[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 55 (Tuesday, March 21, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 15125-15129]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-6980]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Docket No. [000202023-0023-01; I.D. No. 011000B]
RIN 0648-ZA78


Announcement of Opportunity to submit proposals for the Coastal 
Ecosystem Research Project in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

AGENCY: Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research/Coastal Ocean 
Program (CSCOR/COP), National Ocean Service (NOS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Announcement of Funding Opportunity 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 
NOAA/NOS/

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CSCOR/COP is soliciting proposals from 1 to 3 years in duration for 
monitoring studies, particularly of the hypoxic zone, and for 
retrospective and modeling studies in the Northern Gulf of Mexico (N-
GOMEX). It is anticipated that projects funded under this announcement 
will have a July 1, 2000, start date.
    This notice solicits applications for research projects from 
eligible non-Federal and Federal applicants. In an effort to maximize 
the use of limited resources, applications from non-Federal, non-NOAA 
Federal and NOAA applicants will be competed against each other. 
Research proposals selected for funding from non-Federal researchers 
will be funded through a project grant. Research proposals selected for 
funding from non-NOAA Federal applicants will be funded through an 
interagency transfer provided legal authority exists for the federal 
applicant to receive funds from another agency. Research proposals 
selected for funding from NOAA will be funded through NOAA.

DATES: The deadline for receipt of proposals at the COP office is 3:00 
pm, EST, April 21, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Submit the original and 10 copies of your proposal to 
Coastal Ocean Program Office (N-GOMEX 2000), SSMC#3, 9th Floor, Station 
9700, 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910. NOAA Standard 
Form Applications with instructions are accessible on the following COP 
Internet Site: http://www.cop.noaa.gov under the COP Grants Support 
Section, Part D, Application Forms for Initial Proposal Submission. If 
you are unable to access this information, you may call COP at 301-713-
3338 to leave a mailing request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Technical Information: Kenric Osgood, 
N-GOMEX 2000 Program Manager, COP Office, 301-713-3338/ext 130, 
Internet: [email protected]; Business Management Information: 
Leslie McDonald, COP Grants Administrator, 301-713-3338/ext 137, 
Internet: [email protected]. The following web sites furnish 
results of studies concerning the periodic hypoxia associated with the 
northern Gulf of Mexico referred to later in this Document under 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/ocd/necop/ and 
http://www.nos.noaa.gov/Products/pubs__hypox.html.
    A report of the workshop, U.S. GLOBEC report No. 19, is available 
from the following address or homepage: U.S. GLOBEC Coordinating 
Office, UMCES, Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, P.O. Box 38, Solomons, 
MD 20688; Phone: 410-326-7370; Fax: 410-326-7341; Internet: 
[email protected] and http://www.usglobec.org. This report is 
referenced later in this Document under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  

Background

Program Description

    For complete Program Description and Other Requirements criteria 
for the Coastal Ocean Program, see COP's General Grant Administration 
Terms and Conditions annual document in the Federal Register (64 FR 
49162, September 10, 1999) and at the COP home page.
    Coastal regions dominated by large rivers are disproportionately 
important to the biological production of the world's oceans, primarily 
because these rivers carry large amounts of ``new'' nitrogen. An 
important river-dominated coastal ecosystem in the U.S. is the 
Mississippi River, which supports high primary and secondary production 
in the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 20 percent of the U.S. commercial 
fishery landings by dollar value are from the northern Gulf. Major 
recreational fisheries also exist in this region.
    There is a strong relationship between riverine inputs (especially 
nutrients) and primary production, followed in turn by zooplankton 
production and fish production in a classic Nutrient-Phytoplankton-
Zooplankton-Fish food web. Anthropogenic nitrogen loadings from the 
Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico have increased dramatically 
during the past several decades, which has led to changes in the 
ecosystem of the northern Gulf, including (1) the annual development of 
an extensive zone of bottom water hypoxia during the summer stratified 
period; (2) a probable increase in overall biological production; and 
(3) an apparent shift from a balanced pelagic/demersal fish community 
to one significantly more dominated by pelagic fisheries.
    Several past and present programs have studied the periodic hypoxia 
associated with the northern Gulf of Mexico. Notably, from 1990 to 
1997, the Coastal Ocean Program supported a study on Nutrient Enhanced 
Coastal Ocean Productivity; and the Committee on Environment and 
Natural Resources recently completed an integrated assessment of Gulf 
of Mexico hypoxia. Results of those studies can be found on the web 
sites listed earlier in this Document under FURTHER INFORMATION:
    A workshop was held in January 1999 to discuss relationships 
between the Mississippi River, the production of marine populations, 
and ecosystem parameters in the Gulf of Mexico; and to discuss how 
these relationships might be affected by changes in weather and 
climate. A report of the workshop, U.S. GLOBEC report No. 19, is 
available from the address or homepage shown earlier in this Document 
under FURTHER INFORMATION.
    This solicitation for proposals will begin a program to examine the 
inter-relationships driving the Mississippi River-dominated Gulf of 
Mexico ecosystem. The planned suite of studies will enable improved 
predictions about future effects of nutrient loading, eutrophication, 
hypoxia, and climate change on the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. The 
currently requested proposals should focus on monitoring the spatial 
and temporal changes in the distribution of the hypoxic zone in the 
northern Gulf of Mexico. A secondary priority for this announcement is 
the effects of hypoxia on the distribution and abundance of fishery 
species, and the species upon which they depend.

