2019-2021 Atlantic Herring Research Set Aside | NOAA NMFS NEFSC 2019 2005611

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOAA NMFS NEFSC 2019 2005611

The 2019-2021 Atlantic Herring Research Set Aside (RSA) opportunity is a National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) program, run in coordination with the New England Fishery Management Council, that invites proposals for research focused on Atlantic herring. The basic purpose is to support studies that improve scientific understanding of the herring resource and directly strengthen the information base used by the Council when making fishery management decisions. In other words, the program is meant to generate practical, management-relevant science tied to the needs of the federal herring management process in New England.

A defining feature of this opportunity is that it does not provide traditional federal grant dollars upfront. Instead, the Council has set aside a portion of the Atlantic herring quota, and research is financed through the value of that quota. Funding is generated by harvesting the RSA quota (often called compensation fishing) and then using the resulting proceeds to pay for approved research activities and/or the costs associated with harvesting the set-aside itself. Because the money ultimately depends on the ability to catch and sell fish under the set-aside, the program is essentially a research-through-quota mechanism rather than a standard appropriations-funded research grant.

Projects supported through this RSA program must clearly contribute to the knowledge of Atlantic herring fishery resources or produce information that is directly usable for Council decision-making. While proposals can address a range of research topics, the solicitation emphasizes that priority will be given to proposals aligned with the Council-identified research priorities described in the announcement's Program Priorities section. That priority language signals that reviewers are likely looking for strong connections between proposed work and specific management questions, data gaps, assessment needs, monitoring improvements, or other Council-recognized scientific uncertainties affecting herring management.

The notice also flags a practical risk applicants are expected to take seriously: compensation fishing is uncertain, and that uncertainty can limit the funds available to carry out a project as originally designed. Recent years have seen only partial harvest of the herring set-aside quota, which reduced the revenue grant recipients could generate and, as a result, constrained what research could realistically be completed. Because of that, applicants are encouraged to design projects that can be scaled up or down depending on how much RSA quota is ultimately harvested and what level of proceeds are generated. Competitive proposals, in practice, are likely to show a credible plan for accomplishing meaningful outputs even under funding variability, such as phased work plans, modular sampling designs, or clear decision points that tie project scope to realized RSA revenue.

Administratively, the opportunity is offered by the U.S. Department of Commerce through NOAA/NMFS (Opportunity Number: NOAA NMFS NEFSC 2019 2005611) and is categorized as a discretionary funding opportunity. Awards may be made as grants and/or cooperative agreements. The CFDA listing is 11.454, and the activity areas are environment, natural resources, and science and technology research and development. The posting indicates an expected two awards and lists an award ceiling of 1 (as displayed in the source data), with an original closing date of September 20, 2018, and a creation date of July 20, 2018. Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others," with additional clarification expected in the full eligibility text of the announcement. Overall, the solicitation is best understood as a Council-prioritized research competition where the main challenge is not only proposing strong herring science, but also building a realistic implementation and budgeting strategy around the variable, market-dependent revenue stream produced by harvesting the RSA quota.

• The Department of Commerce in the environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "2019-2021 Atlantic Herring Research Set Aside" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 11.454.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 20, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 20, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for NOAA NMFS NEFSC 2019 2005611

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