, 2002, start date.
DATES: The deadline for receipt of proposals at the CSCOR/COP office is
3 p.m., e.s.t., April 25, 2002. Note that late-arriving applications
provided to a delivery service on or before April 24, 2002, with
delivery guaranteed before 3 p.m., e.s.t., on April 25, 2002, will be
accepted for review if the applicant can document that the application
was provided to the delivery service with delivery to the address
listed below guaranteed prior to the specified closing date and time
and, in any event, the proposals are received in the CSCOR/COP office
by 3 p.m. e.s.t., no later than two business days following the closing
date.
ADDRESSES: Submit the original and 19 copies of your proposal to
(MERHAB02) Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research/Coastal Ocean
Program (N/SCI2), SSMC No. 4, 8th Floor, Station 8243, 1305 East-West
Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910. NOAA and Standard Form Applications
with instructions are accessible on the CSCOR/COP Internet site http://
www.cop.noaa.gov under the COP Grants Information Section, Part D,
Application Forms for Initial Proposal Submission. For application
forms, see Budget and
Application forms section. Forms may be viewed and, in most cases,
filled in by computer. All forms must be printed, completed, and mailed
to CSCOR/COP with original signatures. If you are unable to access this
information, you may call CSCOR/COP at 301-713-3338 to leave a mailing
request.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Technical Information. Marc Suddleson,
MERHAB 2002 Program Manager, CSCOR/COP, 301-713-3338/ext 162, Internet:
marc.suddleson@noaa.gov
Business Management Information. Leslie McDonald, COP Grants
Administrator, 301-713-3338/ext 155, Internet: Leslie.McDonald@noaa.gov
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following web sites furnish
supplementary information from reports dealing with harmful algal
blooms: Boesch et.al Feb 1997, Harmful Algal Blooms in Coastal Waters:
Options for Prevention, Control and Mitigation, Silver Spring, MD at
http://www.cop.noaa.gov/pubs/das/das10.html; and Anderson et.al. Sept
2000, Estimated Annual Economic Impact from Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs)
in the U.S. WHOI at http://www.redtide.whoi.edu/hab pertinentinfo /
Economics--Report.pdf).
Information on the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and
Control Act and the 2000 National Assessment of HABs in U.S. Waters,
National Science and Technology Council Committee on Environment and
Natural Resources (CENR), Washington, DC, can be located at http://
www.habhrca.noaa.gov.
Details about ongoing MERHAB projects currently funded by the
CSCOR/COP MERHAB Program are found at
http://www.cop.noaa.gov/Fact--Sheets/MERHAB.htm. Hard copies of
these resources can be obtained from the CSCOR/COP office.
Background
Program Description
For complete program description and other requirements for CSCOR/
COP, see the General Grant Administration Terms and Conditions annual
notification in the Federal Register (66 FR 63019, December 4, 2001)
and at the CSCOR/COP home page.
In spite of a growing list of affected resources and coastal
communities, our ability to prevent, control, and mitigate the impacts
of HABs remains limited. Acting on the findings of a 1996 NOAA and DOI
Report, Harmful Algal Blooms in Coastal Waters: Options for Prevention,
Control and Mitigation, the research agenda of the Ecology and
Oceanography of Harmful Algal Bloom (ECOHAB) program for the past five
years has focused on building a scientific understanding about the
cause and behavior of HABs. ECOHAB continues to support research that
develops understandings of the linkages between the biology, ecology,
physiology, and behavior of harmful species and the physics, chemistry,
bathymetry, and meteorology of the surrounding environment. ECOHAB
research is developing the capabilities to forecast bloom landfall,
evaluate toxicity, and provide mitigation strategies that might
ameliorate the impact of blooms along U.S. coasts. ECOHAB is also
producing new state-of-the art HAB technologies, such as detection
assays and molecular probes.
With the maturation of ECOHAB and other HAB research programs, more
effort is needed to adapt their research products into regionally and
locally tested tools that can be used to prevent, control, or mitigate
the impact of HABs. The 1996 NOAA and DOI Report noted that knowledge
about the basic information on the causes and behavior of HABs would
ultimately lead to the development of prevention, control, and
mitigation (PCM) strategies. The plan called for Federal and state
agencies with responsibilities for resource management, environmental
protection, and public health to support PCM research.
