[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 165 (Thursday, August 27, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43671-43674]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-20740]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
[Docket No. 0908101223-91223-01; I.D. GF001]
Applications for the FY 2010 Ocean Exploration (OE) Program
AGENCY: Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER), Oceanic and
Atmospheric Research (OAR), National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of funding availability.
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SUMMARY: OER is seeking pre-proposals and full proposals to support its
mission, consistent with NOAA's Strategic Plan to search, investigate,
and document poorly-known and unknown areas of the ocean and Great
Lakes through interdisciplinary exploration, and to advance and
disseminate knowledge of the ocean environment and its physical,
chemical, and biological resources.
Competitive OE proposals will be bold, innovative and
interdisciplinary in their approach. OER anticipates a total of
approximately $3,000,000 including costs for ship and submersible
assets will be available through this announcement. Only exploratory
proposals will be funded; any other types of projects will not be
reviewed. The office priorities for this opportunity support NOAA's
mission support goal of: Ecosystems--Protect, Restore, and Manage Use
of Coastal and Ocean Resources through Ecosystem-Based Management.
DATES: Completed pre-proposals are required for all categories and must
be received by 5 p.m. (EDT) on October 8, 2009. Full proposal
submissions must be received by 5 p.m. (EDT) on December 7, 2009. A
complete pre-proposal is a prerequisite for submission of a full
proposal. Applications received after the above deadlines will not be
considered.
ADDRESSES: Pre-proposal submissions from Federal and non-Federal
applicants can be either by e-mail (preferred, send to
[email protected]) or by hard-copy. If by e-mail, please put your
last name in the subject heading along with the words OE Pre-proposal,
e.g., Smith OE Pre-proposal. Adobe PDF format is preferred. No
facsimile pre-proposals will be accepted. Non-Federal applicants are
strongly encouraged to submit full proposals through Grants.gov. Non-
Federal applicants without Internet access may submit hard-copies to:
ATTN: Dr. Nicolas Alvarado, NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and
Research, SSMC III, 10th Floor, 1315 East West Highway, Silver Spring,
Maryland 20910. No e-mail or facsimile full proposal submissions will
be accepted from non-Federal applicants. Federal applicants may submit
full proposals either by e-mail (preferred, send to
[email protected]) or by hard-copy. No facsimile full proposal
submissions will be accepted from Federal applicants.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information contact the
NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research at (301)734-1015 or
submit inquiries via e-mail to the Frequently Asked Questions address:
[email protected]. E-mail inquiries should include the Principal
Investigator's name in the subject heading. Inquiries can be mailed to:
ATTN: Dr. Nicolas Alvarado NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and
Research, 1315 East-West Highway SSMC3, 10th Floor, R/OER, Silver
Spring, Maryland 20910.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Ocean exploration was defined by the 2000
President's Panel on Ocean Exploration, as ``discovery through
disciplined diverse observations and the recording of the finding.''
NOAA's Office of Ocean Exploration and Research seeks to catalyze ocean
discovery and understanding at our ocean and Great
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Lakes frontiers through bold and innovative explorations. These
explorations should revolutionize our knowledge baselines by exploring,
characterizing and mapping, at new and/or higher scales, the oceans
living and nonliving resources and its physical, chemical and
biological characteristics. Data and observations resulting from OE
expeditions will result in new discoveries, new insight, new knowledge
and new frontiers and will likely lead to the revision of existing
paradigms or the formulation of new paradigms in the oceans poorly
known and unknown regions. The purpose of this announcement is to
invite the submission of pre-proposals and full proposals that address
ocean exploration and advanced technology development.
Through discovery and the systematic exploration of unknown ocean
areas and phenomena, OER serves to ensure NOAA can meet its goal to,
``Protect, Restore, and Manage the Use of Coastal and Ocean Resources
Through an Ecosystem Approach to Management'' (New Priorities for the
21st Century, NOAA's Strategic Vision). The results of OER activities
are cornerstones upon which ecosystems will be discovered, defined and
understood thus enabling them to be protected, restored, and managed.
The interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary nature of OER activities
also serves NOAA's current strategic plan (New Priorities for the 21st
Century--NOAA's Strategic Plan) goal to ``Understand Climate
Variability and Change to Enhance Society's Ability to Plan and
Respond.'' The discovery and characterization of new ocean phenomena
and dynamic processes provide essential information for understanding
ocean--atmosphere connections and their influence on climate. The
discovery of new habitats and species also provides essential
information for understanding the effects of a changing climate on the
marine resources upon which we depend.
