[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 186 (Thursday, September 25, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50295-50299]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-25437]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
[Docket No. 9707-14173-7173-01]
RIN 0648-ZA31


Coastal Services Center Broad Area Announcement

AGENCY: National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of availability of Federal assistance.

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SUMMARY: The Coastal Services Center announces the availability of 
Federal assistance for fiscal year 1998 in the following program areas: 
Landscape Characterization and Restoration; the Coastal Change Analysis 
Program; Coastal Remote Sensing; Integration and Development; the 
administration of the Coastal Management Fellowship program; training 
and meeting facilitation; and Special Projects. This announcement 
provides general descriptions of the categories of projects for which 
federal assistance may be available. Detailed guidelines for each of 
the program areas are available from the technical points of contact. 
These guidelines will include details for the technical program, 
evaluation criteria, selection procedures, and the standard NOAA Grants 
Application forms. Funding will be contingent upon availability of 
funds.

DATES: Specific guidelines, and NOAA application forms,for each of 
these program areas will be available and distributed to respondents to 
these announcements throughout fiscal quarters 1 and 2 for awards 
throughout FY98.

ADDRESSES: Send requests for general information about the CSC or the 
assistance programs to Coastal Services Center, Attn: Ms. Violet 
Legette, NOAA Coastal Service Center, 2234 South Hobson Avenue, 
Charleston, South Carolina, 29405-2413.
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Landscape 
Characterization and Restoration Program, please contact: Pace Wilber 
at (803) 974-6235 or [email protected].
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Coastal

[[Page 50296]]

Change Analysis Program, please contact: Dorsey Worthy at (803) 974-
6234 or [email protected].
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Coastal 
Remote Sensing program, please contact: John Brock at (803) 974-6239 or 
[email protected].
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Integration 
and Development program, please contact: Miki Schmidt at (803) 974-6237 
or [email protected].
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Coastal 
Management Fellowship program, please contact: Paul M. Scholz at (803) 
974-6208 or [email protected].
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Coastal 
Training Institute program, please contact: Jennet Robinson Alterman at 
(803) 974-6210 or [email protected].
    For specific guidelines and information regarding the Special 
Projects program, please contact: Paul M. Scholz at (803) 974-6208 or 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Violet Legette, Resource 
Management Services, at (803) 974-6222 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Authority: Statutory authority for these awards is provided 
under 16 U.S.C. Sec. 1456.c (Technical Assistance); 15 U.S.C. Sec. 
1540 (Cooperative Agreements); 33 U.S.C. Sec. 1442 [Research program 
respecting possible long-range effects of pollution, overfishing, 
and man-induced changes of ocean ecosystems]; 33 U.S.C. Sec. 883a et 
seq [Surveys and other activities]; and, 33 U.S.C. Sec. 1441 
(Monitoring and research programs).

    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA). The CSC Program 
is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance under Number 
11.473.

Program Description

    The goal of the Coastal Services Center is to build capabilities 
throughout the nation which simultaneously address pressing issues of 
coastal health and change by conserving coastal environments including 
coastal wetlands, riparian forested wetlands, maritime forests, 
fisheries/shell fisheries, and other living marine resources and by 
promoting efficient and sustainable industry, farming, commercial and 
residential development, urban redevelopment, and tourism. Each of the 
following programs is available to provide federal assistance for 
projects in the areas described below. For specific information about 
any of the programs, or for instructions on completing an application, 
please contact the technical points of contact listed for each program.