While prevention of HABs is the preferred management option, effort
to enhance the current abilities to reduce the incidence and extent of
harmful algal blooms (before they begin) requires additional research
and face legislative hurdles. For example, more research is needed to
determine whether a cause-and-effect relationship exists between
increased pollution and nutrient loading and an incidence of some HAB
species (e.g., Pfiesteria, Pseudo-nitzchia, cyanobacteria). Further, a
national regulatory strategy to effectively control polluted run off
and nutrient loading is under development; but more research is
required to educate decision makers.
Efforts to control HABs are also being explored, but these too face
serious scientific and policy hurdles. Attempts to use chemicals to
directly control HAB
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cells encounter many logistical problems and environmental objections.
Chemicals are likely to be nonspecific, indiscriminately targeting all
co-occurring algae and other organisms along with the target algal
species. Chemical application and other options, such as flocculants or
biological controls need additional research to determine their wider
impacts to the coastal ecosystem.
Strategies to mitigate or minimize human health risks, ecosystem
damage, fisheries losses, and declines in tourism due to algal blooms
are currently the best option for coastal management of the HAB
problem. Many different types of actions can be taken to mitigate the
impact of HABs, including forecasting bloom development and movement,
monitoring HAB cells and toxins, and responding rapidly to HAB events.
Monitoring combined with rapid response to HAB events has been
identified as the most effective way to mitigate the impact of HABs
(CENR 2000). A number of coastal states have existing HAB monitoring
programs designed to prevent human illness from shellfish poisoning
syndromes and to monitor the environment for blooms and forecast their
development and movement. State shellfish monitoring programs detect
toxins in different fisheries species either to provide advance warning
of outbreaks or to delineate areas that require harvest restrictions.
State environmental monitoring programs for plankton and fish in
coastal estuaries and bays provide early warning of blooms.
Many states supplement their HAB monitoring activities with rapid
response teams that are deployed to assess suspected HAB events. HABs
have the potential to develop rapidly, and often the observable event
may be short-lived. Rapid response is essential to ensure that the
appropriate sampling is done to determine whether a HAB event is in
progress. Regions also have established communication networks to
distribute information about outbreaks to researchers, managers, and
the public. Providing rapid and accurate information is critical to
assess the risks to resources and human health and to avoid public
misconceptions about the safety of coastal resources. Such
misconceptions have caused severe economic impacts to regions not
directly affected by HAB events. A study completed by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in September 2000 calculated the total
estimated annual cost from HABs on public health, commercial fisheries,
recreation and tourism, and monitoring and management in the United
States to be $49 million. This estimate was noted by the authors to be
highly conservative and sensitive to single events that equal or exceed
the total estimated economic impact.
Many coastal communities experiencing HABs are not covered by
regular public or private monitoring programs for HABs, and many do not
receive adequate information about outbreaks. State monitoring programs
have not kept pace with the expansion of the HABs problem. Tight state
budgets and the need to monitor for more toxins in more organisms over
larger areas have left many monitoring programs underfunded. Further,
support of state monitoring efforts through the Federal Clean Water
Program has not specifically addressed the need for increased HAB
monitoring. The problem is exacerbated by managers' inability to
quantify the benefits to human health, commercial fisheries, recreation
and tourism of controlling HABs and to compare these to the costs of
mitigation strategies.
CSCOR/COP Program Interest
Through the MERHAB program, CSCOR/COP intends to build capabilities
of local, state, tribal, and private sector for regular and intensive
measurement of HAB parameters. This will make existing monitoring
programs more efficient while providing better coverage in time and
space. MERHAB will enable rigorous field testing of state-of-the-art
technology through targeted projects and will incorporate the new
methods of detecting and tracking HABs into existing monitoring
programs through regional, intensive monitoring projects. MERHAB will
also develop event-response capabilities within affected regions to
ensure trained and equipped personnel are able to mobilize quickly,
conduct appropriate sampling and testing, and communicate effectively
during HAB events.
With faster, less expensive, and more reliable detection methods
for HAB cells and toxins, and stronger mechanisms in place to respond
to outbreaks, programs will be better able to mitigate the impact of
HABs on vital resources and will protect public health. As a result,
managers will be able to better address the expanding HAB problems
facing their coastal regions and, therefore, they will be better
positioned to request long-term support from Federal and state agencies
or from other funding entities.