The need for interdisciplinary ocean exploration is echoed as a
priority in NOAA's 20-year research vision, Understanding Global
Ecosystems to Support Informed Decision-Making, because they provide a
foundation for understanding complex relationships between ocean and
terrestrial ecosystems. This need is also elaborated in NOAA's current
5-year research plan, Research in NOAA: Toward Understanding and
Predicting Earth's Environment, and both the vision and the plan
acknowledge the need for new ocean technologies, including new sensors
and platforms as well as enhanced information and telecommunications
technologies. OERS core activities also directly address the Ocean
Research Priorities Plan and Implementation Strategy challenge of
``Expanding the Scientific Frontier: The Need for Fundamental
Science,'' which states, ``It is essential that the nation cultivate
and investigate new ideas about the ocean and new approaches for
exploring the marine environment that may challenge existing
interpretations. In doing so, society should recognize and even
encourage risk-taking in supporting the most exciting and promising
ideas for making progress in understanding the ocean.''
Charting The Course For Ocean Science, NSTC Joint Subcommittee On
Ocean Science And Technology, Jan. 26, 2007, p. 6.
OER provides a foundation for all six themes in the Ocean Research
Priorities Plan through its exploration and discovery mission. Further,
as envisioned in the Report of the President's Panel on Ocean
Exploration, Discovering the Earth's Final Frontier: A U.S. Strategy
for Ocean Exploration, OER also engages in partnerships with other
agencies and programs, e.g., the National Science Foundation, the
Department of Interior Minerals Management Service, the Office of Naval
Research, the Census of Marine Life, and the National Oceanographic
Partnership Program, to leverage its pursuit and achievement of NOAA
goals. In furtherance of the program objectives stated above, OER
encourages proposals that explore the unknown or poorly known, test new
ideas, utilize new approaches, and develop new technologies in ocean
exploration. Because interdisciplinary expeditions are a keystone of
NOAA's Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, scientists are
strongly encouraged to collaborate by submitting a single proposal for
a multi-disciplinary expedition.
Collaborations that include international representation are also
encouraged. Only exploratory proposals will be funded; any other types
of projects will not be reviewed.
Electronic Access:
The full text of the full Federal Funding Opportunity announcement
(FFO) 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 Federal Funding Opportunity announcement.
Statutory Authority: 33 U.S.C. 3403(a)(4).
CFDA: 11.460, Special Oceanic and Atmospheric Projects.
Funding Availability: In anticipation of the FY 2010 President's
Budget, OER anticipates a total of approximately $3,000,000 will be
available through this announcement. Depending on the quality and
quantity of proposals received, OER anticipates supporting
approximately 6 awards through this solicitation, resulting in an
average award level of approximately $500,000. At the discretion of the
program, FY 2011 funds may be used to sponsor proposals submitted as
part of this competition. The amount of funding available through this
announcement is subject to the final FY 2010 appropriation for the
Office of Ocean Exploration and Research. Publication of this
announcement does not obligate NOAA to fund any specific project or to
obligate all or any part of available funds. There is no guarantee that
sufficient funds will be available to initiate or continue research
activities where funding has been recommended by OER. The exact amount
of funds that OER may recommend be granted will be determined in pre-
award negotiations between the applicant and NOAA representatives.
Future opportunities for submitting proposals may be available and will
depend on OER funding levels.
Eligibility: Eligible applicants are institutions of higher
education; other nonprofits; commercial organizations; foreign
governments; organizations under the jurisdiction of foreign
governments; international organizations; State, local and Indian
tribal governments; and Federal agencies.
Please 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.
Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost-sharing is not required.
Application Package Forms: Pre-proposals: Applicants must submit a
two-page pre-proposal narrative (See section IV.B.1. of the FFO), in
addition to a cover sheet that may be obtained through the OER Office
Web site at: http://explore.noaa.gov/cover-sheet. For applicants
without Internet access, hard copies of the cover sheet can be obtained
via mail at NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 1315 East
West Highway, SSMC 3, 10th Floor,
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Silver Spring, Maryland 20910, or requested by phone at (301) 734-1015.
Full Proposals: Application forms for full proposals are available
through Grants.gov. In addition to the application forms, applicants
must submit a proposal cover sheet, which is found at OER Web site
http://explore.noaa.gov/cover-sheet.
For applicants without Internet access, hard copies of the cover
sheet and the application package can be obtained via mail at NOAA
Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 1315 East West Highway, SSMC
3, 10th Floor, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910, or requested by phone at
(301) 734-1015 as well. Supplemental information regarding the standard
NOAA grants documentation can be obtained at: http://www.ofa.noaa.gov/%7Egrants/appkit.html. All applicants are encouraged to visit the Ocean
Explorer Web site (http://www.oceanexplorer.noaa.gov) to familiarize
themselves with past and present OER-funded activities. Background
information on how to apply for the program is found on the OER Office
Web site at http://www.explore.noaa.gov.
Evaluation Criteria and Selection Procedures: The general
evaluation criteria and selection factors that apply to full
applications to this funding opportunity are summarized below. Further
information about the evaluation criteria and selection factors can be
found in the full funding opportunity announcement.
Evaluation Criteria for Projects: Pre-Proposal Evaluation Criteria:
The OER Director, in consultation with the office staff, will make the
decision to encourage or discourage full proposal submissions based on
one or more of the following factors, which are amplified in the
section on review of full proposals: (1) Importance, Relevance and
Applicability of Proposal to the OER Goals and thematic priorities (see
section I.A. Office and Notice Objectives and section I.B. Office
Priorities and Guidance of the FFO); (2) Scientific and Technical
Merit; (3) Overall qualifications of applicants; (4) Project Costs; (5)
Logistical feasibility (e.g., ship or equipment availability); and (6)
Consistency with the priorities of this announcement.