Landscape Characterization and Restoration Program

    The goal of the Landscape Characterization and Restoration Program 
is to help coastal managers include ecosystem processes in their 
resource management, regulatory, and land use planning decisions. The 
Program works towards this goal by examining interrelationships between 
ecology, land use, human demographic, and socioeconomic trends on 
ecosystem/watershed scales and by developing tools needed to integrate 
those relationships into management processes. The Program's projects 
generally include development of habitat, wetland function, 
demographic, and land use maps; information syntheses; natural resource 
databases; and environmental models; and a customized geographic 
information system (GIS) or similar software to forecast results of 
management alternatives. While the Program routinely uses Unix-based 
systems, premiums are placed on tools used in a PC environment. Total 
program budget for FY98 will in the range of $250,000 to $400,000. On a 
per project basis, the range for funding available for FY98 is $30,000 
to $200,000.
    During FY98, the Program anticipates pursuing projects along the 
following lines:
    (1) Ecological and socioeconomic characterizations of special 
management areas (e.g., National Marine Sanctuaries of Estuarine 
Research Reserves), small- to medium-size watersheds that represent 
special management issues (e.g., Kachemak Bay, AK, Great Bay, NH, Casco 
Bay, ME, Savannah River Estuary, GA).
    (2) Ecological and socioeconomic characterizations of specific 
coastal management issues over broad geographic ranges (e.g., shellfish 
in the Gulf of Mexico, water delivery to estuaries in the southeastern 
U.S., invasions by non-native species to Pacific ports).
    (3) Reviews and development of GIS-based tools for siting habitat 
restoration projects and forecasting success (e.g., identification of 
filled marshes from aerial photography, using wind and wave models to 
forecast the erosion potential of marsh and seagrass restoration 
sites).
    For more information, please contact Pace Wilber at (803) 974-6235 
or [email protected].

Coastal Change Analysis Program

    The Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) is a nationwide effort 
by the NOAA Coastal Services Center, U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC), 
to produce standardized land cover and benthic habitat maps and change 
data for all coastal areas of the United States. This work is 
accomplished in close cooperation with state and local resource 
management agencies. The objectives of the program are to produce 
nationally consistent baseline and change data, and to determine the 
impacts these changes have on living marine resources for informed 
coastal decision making as well as for identifying and protecting 
essential fish habitat. For these C-CAP projects, consideration for 
funding will be limited to public resource management agencies in the 
following states: Alaska, California, Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, 
New York, Oregon, and Washington.
    C-CAP anticipates initiating projects in three general areas in 
FY98:
    (1) New Terrestrail land Cover Change Analysis Projects will be 
initiated to derive Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM)-based terrestrial 
wetland sand uplands land cover characterizations and change for state 
or regional scale studies. These projects are part of the continuing C-
CAP effort to establish a baseline change assessment for all coastal 
areas of the United States. Anticipated funding for FY98 will range 
from $10,000 to $300,000.
    (2) New Seagrass and Other Submerged-Benthic Mapping Projects will 
be initiated to derive location and change maps of seagrass and other 
nearshore benthic resources as part of the continuing C-CAP effort to 
establish a baseline change assessment for all coastal areas of the 
United States. Anticipated funding for FY98 will range form $10,000 to 
100,000.
    (3) State and Local Land Cover and Benthic Change Applications 
Projects will be initiated to foster local (county or township level) 
use of C-CAP land cover and benthic resource maps for coastal land use 
planning and management. Anticipated funding for FY98 will range from 
$10,000 to $30,000.
    For more information, please contact Dorsey Worthy at 803-974-6234 
or [email protected].

Coastal Remote Sensing Program

    The Coastal Remote Sensing (CRS) Program seeks to provide coastal 
resource managers with practical high-technology data products based on 
new developments in remote sensing CRS