Goal
The primary goal of the MERHAB program is to incorporate products
generated from past or ongoing HAB research programs into operational
components of existing monitoring programs in HAB-impacted coastal
regions. MERHAB is not intended to provide long-term support for
routine monitoring efforts.
A. MERHAB-Targeted Research Projects
(1) Objectives: (a) Develop a technology that will enhance HAB
monitoring activities in U.S. coastal waters; and (b) incorporate that
technology into existing HAB monitoring programs.
(2) Characteristics: (a) Should rigorously field-test new
technologies to detect algal species, toxin, or toxicity and/or monitor
the environmental conditions that support HABs. New technologies may
include, but are not limited to, rapid field assays for shellfish,
improved diagnostic techniques for in situ detection of HAB cells, and
remote sensing technology to help target sampling efforts; (b) May be
led either by an individual or by small investigative team; and (c)
Must address specified research needs of the HAB community.
Investigators should include in their work plans efforts to build
support for the incorporation of technology into one or more existing
HAB monitoring programs. (See Part II: Further Supplementary
Information Section (11) ``Project Funding Priorities.'')
B. MERHAB-regional, Intensive Monitoring Projects
(1) Objectives: (a) Develop new or increase existing regional
capabilities for HAB monitoring; (b) Incorporate new tools for HAB
measurement into existing monitoring efforts; (c) Include local, state,
regional, Federal, or non-governmental entities as active partners in
identifying environmental measurements and their importance to managing
coastal resources and protecting human health (i.e., generating public
advisories) in the area; (d) Determine long-term local and regional
support that will assume financial responsibility for resulting
enhancements in HAB monitoring once NOAA support has ended; and (e)
Develop local and/or regional capabilities to respond to HAB events.
(2) Characteristics: (a) Include a suite of annual studies and
involve a multi-disciplinary, collaborative team of investigators. The
team should represent groups with strong interests in improved HAB
monitoring, including, but not limited to, the natural and social
science research community, existing monitoring programs, communities
dependent upon affected resources, industry, and non-profit
organizations; (b) Provide evidence that local, state,
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tribal, regional, and Federal representatives were consulted in the
development of the proposal to ensure appropriate economic, regulatory,
and management issues are addressed; (c) Include a plan for continued
consultation with these representatives to facilitate the incorporation
of research results into existing monitoring programs and to identify
means to continue HAB monitoring efforts after MERHAB project funding
has ended; (d) Form a management team with a designated chairperson
serving as the main point of contact with the MERHAB Program Manager.
In similar CSCOR research programs (i.e., ECOHAB), management teams
provide strong leadership and solid partnerships among principal
investigators and collaborators. Teams serve to interpret results
collected from the expanded suite of pilot studies, permitting
acceptance or rejection of the approaches, techniques, or tools
explored during each annual budget period. MERHAB management teams will
also analyze results for application under local conditions and assess
effectiveness under specific constraints so that application to other
coastal systems or species may be determined.
Shared Research Project Characteristics
The following characteristics are shared by both MERHAB-Targeted
projects and MERHAB-regional, intensive monitoring projects.
(1) Project results will be distributed to stakeholders via
scientific, peer-reviewed articles, synthesis documents, briefings,
electronic web sites, and any other means defined by the proposers. (2)
Project proposals should clearly identify a timetable of
accomplishments and major program elements that will lead to specific
interim and final assessments of applicability and effectiveness of a
number of monitoring approaches.
Continuation of funding will be contingent upon the determination
by the awarding agency that the selected project is on course to
provide both interim and final products that will improve HAB
monitoring capabilities in the local or national coastal environment
impacted by HABs.
Expected Products and Outcomes
A. MERHAB-Targeted Projects
(1) Development and testing of new HAB monitoring tools;
(2) Demonstration of effective application of technology in an
existing monitoring program; and
(3) Comprehensive data analysis and integration that advances the
state of science and management (i.e., technical reports, peer-reviewed
publications, databases, numerical and conceptual models, etc.).
