[Federal Register: October 7, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 195)]
[Notices]
[Page 58560-58563]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr07oc08-49]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[Docket No. 0809261277-81278-01 I.D. GF001]
Cooperative Institute for Satellite Climate Studies
AGENCY: National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service
Program Office (NESDISPO), National Environmental Satellite Data and
Information Service (NESDIS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of funding availability.
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SUMMARY: NOAA National Environmental Satellite Data and Information
Services (NESDIS) invites applications for a Cooperative Institute (CI)
that will focus on (1) Climate and satellite research and applications,
(2) climate and satellite observations and monitoring, and (3) climate
research and modeling. Through this competition, NOAA intends to
establish competitively a new CI according to the policy and procedures
described in NOAA Administrative Order 216?107 and the Cooperative
Institute Interim Handbook both available at http://www.nrc.noaa.gov/
ci. The proposed CI should be composed of two or more member
institutions (e.g., multiple universities). At least one research
institution should be in Maryland, Washington DC or the adjacent states
(Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Virginia). At least two
research institutions should be in North Carolina or the adjacent
states (Virginia, Tennessee, South Carolina and Georgia), with a
presence in Asheville, North Carolina. NOAA has identified three
research themes that will address specific needs within the NOAA
Mission Support Satellite Service program and the NOAA Climate Goal
that would benefit from collaborations with the CI. The CI should
possess outstanding capabilities to work in the three research themes
summarized below, as well as possess the capability to conduct outreach
and education activities in support of these research themes. I.
Climate and Satellite Research and Applications: Research conducted
under this theme is associated with the development of new and
innovative uses of non-NOAA satellite assets that can ultimately be
transitioned into NOAA operations to support climate information needs.
This theme also includes performing research and development aimed at
improving the utilization of long time series of satellite measurements
that will offer NOAA scientists a homogeneous record of satellite
radiances. II. Climate and Satellite Observations and Monitoring:
Research conducted under this theme involves (1) Designing indices and
applications that incorporate satellite observations to detect, monitor
and investigate climatic changes and their impacts on coastal and open
ocean ecosystems, (2) identifying and meeting the satellite climate
needs of a wide variety of users, including research, business and
industry, and government and private sector users, and (3) contributing
significantly to climate reanalysis projects when satellite data is a
key input. III. Climate Research and Modeling: Research conducted under
this theme is focused on improving climate forecasts on mesoscale,
regional and global scales when satellite data is a key input, and
developing regional ecosystem models that can incorporate satellite
observations to predict the impact of climate change on these
ecosystems, particularly those located in the Mid-Atlantic region. The
CI is also expected to play a significant role in National Centers for
Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Climate Test Bed projects when
satellite data is a key input. This announcement provides requirements
for the proposed CI and includes details for the technical program,
evaluation criteria, and competitive selection procedures. Applicants
should review the NOAA CI Policy and CI Interim Handbook (both
available at http://www.nrc.noaa.gov/ci) prior to preparing a proposal
for this announcement.
DATES: Proposals must be received by NESDIS no later than January 5,
2009 5 p.m., E.T. Proposals submitted after that date will not be
considered.
ADDRESSES: The standard application package is available at http://
www.grants.gov. For applicants without Internet access, an application
package may be received by contacting Ingrid Guch, NOAA/NESDIS, 5200
Auth Road, Room 701, Camp Springs, Maryland 20746. Applicants are
strongly encouraged to apply online through the Grants.gov website.
Paper submissons are only acceptable only if internet access is not
available. Grants.gov requires applicants to register with the system
prior to submitting an application. This registration process can take
several weeks, involving multiple steps. In order to allow sufficient
time for this process, you should register as soon as you decide that
you intend to apply, even if you are not yet ready to submit your
proposal. If an applicant has problems
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downloading the application package from Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov
Customer Support at (800)518-4726 or support@grants.gov. For non-
Windows computer systems, please see http://www.grants.gov/MacSupport
for information on how to download and submit an application through
Grants.gov. If a hard copy application is submitted, please include an
original of two unbound copies of the proposal. Paper submissions
should be submitted to Mrs. Guch at the above-listed address.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For a copy of the Federal Funding
Opportunity announcement and/or application package, please access
grants.gov; the NOAA Cooperative Institute Web site (http://
www.nrc.noaa.gov/ci) or contact Ingrid Guch, NOAA/NESDIS; 5200 Auth
Road, Room 701; Camp Springs, Maryland 20746, or by phone at (301) 763-
8282 ext. 152, or fax to (301) 763-8108, or via internet at
ingrid.guch@noaa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: One of NOAA's strategic goals is to
``understand and describe climate variability and change to enhance
society's ability to plan and respond.'' The Satellite Climate Studies
CI will provide strong and sustained academic partners towards
realizing this goal. It is essential for NOAA federal scientists to
substantially collaborate with outstanding researchers in academia in
order to produce climate information and services that are based on
satellite data and knowledge from many disciplines (physics, chemistry,
biology, geography, earth science, oceanography, meteorology and
sociology, etc.). The sustained nature of a Satellite Climate Studies
CI (5-10 years) will provide significant opportunity to enhance NOAA's
operational decision support tools to provide climate services for
national socioeconomic benefits, a key goal area of research specified
by NOAA's 5-year Research Plan and 20-year Research Vision.