Full Proposal Evaluation Criteria: Full proposals will be evaluated
and rated individually by three or more independent peer reviewers and/
or a peer-review panel. The following criteria will be used to review
proposals using the corresponding weight value:
1. Importance/Relevance and Applicability of Proposal to OER goals
(40%): This criterion ascertains whether there is intrinsic value in
the proposed work and relevance to appropriate NOAA, international,
Federal, regional, State, or local activities. For the OER review
process this includes the degree to which the proposal addresses and
supports OER's mission, objectives, themes and priorities (see section
I.A. Office and Notice Objectives and section I.B. Office Priorities
and Guidance of the FFO). A central aspect of this criteria is whether
the proposed effort is exploratory in nature (expanding the breadth of
knowledge) as opposed to a research focus (expanding the depth of
knowledge on any particular topic).
2. Scientific and Technical Merit (40%): This criterion ascertains
whether the approach is technically sound and/or innovative, if the
methods are appropriate, and whether there are clear project goals and
objectives. For the OER review process, in addition to the scientific,
and/or technical merit of the effort, review criteria include whether:
(a) The effort is interdisciplinary with suitable plans and methods,
(b) the anticipated results (as appropriate, scientific, technical,
historical, cultural, societal or economic) will have high downstream
impact, e.g., leading to the revision of existing paradigms, the
formulation of new paradigms or new frontiers of knowledge or activity
and (c) plans for preservation, documentation, and sharing of data,
multimedia, specimen collections are adequately and clearly outlined.
3. Overall qualifications of applicants (10%): This ascertains
whether the applicant(s) possesses the necessary education, experience,
training, facilities and administrative resources to accomplish the
project. For the OER review process this includes (a) The
qualifications of the applicant(s), (b) the strength, diversity and
depth of any partnership to accomplish the work proposed, and (c) the
applicant's prior OER award performance, including timely publication
of results, if applicable.
4. Project Costs (10%): This criterion evaluates the budget to
determine if it is realistic and commensurate with the project needs
and time-frame. For the OER review process this includes the
reasonableness of project costs, relative to the scope and impact of
work proposed and the available funds.
5. Outreach and education (no points): This criterion assesses
whether the project provides a focused and effective education and
outreach strategy regarding NOAA's mission to protect the Nation's
natural resources. This criterion is not used in this competition.
Review and Selection Process: The OER Director, in consultation
with the program staff, will make the decision to encourage or
discourage full proposal submissions based on one or more of the
evaluation criteria stated under Evaluation Criteria for Projects. A
complete pre-proposal is a prerequisite for submission of a full
proposal. The final decision to submit a full proposal is up to the
applicant. Once a full proposal is received by NOAA, an initial
administrative review is conducted to determine compliance with
requirements and completeness of the application. If proposals are
determined to be in compliance and complete, a proposal will be
subjected to peer-review. Peer reviewers shall rate the individual
proposals using the evaluation criteria and percentage weights provided
above and provide summary comment. Both Federal and non-Federal experts
in the field may be used in the peer-review process, which may include
external mail reviews and/or a peer-review panel. Peer-review panelists
will not be asked to reach consensus on individual proposals. Based on
the individual external mail reviewer scores, summary comments and, as
appropriate, summaries and scores by the panelists, the OER Senior
Scientist, in consultation with appropriate OER staff, will make
funding recommendations to the OER Director. In making the final
selections, the OER Director 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 stated in the section entitled
Selection Factors for Projects and further explained in section V.C of
the FFO.
Selection Factors for Projects: The Selecting Official shall award
in the rank order unless the proposal is justified to be selected out
of rank order based on the following factors.
1. Availability of funding.
2. Balance/distribution of funds:
a. Geographically (This includes ship availability).
b. By type of institutions.
c. By type of partners.
d. By research areas.
e. By project types.
3. Whether this project duplicates other projects funded or
considered for funding by NOAA or other Federal agencies.
4. Program priorities and policy factors (as in section I.B of the
FFO).
5. Applicants prior award performance.
6. Partnerships and/or participation of targeted groups.
7. Adequacy of information necessary for NOAA staff to make a NEPA
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determination and draft necessary documentation before recommendations
for funding are made to the Grants Officer.
Intergovernmental Review: Applications under this office are
subject to Executive Order 12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal
Programs.'' Applicants must contact their State's Single Point of
Contact (SPOC) to find out about and comply with the State's process
under EO 12372. The names and addresses of the SPOC's are listed in the
Office of Management and Budget's Web site: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/spoc.html.
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://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.
Dated: August 24, 2009.
Mark E. Brown,
Chief Financial Officer, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research,
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. E9-20740 Filed 8-26-09; 8:45 am]
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