B. MERHAB-regional, Intensive Monitoring Projects
(1) Include regional stakeholder input and participation through
means that may include, but are not limited to, annual workshops,
management and technical advisory committees that involve a broad
spectrum of regional interests and training in use of new technology;
(2) Provide recommendations to management of the parameters to be
measured in a region and the types of instruments that should be
developed or adapted into existing monitoring programs;
(3) Deploy new HAB monitoring tools in existing monitoring
programs;
(4) Conduct comprehensive data analysis and integration that
advances the state of science and management. (i.e., technical reports,
peer-reviewed publications, data bases, numerical and conceptual
models; regional case studies with explicit applications to important
management issues; risk analysis of management scenarios; regional
economic valuation of direct and indirect costs associated with HAB
events; and region-specific management recommendations based on study
results);
(5) Accept commitments from one or more local, state, tribal,
regional, or Federal organizations for continued, long-term support of
expanding HAB monitoring capabilities;
(6) Develop real-time, scientific response capability during HAB
outbreaks for the region that includes, but is not limited to, the use
of local experts, establishing local academic-government- NGO-private
partnerships for providing immediate analytical and sampling
capacities, and expanding local abilities for transferring samples to
analytical services outside the region; and
(7) Outreach to improve awareness of HAB outbreaks and their
environmental and societal costs, and to mitigate their impact on vital
natural resources, public health and local/regional economies.
Part I: Schedule and Proposal Submission
This document requests full proposals only. The provisions for
proposal preparation provided here are mandatory. Proposals received
after the published deadline or proposals that deviate from the
prescribed format will be returned to the sender without further
consideration. Information regarding this announcement, additional
background information, and required Federal forms are available on the
COP home page.
Full Proposals
Applications submitted in response to this announcement require an
original proposal and 19 proposal copies at time of submission. This
includes color or high-resolution graphics, unusually sized materials,
or otherwise unusual materials submitted as part of the proposal. For
color graphics, submit either color originals or color copies. The
stated requirements for the number of proposal copies provide for a
timely review process. Facsimile transmissions and electronic mail
submission of full proposals will not be accepted.
Required Elements
All recipients must follow the instructions in the preparation of
the CSCOR/COP application forms included in Part II: Further
Supplementary Information, (10) Application forms and kit. Each
proposal must also include the following nine elements or it will be
returned to sender without further consideration:
(1) Standard Form 424. At time of proposal submission, all
applicants shall submit the Standard Form, SF-424 (Rev 7-97),
``Application for Federal Assistance,'' to indicate the total amount of
funding proposed for the whole project period. This form is to be the
cover page for the original proposal and all requested copies. Multi-
institutional proposals must include signed SF-424 forms from all
institutions requesting funding.
(2) Signed summary title page. The title page should be signed by
the Principal Investigator (PI). The Summary Title page identifies the
project's title starting with the acronym MERHAB 2002, a short title
(less than 50 characters), the lead PI's name and affiliation, and
complete address, phone, FAX, and E-mail information. The requested
budget for each fiscal year should be included on the Summary Title
page. Multi-investigator proposals must include the names and
affiliations of each investigator on the title page. Multi-institution
proposals must also identify the lead investigator from each fiscal
year for each institution and the requested funding for each fiscal
year for each institution on the title page, but no signatures are
required on the title page from the additional institutions. Lead
investigator and separate budget information is not requested on the
title page for institutions that are proposed to receive
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funds through a subcontract to the lead institution.
(3) One-page abstract/project summary. The Project Summary
(Abstract) Form, submitted with the application, must include summaries
of the problem, rationale, scientific objectives and/or hypotheses to
be tested, and a brief summary of work to be completed. The prescribed
CSCOR/COP format for the Project Summary Form can be found on the
CSCOR/COP Internet site under the CSCOR/COP Grants Information section,
Part D.
The summary should appear on a separate page, headed with the
proposal title, institution(s), investigator(s), total proposed cost,
and budget period. It should be written in the third person. The
summary is used to help compare proposals quickly and allows the
respondents to summarize these key points in their own words.