Additionally, the Satellite Climate Studies CI will also serve another
important function in support of NOAA's ongoing research: Educating,
training and sustaining a world class workforce. These goals will be
accomplished through NOAA-academia projects in which the research
institution brings a strong heritage in satellite remote sensing and
climate applications. CI Concept/Program Background: A CI is a NOAA-
supported, non-Federal organization that has established an outstanding
research program in one or more areas that are relevant to the NOAA
mission to understand and predict changes in the Earth's environment
and conserve and manage coastal and marine resources to meet our
Nation's economic, social, and environmental needs. The CI is
established at research institutions that also have a strong education
program with established graduate degree programs in NOAA-related
sciences. The CI provides significant coordination of resources among
all non-government partners and promotes the involvement of students
and post-doctoral scientists in NOAA-funded research. The CI provides
mutual benefits with value provided by all parties. NOAA establishes a
new CI competitively when it identifies a need to sponsor a long-term
(5-10 years) collaborative partnership with one or more outstanding
non-Federal, non-profit research institutions. For NOAA, the purpose of
this long-term collaborative partnership is to promote research,
education, training, and outreach aligned with the NOAA mission; to
obtain research capabilities that do not exist internally and/or to
expand research capacity in NOAA-related sciences to:
--Conduct collaborative, long-term research that involves NOAA
scientists and those at the research institution(s) from one or more
scientific disciplines of interest to NOAA;
--Utilize the scientific, education, and outreach expertise at the
research institution(s) that, depending on NOAA's research needs, may
or may not be located near a NOAA facility;
--Support student participation in NOAA-related research studies; and
--Strengthen or expand NOAA-related research capabilities and capacity
at the research institution(s) that complements and contributes to the
NOAA ability to reach its mission goals. A CI will consist of one or
more research institutions that demonstrate outstanding performance
within one or more established research programs in NOAA-related
sciences. These institutions may include Minority Serving Institutions
and universities with strong departments that can contribute to the
proposed activities of the CI. CIs, conduct research under approved
scientific research themes (see Section I.B of the Full Funding
Opportunity announcement) and Tasks (additional tasks can be proposed
by the CI):
i. Task I activities are related to the management of the CI, as
well as general education and outreach activities. This task also
includes support of postdoctoral and visiting scientists conducting
activities within the research themes of the CI that are approved by
the CI Director, in consultation with NOAA, and are relevant to NOAA
and the CI mission goals.
ii. Task II activities usually involve on-going direct
collaboration with NOAA scientists. This collaboration typically is
fostered by the collocation of Federal and CI employees.
iii. Task III activities require minimal collaboration with NOAA
scientists and may include research funded by other NOAA competitive
grant programs.
Electronic Access: The full text of the full funding opportunity
announcement for this program can be accessed via the Grants.gov Web
site at http://www.grants.gov. The announcement will also be available
by contacting the program officials identified under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT. Applicants must comply with all requirements
contained in the full funding opportunity announcement.
Statutory Authority: 15 U.S.C. 313, 49 U.S.C. 44720(b), 15 U.S.C.
2901, 15 U.S.C. 1540, 33 U.S.C. 883d, 118 Stat. 71 CFDA: 11.440,
Environmental Sciences, Applications, Data, and Education
Funding Availability: NOAA expects that approximately $13M will be
available for the CI In the first year of the award. The Task I budget
should not exceed $400,000. The final amount of funding available for
Task I will be determined during the negotiation phase of the award
based on availability of funding. Funding for subsequent years is
expected to be constant throughout the period and will depend on the
quality of the research, the satisfactory progress in achieving the
stated goals described in the proposal, continued relevance to program
objectives, and the availability of funding.