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identifies promising new remote sensing technologies, and works to 
bridge science and management by prototyping remote sensing data 
products that aid coastal decision makers. Current CRS projects involve 
the creation of advanced coastal resource mangement tools through both 
satellite and aircraft-based remote sensing. In support of this goal, 
CRS is currently conducing several closely related field-sampling and 
satellite ocean color remote sensing projects, in addition to several 
aircraft remote sensing projects. Any possible funding for assistance 
in FY98 may range in amount between $1,000 and $200,000.
    During FY98, the Coastal Remote Sensing Program anticipates 
pursuing the following project activities:
    (1) CRS is pursuing the multi-regional collection of in situ bio-
optical data in diverse US Case 2 and Case 1 coastal waters. CRS is 
analyzing this high quality bio-optical data to yield a full suite of 
geographically widespread measurements appropriate for the evaluation, 
intercomparison and regional enhancement of the NASDA and NASA in-water 
bio-optical algorithms for ADEOS/OCTS and SeaWiFS data products.
    (2) The CRS coastal US data archive of advanced multiple-season, 
in-situ bio-optical measurements from disparate US coastal, plus all 
collected historical B/O/WQ data, is being made publicly available via 
a World Wide Web-accessible Coastal Bio-optical data Analysis and 
Storage System (CoBASS). Documentation in the form of cruise reports 
will be provided for these advanced bio-optical data sets collected by 
the CRS Program.
    (3) CRS will undertake the evaluation, intercomparison, and further 
refinement of standard algorithms for the generation of ocean color 
products for diverse coastal US bio-optical provinces. We will seek to 
explain the performance of standard OCTS and SeasWiFS in-water 
algorithms in the context of inter-regional and inter-seasonal 
variation in inherent optical properties arising through planktonic 
ecosystem functioning and structure, and variability in the 
biochemistry and sedimentology of major terrestial inputs, such as 
river plumes.
    (4) CRS will undertake the adaption of NASA software to create a 
software package tailored to support the high scientific quality 
processing of coastal US satellite ocean color observations acquired by 
either ADEOS/OCTS and SeaWiFS, to support the creation of data products 
for coastal resource management and applied research.
    (5) CRS will pursue the development of high scientific-quality, 
full resolution retrospective time series of satellite data products. 
CRS will create and make available via the WWW near-real time data 
products based on the fusion of satellite and in situ data with model 
forecasts; these products will provide timely information on issues of 
relevance to coastal resource managers.
    (6) CRS will undertake the development of aircraft remote sensing 
techniques for high spatial resolution sensing of biological water 
quality within inshore coastal areas at costs that are low enough to 
allow repetitive surveys. These project activities are intended to: (1) 
Develop a capability for regional, low-cost monitoring of the 
chlorophyll, salinity, and turbidity fields in coastal areas, and (2) 
provide ground truth information for ocean color satellites in Case 2 
water and (3) aid in the development of algorithms specific to regional 
water types.
    (7) In response to the need for accurate, timely information on 
beach and dune field topography, and also pertaining to gradual or 
catastrophic coastal change, and erosion over broad expanses of 
coastline, CRS will undertake the mapping of coastal topography using 
aircraft LIDAR techniques. To establish the capability for highly 
accurate retrieval of coastal topography and erosion, CRS will map 
beach elevation over the middle and south Atlantic coast. CRS 
anticipates that these data will be useful in monitoring and assessing 
coastal erosion, including severe erosion due to hurricanes and other 
meteorological disturbances.
    For more information, please contact John Brock at 803-974-6239 or 
[email protected].

Integration and Development

    The Integration and Development (I&D) program focuses on product 
development, I&D's primary customers are the nation's coastal resource 
managers and other Coastal Services Center components. I&D specializes 
in linking the technical benefits of geographic information systems 
(GIS) with the political needs of coastal managers to enhance 
decisions. For coastal managers, I&D strives to provide readily 
accessible, spatial (geographic) information for decision-making 
support and visualization. To support this goal, I&D has a program for 
local government planning, management, and liaison services in 
developing community based hazard mitigation GIS-based decision support 
systems.
    In FY98, the Coastal Services Center will participate in three 
local demonstration projects to develop integrated hazard mitigation 
decision support systems in Florida, North Carolina and Ohio. These 
projects will involve partnerships with various federal, state, and 
local agencies but will be targeted primarily for implementation at the 
local government level. Liaison services will be required from an 
organization with strong local government connections and expertise. 
Specific expertise will also be required in the areas of community 
planning, emergency management, and hazard mitigation. Total grant 
amount is estimated between $100,000 and $300,000.
    For more information, please contact Miki Schmidt at 803-974-6237 
or [email protected].