(4) Statement of work/project description. The statement of the
proposed work/project must be complete and include: identification of
the problem, scientific objectives, proposed methodology, relevance to
the MERHAB 2002 program goals, and its scientific priorities. For
MERHAB-Targeted project proposals, the project description (including
relevant results from prior support) should not exceed 15 pages. For
MERHAB-regional, intensive monitoring project proposals, the project
description (including relevant results from prior support) should not
exceed 20 pages. Both page limits are inclusive of figures, other
visual materials, and letters of endorsement, but are exclusive of
references, a milestone chart, and letters of collaboration from
unfunded collaborators.
This section should clearly identify project management with a
description of the functions of each PI within a team. It should
provide a full scientific justification for the research, rather than
simply reiterating justifications presented in this document. It should
also include:
(a) The objective for the period of proposed work and its expected
significance;
(b) The relation to the present state of knowledge in the field and
relation to previous work and work in progress by the proposing
principal investigator(s);
(c) A discussion of how the proposed project lends value to the
program goals;
(d) Potential coordination with other investigators; and,
(5) References cited. Reference information is required. Each
reference must include the names of all authors in the same sequence
they appear in the publications, the article title, volume number, page
numbers, and year of publications. While there is no established page
limitation, this section should include bibliographic citations only
and should not be used to provide parenthetical information outside the
15-page MERHAB-Targeted project or the 20-page MERHAB-regional project
descriptions.
(6) Milestone chart. It should provide time lines of major tasks
covering the duration of the proposed project.
(7) Budget and Application Forms Both NOAA and CSCOR/COP-specific
application forms may be obtained at the CSCOR/COP Grants website.
Forms may be viewed and, in most cases, filled in by computer. All
forms must be printed, completed, and mailed to CSCOR/COP. If
applicants are unable to access this information, they may call the
CSCOR/COP grants administrator previously listed in the section
entitled FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. At time of proposal
submission, all applicants must submit the Standard Form, SF-424 (Rev
7-97) Application for Federal Assistance, to indicate the total amount
of funding proposed for the whole project period. Applicants must also
submit a COP Summary Proposal Budget Form for each fiscal year
increment. Multi-institution proposals must include a Summary Proposal
Budget Form for each institution. Use of this budget form will provide
for a detailed annual budget and for the level of detail required by
the CSCOR/COP program staff to evaluate the effort to be invested by
investigators and staff on a specific project. The COP budget form is
compatible with forms in use by other agencies that participate in
joint projects with CSCOR/COP and can be found on the CSCOR/COP home
page under COP Grants Information, Part D. All applications must
include a budget narrative and a justification to support all proposed
budget categories. The SF-424A, Budget Information (Non-Construction)
Form, will be requested only from those applicants subsequently
recommended for award.
Ship time needs should be clearly identified in the proposed
budget. The investigator is responsible for requesting ship time and
for meeting all requirements to ensure the availability of requested
ship time. Copies of relevant ship time request forms should be
included with the proposal.
(8) Biographical sketch. With each proposal, the following must be
included: abbreviated curriculum vitae, up to two pages per
investigator; a list of up to five publications most closely related to
the proposed project and up to five other significant publications; and
a list of all persons (including their organizational affiliation), in
alphabetical order, who have collaborated on a project, book, article,
or paper within the last 48 months must be included. If no
collaborators exist this should be so indicated. Students, post-
doctoral associates, and graduate and postgraduate advisors of the PI
should also be disclosed. This information is used to help identify
potential conflicts of interest or bias in the selection of reviewers.
(9) Proposal format and assembly. The original proposal should be
clamped in the upper left-hand corner, but left unbound. The 19
additional copies can be stapled in the upper left-hand corner or bound
on the left edge. The page margin must be one inch (2.5 cm) at the top,
bottom, left, and right, and the typeface standard 12-point size must
be clear and easily legible. Proposals should be single spaced.
Part II: Further Supplementary Information
(1) Program authorities. For a list of all program authorities for
the Coastal Ocean Program, see General Grant Administration Terms and
Conditions of the Coastal Ocean Program published in the Federal
Register (66 FR 63019, December 4, 2001) and at the CSCOR/COP home
page. Specific authority cited for this announcement is 16 U.S.C. 1442
and Pub.L. 105-383, title VI, Nov. 13, 1998, 112 Stat. 3447.
(2) Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number. The CFDA
number for the Coastal Ocean Program is 11.478.
(3) Program description. For complete CSCOR/COP program
descriptions, see General Grant Administration Terms and Conditions of
the Coastal Ocean Program published in the Federal Register (66 FR
63019, December 4, 2001).
