Grants / Department of Commerce / DOC NOAA - ERA Production

NOAA-NOS-OCM-2025-29258: National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) Land Acquisition and Construction Program for Fiscal Year 2025

Closed Closed February 14, 2025 Opportunity NOAA-NOS-OCM-2025-29258 ☆ Save

This grant is closed. Who won this program's grants before is below, and similar open grants are at the end of the page. It is in our archive of DOC NOAA - ERA Production notices from 2024.

• Award ceiling$1.7 million
• Award floor$425,000
• Total funding$8.5 million
• Cost sharingRequired
• Funding typeGrant

Key dates

Who can apply

This opportunity was open to the applicants described in the notice.

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

Eligible applicants are NERRS designated state agencies or universities designated to receive NERRS operations funding through a Memorandum of Understanding with NOAA in coastal states and territories including the Pacific, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, Atlantic Coast and Great Lakes. Eligible applicants should meet requirements as stated in the NERRS regulations codified at 15 C.F.R. 921.32 which are available online at http://go.usa.gov/xkGEf.Federal agencies and employees are not allowed to receive funds under this announcement but may serve as collaborative project partners. Federal agencies and employees’ ‘in-kind’ services cannot be considered as part of an applicant’s match on shared costs. If federal agencies are collaborators, applicants are expected to provide detail on the planned level of federal engagement in the application. Examples might include, but are not limited to partnership services; serving in a review capacity; or participating in priority task teams, working groups, or leadership teams.

Is this a realistic fit?

• Past Coastal Zone Management Estuarine Research Reserves awards averaged $592,389; this notice allows up to $1.7 million per award.
• Most of the program's money (60% over five years) went to state and local governments.
• The notice requires cost sharing or matching funds, so you must contribute part of the project cost.

What the grant funds

The National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) consists of estuarine areas of the United States and its territories designated and managed for research and educational purposes (Reserve). Each Reserve within the NERRS is chosen to represent a different bio-geographic region and to include a variety of ecosystem types in accordance with the classification scheme of the national program as specified in 15 C.F.R. Part 921. By funding Reserve lead agencies and universities to conduct land acquisition and construction projects that support the NERRS mission, NOAA will strengthen protection of key land and water areas, enhance long-term protection of Reserve areas for research and education, and provide for facility and exhibit construction activities that meet the highest sustainable design standards possible. Each Reserve supports a wide range of beneficial uses important to ecological, economic, recreational, and aesthetic values, which are dependent upon the maintenance of a healthy ecosystem. The sites provide habitats for a wide range of ecologically and commercially important species of fish, shellfish, birds, and other aquatic and terrestrial wildlife. Each Reserve was designated to ensure its effectiveness as a conservation unit and as a site for long-term research and monitoring. In maintaining their effectiveness, the Reserves may find it necessary to expand their boundaries through strategically planned land acquisitions and/or to develop or enhance their reserve facilities, including their in-situ monitoring infrastructure, to meet the demands of research, monitoring, and education program objectives. NOAA anticipates approximately $8.5 million in Fiscal Year 2025 will be available to designated lead Reserve agencies or universities in coastal states. NOAA anticipates funding between 5-20 construction, acquisition, and/or planning & design projects. Project periods may be 12-36 months, and can be up to 60 months. Final project selections are subject to availability of funds and negotiation with NOAA. The NOAA Office for Coastal Management (OCM) encourages applicants and awardees to support the principles of diversity and inclusion when writing their proposals and performing their work. Diversity is defined as a collection of individual attributes that together help organizations achieve objectives. Inclusion is defined as a culture that connects each employee to the organization.

Category: Natural Resources, Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

Applying now

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