Structure of the Research Program

    The NOAA Coastal Ocean Program intends to support an initial 
research program comprising monitoring and possibly, retrospective 
analyses and modeling. Subsequent announcements may solicit further 
proposals in these areas and for process field studies in the region, 
depending on the outcome of the proposed research solicited here, and 
the levels of future appropriated funding.
    Monitoring studies could include shipboard surveys, multi-
disciplinary mooring observations, drifters, and analysis of regional 
satellite data. Highest priority monitoring activities for this 
announcement are monitoring the magnitude and extent of the hypoxic 
zone in the northern Gulf of Mexico in space and time. Monitoring 
activities with lower priorities for this announcement include 
monitoring the distribution and abundance of nutrient-stimulated 
phytoplankton, zooplankton and fishery populations and their relation 
to eutrophication, hypoxia, and Mississippi River plume dynamics.
    Retrospective analyses are a secondary priority for this initial 
announcement. Retrospective analyses should be used to provide 
quantitative and detailed information on issues relevant to the 
objectives listed above, but not already completed, in the recent CENR 
report. Examples include retrospective analyses of biological data 
concerning key animal populations; retrospective analyses of 
meteorological and physical oceanographic controls on

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plume distribution; retrospective analyses of the coupling between 
transport and population dynamics of key species; and retrospective 
analyses of coupling between climate, drainage basin, and shelf 
oceanography.
    Modeling studies are a tertiary priority for this initial 
announcement. Modeling activities will be used to guide further program 
development and identify important processes for the extensive 
fieldwork anticipated to follow this preliminary phase. For example, 
models of NPZF and trophic responses to varying nutrient inputs, 
including organic flux to the bottom; models of water column stability, 
oxygen demand in bottom waters, and hypoxia; and physical-biological 
coupled models of transport and population dynamics of key zooplankton 
and fishery populations.
    In order to fully develop predictive capability, a more intensive 
5-7 year program is being planned for when additional funding becomes 
available. This complete program will include monitoring, retrospective 
studies, modeling and process field studies to identify relationships 
among ecosystem constituents. The process studies will be nested within 
monitoring efforts which identify and measure important ecosystem 
components, and retrospective and modeling efforts which will place the 
field measurements into broader temporal and theoretical context. The 
overall goal of the entire program is to understand and ultimately 
predict how changes in climate, nutrient loading and hypoxia will 
affect populations of marine animal species in the northern Gulf of 
Mexico. The projects conducted as a result of this solicitation for 
proposals will help guide the development of the more complete program.

Part I: Schedule and Proposal Submission

    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. This announcement, additional background 
information, and proposal preparation instructions will be made 
available on the COP home page (http://www.cop.noaa.gov).

Full Proposals

    Applications submitted in response to this announcement require an 
original proposal and 10 proposal copies at time of submission. This 
includes color or high-resolution graphics, unusually-sized materials 
(not 8.5"  x  11" or 21.6 cm x 28 cm), 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 because of the 
large number of technical reviewers. Facsimile transmissions and 
electronic mail submission of full proposals will not be accepted.