(4) Funding availability. Funding is contingent upon receipt of
fiscal years 2002 - 2006 Federal appropriations. Approximately
$2,000,000 per fiscal year will be available for supporting studies
proposed by submissions to this announcement. Support in out years
after FY 2002 is contingent upon the availability of funds. It is
anticipated that three to five MERHAB-Targeted research projects will
be funded at approximately $100,000 per year for up to three years and
that two to three MERHAB-regional, intensive monitoring proposals will
be funded at approximately $600,000 per year for up to five years.
If an application is selected for funding, NOAA has no obligation
to provide any additional prospective
[[Page 12975]]
funding in connection with that award in subsequent years. Continuation
of an award to increase funding or extend the period of performance is
based on satisfactory performance and is at the total discretion of the
funding agency. Priority for these funds will be given to proposals
that promote balanced coverage of the science objectives stated under
this announcement.
Publication of this document does not obligate the CSCOR/COP to any
specific award or to obligate any part of the entire amount of funds
available. Recipients and subrecipients are subject to all Federal laws
and agency policies, regulations, and procedures applicable to Federal
financial assistance awards.
(5) Matching requirements. None.
(6) Type of funding instrument. Either project grants or
cooperative agreements will be used for non-Federal applicants.
Interagency transfer agreements or other appropriate mechanisms other
than project grants or cooperative agreements will be used for Federal
applicants.
(7) Eligibility criteria. For complete eligibility criteria for the
CSCOR/COP, see CSCOR/COP's General Grant Administration Terms and
Conditions annual document in the Federal Register (66 FR 63019,
December 4, 2001) and the CSCOR/COP home page. Eligible applicants are
institutions of higher education, not-for-profit institutions, state,
local and Indian tribal governments and Federal agencies. CSCOR/COP
will accept proposals that include foreign researchers as collaborators
with researchers who are affiliated with a U.S. academic institution,
Federal agency, or other non-profit organization.
Applications from non-Federal and Federal applicants will be
competed against each other. Proposals selected for funding from non-
Federal applicants will be funded through a project grant or
cooperative agreement under the terms of this notice. Proposals from
NOAA employees selected for funding shall be effected by an intra-
agency fund transfer. Proposals selected for funding from a non-NOAA
Federal agency will be funded through an inter-agency transfer.
NOTE: Before non-NOAA Federal applicants may be funded, they must
demonstrate that they have legal authority to receive funds from
another Federal agency in excess of their appropriation. Because this
announcement is not proposing to procure goods or services from
applicants, the Economy Act (31 U.S.C. 1535) is not an appropriate
legal basis.
(8) Award period. Full proposals for targeted projects can cover a
project period of up to three years, and full proposals for regional,
intensive monitoring projects can cover a project period of up to five
years. Multi-year project period funding may be funded incrementally on
an annual basis, but, once awarded, multi-year projects will not
compete for funding in subsequent years. Each annual award shall
require an Implementation Plan and statement of work that can be easily
divided into annual increments of meaningful work representing solid
accomplishments (if prospective funding is not made available, or is
discontinued).
(9) Indirect costs. Regardless of any approved indirect cost rate
applicable to the award, the maximum dollar amount of allocable
indirect costs for which DOC will reimburse the recipient shall be the
lesser of: (a) the line item amount for the Federal share of indirect
costs contained in the approved budget of the award; or (b) the Federal
share of the total allocable indirect costs of the award based on the
indirect cost rate approved by a cognizant or oversight Federal agency
and current at the time the cost was incurred, provided the rate is
approved on or before the award end date.
(l0) Application forms and kit. For complete information on
application forms for the CSCOR/COP, see CSCOR/COP's annual General
Grant Administration Terms and Conditions Document in the Federal
Register (66 FR 63019, December 4, 2001) at the CSCOR/COP home page and
the information given under Required Elements, paragraph (7) Budget.
(11) Project funding priorities. For description of project funding
priorities, see CSCOR/COP's annual General Grant Administration Terms
and Conditions Document in the Federal Register (66 FR 63019, December
4, 2001) and the CSCOR/COP home page.