Coastal Management Fellowship

    The Coastal Services Center Coastal Management Fellowship was 
established to provide professional on-the-job education and training 
opportunities for post-graduate students in coastal resource management 
and policy and to provide specific technical assistance for state 
coastal resource management programs. The program matches highly 
qualified recently graduated masters, professional degree, and doctoral 
students with hosts around the U.S. in state coastal zone management 
programs. For two years the recipients will work on substantive state-
level coastal resource management issues that pertain to federal 
management policies and regulations. The recipients are designated 
Coastal Services Center Coastal Management Fellows.
    Funding to support the CSC Coastal Management Fellows is provided 
by several sources: the federal government, state governmental 
agencies, private industry, and non-profit organizations (501.c3's). 
The two year Fellowship award of $64,000 with an additional $12,000 
State match made for each Fellow includes $30,000 per year salary for 
the Fellow, divided into a $20,000 stipend and $10,000 for per diem 
living expenses. The remaining $8,000 per year shall be divided as 
follows: $5,000 for fringe benefits, including health insurance, 
worker's compensation insurance, and the employer's share of FICA; 
$1,000 for reimbursable moving expenses; and $2,000 for travel 
associated with the fellowship experience. NOAA and the other funding 
sources will provide funding directly to the organization that will 
administer the Fellowship awards. The organization selected to 
administer the Fellowship awards shall be capable of receiving and 
processing funding from

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all existing and potential funding sources. The organization selected 
to administer the grants shall be capable of providing all 
administrative and financial support required for between six and 
twenty Fellows per year, according to the guidelines set forth by the 
Coastal Services Center. Total program budget for FY98 will be in the 
range of $128,000 to $700,000. This program will be administered as a 
Cooperative Agreement, with substantial involvement by the Coastal 
Services Center in the implementation and coordination of the 
Fellowship Program.
    For more information, please contact Paul M. Scholz at 803-974-6208 
or [email protected].

Coastal Training Institute

    The goal of the Coastal Training Institute is to provide technical 
training to support the development and use of Coastal Services Center 
products and services by the coastal management community. The Training 
Institute serves as an ongoing resource for training design, delivery 
and professional meeting/conference planning and logistics. Through 
specialized training workshops, professional conferences and meeting 
support services, the Coastal Training Institute provides ongoing 
opportunities for professional development and technical training. 
Services provided by the Training Institute include:

 Training development and design
 Needs assessment and evaluation
 Training delivery and training of trainers
 Facilitation and meeting management
 Meeting planning and logistical support

    In FY98 the Coastal Training Institute will conduct up to 10 
technical workshops and conferences in partnership with NOAA line 
offices, other federal agencies and state natural resource management 
agencies. Specific expertise in on site meeting management/logistical 
support, facilitation services, training design and delivery as well as 
technical trainers will be required. Anticipated funding for FY98 will 
be between $25,000 and $200,000. On a per project basis, the range for 
funding available is between $25,000 and $100,000. For more 
information, please contact Jennet Robinson Alterman at (803) 974-6210 
or [email protected].