Required Elements

    All recipients are to closely follow the instructions and 
requirements in the preparation of the standard NOAA Application Forms 
and Kit requirements listed in Part II: Further Supplementary 
Information, paragraph (10) of this Document. Each proposal must also 
include the following seven elements:
    (1) Signed summary title page: The title page should be signed by 
the Principal Investigator (PI) and the institutional representative. 
The Summary Title page identifies the project's title starting with the 
acronym N-GOMEX 2000, a short title (50 characters), and the lead PI's 
name and affiliation, complete address, phone, FAX, and E-mail 
information. The requested budget for each fiscal year should be 
included on the Summary Title page. Multi-institution proposals must 
include signed Summary Title pages from each institution.
    (2) One-page abstract/project summary: The Project Summary 
(Abstract) Form, which is to be submitted at time of application, shall 
include an introduction of the problem, rationale, scientific 
objectives and/or hypotheses to be tested, and a brief summary of work 
to be completed. The prescribed COP format for the Project Summary Form 
can be found on the COP Internet site under the COP Grants Support 
Section.
    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.
    (3) Statement of work/project description: The proposed project 
must be completely described, including identification of the problem, 
scientific objectives, proposed methodology, relevance to the program 
goals, and its scientific priorities. The project description section 
(including Relevant Results from Prior Support) should not exceed 15 
pages. Page limits are inclusive of figures and other visual materials, 
but exclusive of references and milestone chart.
    Project management should be clearly identified with a description 
of the functions of each PI within a team. NOAA has specific 
requirements that environmental data be submitted to the National 
Oceanographic Data Center. It is important to provide a full scientific 
justification for the research; do not simply
    reiterate justifications presented in this document. This section 
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, and
    (d) Potential coordination with other investigators.
    (e) References cited: Reference information is required. Each 
reference must include the name(s) of all authors in the same sequence 
in which 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 of the 15-page project description.
    (4) Milestone chart: Time lines of major tasks covering the 
duration of the proposed project, up to 36 months, if proposing a 3-
year project.
    (5) Budget: 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. In lieu of the Standard Form 424A, Budget 
Information (Non-Construction), at time of original application, all 
proposers are required to submit a COP Summary Proposal Budget Form for 
each fiscal year increment. Multi-institution proposals must include 
budget forms from each institution.
    Use of this budget form will provide for a detailed annual budget 
and the level of detail required by the 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 COP; and can be found 
on the COP home page under COP Grants Support, Part D.

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    All applicants shall include a budget narrative/justification that 
supports all proposed budget object class categories. The program 
office will review the proposed budgets to determine the necessity and 
adequacy of proposed costs for accomplishing the objectives of the 
proposed grant. Ship time needs should be identified in the proposed 
budget. The SF-424A, Budget Information (Non-Construction) Form, shall 
be requested from only those recipients subsequently recommended for 
award.
    (6) Biographical sketch: Abbreviated curriculum vitae, two pages 
per investigator, are sought with each proposal. Include a list of up 
to five publications most closely related to the proposed project and 
up to five other significant publications. 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 should be included. If there are no collaborators, 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.
    (7) Proposal format and assembly: Clamp the proposal in the upper 
left-hand corner, but leave it unbound. Use one inch (2.5 cm) margins 
at the top, bottom, left and right of each page. Use a clear and easily 
legible type face in standard 12 points size.