Eligibility: Eligibility is limited to non-Federal public and
private non-profit universities, colleges and research institutions
that offer accredited graduate level degree-granting programs in NOAA-
related sciences, as described in the CI Interim Handbook located at
http://www.nrc.noaa.gov/ci/.
Cost Sharing Requirements: To stress the collaborative nature and
investment of a CI by both NOAA and the research institution, cost
sharing is required. There is no minimum cost sharing requirement;
however, the amount of cost sharing will be considered when determining
the level of the CI commitment under the NOAA standard evaluation
criteria for overall qualifications of applicants. Acceptable cost-
sharing proposals include, but are not limited to, offering a reduced
indirect cost rate against activities in one or more Tasks, waiver of
indirect
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costs assessed against base funds and/or Task I activities, waiver or
reduction of any costs associated with the use of facilities at the CI,
and full or partial salary funding for the CI director, administrative
staff, graduate students, visiting scientists, or postdoctoral
scientists.
Evaluation and Selection Procedures: The general evaluation
criteria and selection factors that apply to full applications to this
funding opportunity are summarized below. The evaluation criteria for
full applications will have different weights and details. Further
information about the evaluation criteria and selection factors can be
found in the full funding opportunity announcement.
Evaluation Criteria for Projects: Proposals will be evaluated using
the standard NOAA evaluation criteria. Various questions under each
criterion are provided to ensure that the applicant includes
information that NOAA will consider important during the evaluation, in
addition to any other information provided by the applicant. i.
Importance and/or relevance and applicability of proposed project to
the program goals (25 percent): This criterion ascertains whether there
is intrinsic value in the proposed work and/or relevance to NOAA,
Federal, regional, state, or local activities.--Does the proposal
include research goals and projects that address the critical issues
identified in the NOAA 5-year Research Plan, the NOAA Strategic Plan,
and the priorities described in the program priorities section (see
section I.B. of the Full Funding Opportunity announcement).--Is there a
demonstrated commitment (in terms of resources and facilities) to
enhance existing NOAA and CI resources to foster a long-term
collaborative research environment/culture?--Will most of the staff at
the CI be located near one of two NOAA facilities, the National Center
for Weather and Climate Prediction in Riverdale Park, Maryland, or the
National Climactic Data Center in Asheville North Carolina, to enhance
collaborations with NOAA? Examples include (1) Academic institution of
higher learning in Asheville North Carolina metropolitan area and/or
Washington DC metropolitan area; and/or (2) Office space located in
Asheville North Carolina metropolitan area and/or Washington DC
metropolitan area hosting at least 20 consortium personnel; and/or (3)
Willingness to allow at least 20 students or professors to work at the
NOAA site in Asheville North Carolina metropolitan area and/or
Washington DC metropolitan area. ii. Technical/scientific merit (30
percent): This criterion assesses whether the approach is technically
sound and/or innovative, if the methods are appropriate, and whether
there are clear project goals and objectives.--Does the project
description include a summary of clearly stated goals to be achieved
during the five year period that reflect the NOAA strategic plan and
goals? --Does the CI involve partnerships with other universities or
research institutions, including Minority Serving Institutions and
universities with strong departments that can contribute to the
proposed activities of the CI? iii. Overall qualifications of
applicants (30 percent): This criterion ascertains whether the
applicant possesses the necessary education, experience, training,
facilities, and administrative resources to accomplish the project.--If
the institution(s) and/or PIs have received current or recent NOAA
funding, is there a demonstrated record of outstanding performance
working with NOAA and/or NOAA scientists on research projects?--Is
there nationally and/or internationally recognized expertise within the
appropriate disciplines needed to conduct the collaborative/
interdisciplinary research described in the proposal?--Is there a well-
developed business plan that includes fiscal and human resource
management, as well as strategic planning and accountability?--Are
there any unique capabilities in a mission-critical area of research
for NOAA?--Has the applicant shown a substantial investment to the NOAA
partnership, as demonstrated by the amount of the cost sharing
contribution? iv. Project costs (5 percent): The budget is evaluated to
determine if it is realistic and commensurate with the project needs
and time-frame. v.Outreach and education (10 percent): NOAA assesses
whether this project provides a focused and effective education and
outreach strategy regarding NOAA's mission to protect the Nation's
natural resources. --Is there a strong education program with
established graduate degree programs in NOAA-related sciences that also
encourages student participation in NOAA-related research studies?