(12) Evaluation criteria. For complete information on evaluation
criteria, see CSCOR/COP's annual General Grant Administration Terms and
Condition Document in the Federal Register (66 FR 63019, December 4,
2001) and the CSCOR/COP home page.
(13) Selection procedures. For complete information on selection
procedures, see CSCOR/COP's annual General Grant Administration Terms
and Conditions Document in the Federal Register (66 FR 63019, December
4, 2001) and the CSCOR/COP home page. All proposals received under this
specific Document will be evaluated and ranked individually in
accordance with the assigned weights of the above evaluation criteria
by independent peer mail review and/or panel review. No consensus
advice will be given by the independent peer mail review or the review
panel.
(14) Other requirements. (a) For a complete description of other
requirements, see CSCOR/COP's annual General Grant Administration Terms
and Conditions Document in the Federal Register (66 FR 63019, December
4, 2001) and the CSCOR/COP home page. NOAA has specific requirements
that environmental data be submitted to the National Oceanographic Data
Center (see section 16, Data Archiving).
(b) the Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements
for Grants and Cooperative Agreements contained in the Federal Register
(66 FR 49917, October 1, 2001) are applicable to this solicitation.
However, please note that the Department of Commerce will not implement
the requirements of Executive Order 13202 (66 FR 49921), pursuant to
guidance issued by the Office of Management and Budget in light of a
court opinion which found that the Executive Order was not legally
authorized. See Building and Construction Trades Department v.
Allbaugh, 172 F. Supp. 2d 138 (D.D.C. 2001). This decision is currently
on appeal. When the case has been finally resolved, the Department will
provide further information on implementation of Executive Order 13202.
(c) Please note that NOAA is developing a policy on internal
overhead charges; NOAA scientists considering submission of proposals
should contact the appropriate CSCOR/COP Program Manager for the latest
information.
(15) Intergovernmental review. Applications under this program are
not subject to Executive Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of
Federal Programs.'' It has been determined that this notice is not
significant for purposes of Executive Order 12866. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C.
553(a) (2), an opportunity for public notice and comment is not
required for this notice relating to grants, benefits and contracts.
Because this notice is exempt from the notice and comment provisions of
the Administrative Procedure Act, a Regulatory Flexibility Analysis is
not required, and none has been prepared. It has been determined that
this notice does not contain policies with Federalism implications as
that term is defined in Executive Order 13132.
(16) Data archiving. Any data collected in projects supported by
CSCOR/COP must be delivered to a National Data Center (NDC), such as
the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), in a format to be
determined by the institution, the NODC, and Program
[[Page 12976]]
Officer. It is the responsibility of the funded institution for the
delivery of these data; the DOC will not provide additional support for
delivery beyond the award. Additionally, all biological cultures
established, molecular probes developed, genetic sequences identified,
mathematical models constructed, or other resulting information
products established through support provided by CSCOR/COP are
encouraged to be made available to the general research community at no
or a modest handling charge (to be determined by the institution,
Program Officer, and DOC). For more details, refer to CSCOR/COP data
policy posted at the COP home page.
(17) This notification involves collection-of-information
requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). The use of
Standard Forms 424, 424A, 424B, and SF-LLL has been approved by the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under control numbers 0348-0043,
0348-0044, 0348-0040 and 0348-0046.
The following requirements have been approved by OMB under control
number 0648-0384; a Summary Proposal Budget Form (30 minutes per
response), a Project Summary Form (30 minutes per response), a
standardized format for the annual Performance Report (5 hours per
response), a standardized format for the Final Report (10 hours per
response), and the submission of up to 20 copies of proposals (10
minutes per response). The response estimates include the time for
reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the
collection of information.
Send comments regarding these requirements and the burden estimate,
or any other aspect of this collection of information, including
suggestions for reducing this burden, to leslie.mcdonald@noaa.gov.
Copies of these forms and formats can be found on the CSCOR/COP home
page under Grants Information sections, Parts D and F.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is required
to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty for failure
to comply with a collection of information subject to the requirements
of the Paperwork Reduction Act, unless that collection displays a
currently valid OMB control number.
Dated: March 11, 2002.
Jamison S. Hawkins,
Deputy Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal Zone
Management.
[FR Doc. 02-6747 Filed 3-19-02; 8:45 am]
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