Special Projects

    The Coastal Services Center has conducted a variety of projects 
that have resulted in technical, management or planning for outcomes 
that apply directly to the state and local coastal management 
community. The goal of this program is to provide assistance to the 
coastal management community for technical management related issued on 
a very broad range of topics related to coastal resources and their 
wise management. This has ranged from boating, shipping and navigation, 
to beach management and conservation, coastal hazards mitigation, 
protected areas, all forms of pollution and control, as well as 
training, education and outreach activities. In some cases, projects 
have included use of high-end spatial data and in other level meetings, 
workshops, and reports. The Coastal Services Center expects to work an 
equally broad range of topics and will be granting awards to 
organizations across the United States with proven abilities to 
implement practical solutions at a state and local level. All project 
proposal received in this category will be reviewed for technical merit 
and management relevance. The specific guidelines will include special 
projects evaluation criteria with point values to be assigned. In 
addition, program policy factors may be considered in final award 
decisions to ensure a variety of topic areas, geographical 
distribution, and/or organization type are represented in the final mix 
by quarter. Project proposals received for this program will be 
reviewed on the following timelines: Proposals received October 1-
December 31--January review; January 1-March 31--April review; April 1-
September 30--October review.
    Anticipated funding for this in FY98 will be between $50,000 and 
$750,000. On a per project basis, the range for funding available is 
between $25,000 and $300,000.
    For more information, please contact Paul M. Scholz at 803-974-6208 
or [email protected].

Evaluation

    Specific evaluation criteria and selection procedures will be 
identified in the program guidelines distributed to requesters. These 
guidelines will include point value for each ranking criteria and a 
detailed description of the selection process and timeline.

Funding Availability

    Specific funding available for awards in each of these categories 
will be finalized after the NOAA budget for FY98 is authorized, 
however, total funding availability for this announcement will be 
between $500,000 and $3,000,000. There is no guarantee that sufficient 
funds will be available to make awards for all approved projects. 
Publication of this notice does not obligate NOAA to award any specific 
grant or cooperative agreement or to obligate all or any parts of the 
available funds.

Cost Sharing

    Applications must reflect the total budget to accomplish the 
project, including contributions and/or donations. Cost sharing is not 
required by general office policy, however, individual program 
guidelines may indicate cost share requirements and assign point 
values.

Type of Funding Instrument

    The projects will be awarded either as a Grant or a Cooperative 
Agreement, distributed by the Coastal Service Center.

Eligibility Criteria

    Applications for grants and cooperative agreements under this 
program announcement may be submitted, in accordance with the 
procedures set forth in the specific guidelines to be published by each 
program area, by any state resource management agency, college or 
university, private industry, or any nonprofit organization relating to 
cooperative research units. Other Federal agencies or institutions are 
not eligible to receive Federal assistance under this notice. Specific 
eligibility criteria for each program will be provided in the 
guidelines for proposal submission.
    Before submitting an application under this program, applicants 
should contact the appropriate technical point of contact for a copy of 
the specific proposal guidelines for the program area. Applications for 
the project funding under this program must be complete and in 
accordance with the instructions in the proposal guidelines.

Award Period

    The normal award period under this announcement will be one year, 
but for some programs the period will be longer. Interested applicants 
should consult with specific technical points of contact for additional 
information.

Indirect Costs

    The total dollar amount of the indirect costs proposed in an 
application under this program must not exceed the current indirect 
cost rate negotiated and approved by the applicant's cognizant Federal 
agency, prior to the proposed effective date of the award or 100 
percent of the total proposed direct

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costs dollar amount in the application, whichever is less.

Project Funding Priorities

    Funding priorities will be set by individual programs award 
categories depending on the FY98 appropriations.

Federal Policies and Procedures

    Recipients and sub-recipients are subject to all Federal laws and 
Federal and DOC policies, regulations, and procedures applicable to 
Federal assistance awards.

Name Check Review

    All non-profit and for-profit applicants are subject to a name 
check review process. Name checks are intended to reveal if any key 
individuals associated with the recipient have been convicted of, or 
are presently facing, criminal charges such as fraud, theft, perjury, 
or other matters that significantly reflect on the recipient's 
management, honesty, or financial integrity.

Past Performance

    Unsatisfactory performance under prior Federal awards may result in 
an application not being considered for funding.

Pre-Award Activities

    If applicants incur any costs prior to an award being made, they do 
so solely at their own risk of not being reimbursed by the Government. 
Notwithstanding any verbal or written assurance that may have been 
received, there is no obligation on the part of DOC to cover pre-award 
costs.