Review and Selection Process: An initial administrative review/
screening is conducted to determine compliance with requirements/
completeness. All proposals will be evaluated and individually ranked
in accordance with the assigned weights of the above-listed evaluation
criteria by an independent peer review panel. At least three experts,
who may be Federal or non-Federal, will be used in this process. If
non-Federal experts participate in the review process, each expert will
submit an individual review and there will be no consensus opinion. The
merit reviewers ratings are used to produce a rank order of the
proposals. The Selecting Official selects proposals after considering
the peer reviews and selection factors listed below. In making the
final selections, the Selecting Official will award in rank order
unless the proposal is justified to be selected out of rank order based
upon one or more of the selection factors.
Selection Factors for Projects: The merit review ratings shall
provide a rank order to the Selecting Official for final funding
recommendations. The Selecting Official shall award in the rank order
unless the proposal is justified to be selected out of rank order based
on one or more of the following factors: 1. Availability of funding 2.
Balance and distribution of funds a. By research area b. By project
type c. By type of institutions d. By type of partners e.
Geographically 3. Duplication of other projects funded or considered
for funding by NOAA/federal agencies. 4. Program priorities and policy
factors. 5. Applicant prior award performance. 6. Partnerships with/
Participation of targeted groups. 7. Adequacy of information necessary
for NOAA staff to make a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
determination and draft necessary documentation before recommendations
for funding are made to the NOAA Grants Officer.
Intergovernmental Review: Applications under this program are not
subject to Executive Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal
Programs.''
Limitation of Liability: In no event will NOAA or the Department of
Commerce be responsible for proposal preparation costs if these
programs fail to receive funding or are cancelled because of other
agency priorities. Publication of this announcement does not oblige
NOAA to award any specific project or to obligate any available funds.
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA): NOAA must analyze the
potential environmental impacts, as required by the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), for applicant projects or proposals
which are seeking NOAA federal funding opportunities. Detailed
information on NOAA compliance with NEPA can be found at the following
NOAA NEPA Web site: http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/, including our NOAA
Administrative Order 216-6 for NEPA, http://www.nepa.noaa.gov/NAO216_
6_TOC.pdf, and the Council on Environmental Quality implementation
regulations, http://
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ceq.eh.doe.gov/nepa/regs/ceq/toc_ceq.htm. Consequently, as part of an
applicant's package, and under their description of their program
activities, applicants are required to provide detailed information on
the activities to be conducted, locations, sites, species and habitat
to be affected, possible construction activities, and any environmental
concerns that may exist (e.g., the use and disposal of hazardous or
toxic chemicals, introduction of non-indigenous species, impacts to
endangered and threatened species, aquaculture projects, and impacts to
coral reef systems). In addition to providing specific information that
will serve as the basis for any required impact analyses, applicants
may also be requested to assist NOAA in drafting of an environmental
assessment, if NOAA determines an assessment is required.
Applicants will also be required to cooperate with NOAA in
identifying feasible measures to reduce or avoid any identified adverse
environmental impacts of their proposal. The failure to do so shall be
grounds for not selecting an application. In some cases if additional
information is required after an application is selected, funds can be
withheld by the Grants Officer under a special award condition
requiring the recipient to submit additional environmental compliance
information sufficient to enable NOAA to make an assessment on any
impacts that a project may have on the environment.
The Department of Commerce Pre-Award Notification Requirements for
Grants and Cooperative Agreements: The Department of Commerce Pre-Award
Notification Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements
contained in the Federal Register notice of February 11, 2008 (73 FR
7696), are applicable to this solicitation.
Paperwork Reduction Act: This document contains collection-of-
information requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA).
The use of Standard Forms 424, 424A, 424B, and SF-LLL and CD-346 has
been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the
respective control numbers 0348-0043, 0348-0044, 0348-0040, 0348-0046,
and 0605-0001.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is required
to, nor shall a person be subject to a penalty for failure to comply
with, a collection of information subject to the requirements of the
PRA unless that collection of information displays a currently valid
OMB control number.
Executive Order 12866: This notice has been determined to be not
significant for purposes of Executive Order 12866.
Executive Order 13132 (Federalism): It has been determined that
this notice does not contain policies with Federalism implications as
that term is defined in Executive Order 13132.
Administrative Procedure Act/Regulatory Flexibility Act: Prior
notice and an opportunity for public comment are not required by the
Administrative Procedure Act or any other law for rules concerning
public property, loans, grants, benefits, and contracts (5 U.S.C.
553(a)(2)). Because notice and opportunity for comment are not required
pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other law, the analytical requirements
for the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) are
inapplicable. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis has not been
prepared.
Mary E. Kicza,
Assistant Adminstrator for Satellite and Information Services.
[FR Doc. E8-23826 Filed 10-6-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-P