Part II: Further Supplementary Information

    (1) Program authorities: For a list of all program authorities for 
the Coastal Ocean Program, see COP's General Grant Administration Terms 
and Conditions annual Document in the Federal Register (64 FR 49162, 
September 10, 1999) and at the COP home page. Specific Authority cited 
for this Announcement is 33 U.S.C. 1442.
    (2) Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 11.478 Coastal 
Ocean Program.
    (3) Program description: For complete COP program descriptions, see 
the annual COP General Document (64 FR 49162, September 10, 1999).
    (4) Funding availability: Funding is contingent upon the 
availability of Federal appropriations. It is anticipated that up to 
$600,000 per fiscal year will be available for supporting studies 
proposed by submissions to this announcement. The priorities for these 
funds are stated earlier in this Document.
    If an application is selected for funding, NOAA has no obligation 
to provide any additional prospective funding in connection with that 
award in subsequent years. Renewal 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.
    Publication of this document does not obligate the Coastal Ocean 
Program to any specific award or to 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: Project Grants for non-Federal 
applicants; interagency transfer agreements or other appropriate 
mechanisms other than project grants or cooperative agreements for 
Federal applicants.
    (7) Eligibility criteria: For complete eligibility criteria for the 
Coastal Ocean Program, see COP's General Grant Administration Terms and 
Conditions annual document in the Federal Register (64 FR 49162, 
September 10, 1999) and at the COP home page. Proposals deemed 
acceptable from Federal researchers will be funded through a mechanism 
other than a grant or cooperative agreement where legal authority 
allows for such funding. Non-NOAA Federal applicants are required to 
submit certification or documentation which clearly shows that they can 
receive funds from the Department of Commerce (DOC) for research (i.e., 
legal authority exists allowing the transfer of funds from DOC to the 
non-NOAA Federal applicant's agency).
    (8) Award period: Full Proposals should cover a project period of 
up to 3 years, with a start date of July 1, 2000. 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 award shall require a Statement of Work that can be easily 
separated into annual increments of meaningful work which represent 
solid accomplishments if prospective funding is not made available, or 
is discontinued.
    (9) Indirect costs: If indirect costs are proposed, the following 
statement applies: The total dollar amount of the indirect costs 
proposed in an application must not exceed the indirect cost rate 
negotiated and approved by a cognizant Federal agency prior to the 
proposed effective date of the award.
    (l0) Application forms: For complete information on application 
forms for the Coastal Ocean Program, see COP's General Grant 
Administration Terms and Conditions annual Document in the Federal 
Register (64 FR 49162, September 10, 1999); the COP home page; and the 
information given earlier in this Document under Required Elements, 
paragraph (5) Budget.
    (11) Project funding priorities: For description of project funding 
priorities, see COP's General Grant Administration Terms and Conditions 
annual notification in the Federal Register (64 FR 49162, September 10, 
1999) and at the COP home page.
    (12) Evaluation criteria: For complete information on evaluation 
criteria, see COP's General Grant Administration Terms and Conditions 
annual Document in the Federal Register (64 FR 49162, September 10, 
1999) and at the COP home page.
    (13) Selection procedures: For complete information on selection 
procedures, see COP's General Grant Administration Terms and Conditions 
annual Document in the Federal Register (64 FR 49162, September 10, 
1999) and at the 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.
    (14) Other requirements: For a complete description of other 
requirements, see COP's General Grant Administration Terms and 
Conditions annual Document in the Federal Register (64 FR 49162, 
September 10, 1999) and at the COP home page.
    (15) Pursuant to Executive Orders 12876, 12900 and 13021, the 
Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 
(DOC/NOAA) is strongly committed to broadening the participation of 
Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving 
Institutions and Tribal Colleges and Universities in its educational 
and research programs. The DOC/NOAA vision, mission and goals are to 
achieve full participation by Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) in 
order to advance the development of human potential, to strengthen the 
nation's capacity to provide high-quality education, and to increase 
opportunities for MSIs to participate in, and benefit from, Federal 
Financial Assistance programs. DOC/NOAA encourages all applicants to 
include meaningful participation of MSIs.
    (16) Applicants are hereby notified that they are encouraged, to 
the greatest practicable extent, to purchase

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    American-made equipment and products with funding provided under 
this program.
    (17) This notification involves collection-of-information 
requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act. The use of 
Standard Forms 424, 424A, 424B, and SF-LLL have been approved by the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under control numbers 0348-0043, 
0348-0044, 0348-0040 and 0348-0046.
    The COP Grants Application Package has been approved by OMB under 
control number 0648-0384 and includes the following information 
collections: a Summary Proposal Budget Form, a Project Summary Form, 
standardized formats for the Annual Performance Report and the Final 
Report, and the submission of up to 20 copies of proposals. Copies of 
these forms and formats can be found on the COP Home Page under Grants 
Support section, Part 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 13, 2000.
Ted I. Lillestolen,
Deputy Assistant Administrator, National Ocean Service, National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[FR Doc. 00-6980 Filed 3-20-00; 8:45 am]
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