No Obligation for Future Funding

    If the application is selected for funding, DOC has no obligation 
to provide any additional future funding in connection with that award. 
Renewal of an award to increase funding or extend the period of 
performance is at the total discretion of DOC.

Delinquent Federal Debts

    No award or Federal Funds shall be made to an applicant who has an 
outstanding delinquent Federal debt until either:

(i) The delinquent account is paid in full,
(ii) A negotiated repayment schedule is established and at least one 
payment is received, or
(iii) Other arrangements satisfactory to DOC are made.

Primary Applicant Certifications

    All organizations or individuals preparing grant applications must 
submit a completed Form CD-511 ``Certifications Regarding Debarment, 
Suspension, and Other Responsibility Matters; Drug-Free Workplace 
Requirements and Lobbying,'' and explanations are hereby provided:

Non-Procurement Debarment and Suspension

    Prospective participants (as defined at 15 CFR part 26, Section 
105) are subject to 15 CFR part 26, ``Nonprocurement Debarment and 
Suspension'' and the related section of the certification form 
prescribed above applies;

Drug-Free Workplace

    Grantees (as defined at 15 CFR part 26, Section 605) are subject to 
15 CFR part 26, subpart f, ``Government side Requirements for Drug-Free 
Workplace (Grants)'' and the related section of the certification form 
prescribed above applies;

Anti-Lobbying

    Persons (as defined at 15 CFR part 28, Section 105) are subject to 
the lobbying provisions of 31 U.S.C. 1352, ``Limitation on use of 
appropriated funds to influence certain Federal contracting and 
financial transactions,'' and the lobbying section of the certification 
form prescribed above applies to application/bids for grants, 
cooperative agreements, and contracts for more than $100,000, and loans 
and loan guarantees for more than $150,000, or the single family 
maximum mortgage limit for affected programs, whichever is greater; and

Anti-Lobbying Disclosures

    Any applicant that has paid or will pay for lobbying using any 
funds must submit an SF-LLL, ``Disclosure of Lobbying Activities,'' as 
required under 15 CFR part 28, Appendix B.

Lower-Tier Certifications

    Recipients shall require applicants/bidders for sub-grants, 
contracts, subcontracts, or other lower-tier-covered transactions at 
any tier under the award to submit, if applicable, a completed Form CD-
512, ``Certifications Regarding Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility 
and Voluntary Exclusion-Lower Tier Covered Transactions and Lobbying'' 
and disclosure form, SF-LLL, ``Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.'' 
Form CD-512 is intended for the use of recipients and should not be 
transmitted to DOC. SF-LLL submitted by any tier recipient or sub-
recipient should be submitted to DOC in accordance with the 
instructions contained in the aware document.

False Statements

    A false statement on an application is grounds for denial or 
termination of funds and grounds for possible punishment by a fine or 
imprisonment as provided in 18 U.S.C. 1001.

Intergovernmental Review

    Applications under this program are subject to Executive Order 
12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''

Buy American-Made Equipment or Products

    Applicants are hereby notified that they will be encouraged, to the 
greatest extent practicable, to purchase American-made equipment and 
products with funding provided under this program in accordance with 
Congressional intent.

Classification

    This action has been determined to be not significant for purposes 
of Executive Order 12866.
    Prior notice and an opportunity for public comment are not required 
by the Administrative Procedure Act or any other law for this notice 
concerning grants, cooperative agreements, benefits, and contracts. 
Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis is not required for 
purposes of the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is required 
to respond 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 Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) unless that collection of 
information displays a currently valid OMB control number.
    This notice contains a collection-of-information requirement 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act. The collection-of-information 
has been approved by OMB, OMB Control Numbers 0348-0043, 0348-0044, 
0348-0040, 0348-0046, and 0605-0001.

    Dated: September 17, 1997.
Nancy Foster,
Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal Zone Management.
[FR Doc. 97-25437 Filed 9-24-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-12-M