1. NOAA Restoration Center
Community-based Restoration Program (CRP)
Erika Ammann
NOAA Restoration Center
222 West 7th Ave Box 43
Anchorage, AK
99503

2. NOAA Restoration Center
Welcome
Goals:
Provide an overview of the Community-based Restoration Program (CRP)
Identify Funding opportunities
Review procedures for Applying for Funding
For this presentation I am going to go through a brief overview of the CRP program
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

3. NOAA Restoration Center
About the RC
Mission:
Restoring degraded habitats
Advancing the science of coastal habitat restoration
Funding projects that are considered important by the people who live in the community
Fostering habitat stewardship and a conservation ethic
Moose Creek Willow Planting
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

4. NOAA Restoration Center
Projects Nationwide
Northwest, 255 projects
North Atlantic
214 projects
Alaska
35 projects
Middle Atlantic
93 projects
California
182 projects
South Atlantic
72 projects
Caribbean
4 projects
Western Pacific, 10 projects
Gulf of Mexico, 140 projects
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

5. Restoration and Stewardship
Over 1000 projects funded since 1996
97,000 volunteers contributed over 586,000 hours
19,000 acres of productive habitat restored
735 miles of stream opened for fish passage
Volunteers at the Bell Creek Restoration
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

6. NOAA Restoration Center
CRP in Alaska
Total Projects = 35
~ $881,000 in NOAA funding and ~$883,000 in leveraged funds
Participation by 1,290 volunteers contributing ~20,00 volunteer hours
170 acres restored/rehabilitated
Over 9 stream miles opened to fish passage
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

7. National & Regional Partnerships in AK
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

8. Cooperative Agreements through the RC
Direct Funding Mechanisms:
1) Direct Solicitation Habitat Awards
2) Open River Initiative
3)Marine Debris Program
4) New STIMULUS opportunity : RFP to be released in the coming week.
Federal ‘find and apply’
Direct solicitation ::
Typical Award Size: $50,000 to $250,000
Match: 1:1 match is encouraged
Funding Duration: Two (2) years
Limitations: Mostly funds on-the-ground restoration work
Funding requests must be between $30K and $250K
OPen Rivers
Limitations: Funding requests must be between $30K and $1M; only obsolete or derelict structures qualify for removal. Project should benefit diadromous fish; have community consensus; owner willingness; and not be federally-owned or FERC-licensed. Marine Debris
Typical Award Size: $15,000 to $100,000
Funding Duration: Up to 18 months
Limitations: Funding requests must be between $15,000 to $250,000.
Approximately $2M in funding available through Cooperative Agreements for the implementation of locally-driven, community-based marine debris prevention and removal projects.
Projects should have a strong community education component to help prevent future marine debris accumulation.
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

9. NOAA Restoration Center
Stimulus Opportunity
4) New STIMULUS opportunity : RFP to be released in the coming week.
-Priority one is ecological benefit to fish habitat
Second priority is job creation
Timeline : 30 day for proposals
Funding decisions in May
Projects completed in 18 Months
Federal ‘find and apply’
Improving Health and Livelihood: NOAA’s habitat restoration efforts improve coastal ecosystems that not only benefit the environment, but people as well.
• Economy: Coastal communities are America’s economic engines, with more than half of the Nation’s GDP generated in coastal counties.
• Creating Jobs: An analysis by the Economic Policy Institute estimates that every $1 million in the industry of agriculture/forestry/fisheries—which includes restoration—generates 20.3 jobs. Based on this estimate, the $400 million in restoration work included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will help NOAA generate over 8,000 jobs in coastal communities— including local engineers and demolition/construction crews, surveyors and out‐of‐work waterman and loggers.
• Shovel‐Ready: Should NOAA receive stimulus funding for habitat restoration, we have a substantial list of priority shovel‐ready projects that span every coast and the Great Lakes – projects that have not been funded for many years due to lack of funds. In addition to improving water quality and the environment, these efforts will restore commercial and recreational fishing; improve tourism; and create new business and recreational opportunities such as fishing, river rafting and kayaking.
• Protecting Lives and Property: Green infrastructure projects can reduce hazards through erosion and flood mitigation, or the removal of out‐dated, non‐functional structures—including thousands of dangerous coastal area dams and culverts.
• The Need: There is a much greater need for restoration work than there are existing funds to support these efforts. Frequently, NOAA has to turn down project requests due to insufficient resources. The inclusion of habitat restoration in the economic stimulus package is an opportunity for NOAA to support some of the shovel‐ready projects that we haven’t been able to fund.
• Supporting Volunteers and Community Service: In addition to job creation, the habitat restoration projects that NOAA pursues also support community service. In the last 12 years, the NOAA Restoration Center’s Community‐based Restoration Program has worked with 165,000
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

10. Finding Funding Opportunities
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

11. Finding Funding Opportunities
Funding Opportunities
All CRP-direct
Partner
Other NOAA-related
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

12. Applying for Direct CRP Funds
Grants.gov
Step 1: Register to submit applications
Register organization
Register authorized representative
Set up an individual as a representative
Registration can take up to three weeks
One time process
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

13. NOAA Restoration Center
Proposal Outline
Proposal Content:
Standard federal forms
Project summary (2 pages max)
Project narrative including budget narrative
Resumes or CV’s of primary project personnel
Site location map
Letter documenting private or public landowner/manager support (Required for Open Rivers)
Additional relevant supporting documentation
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

14. NOAA Restoration Center
Evaluation Criteria
Evaluation criteria
Importance/applicability (benefit to NOAA trust resources)
Technical/scientific merit
Qualifications of applicant
Cost effectiveness
Outreach, education, and community involvement
*Stimulus funding will have an additional “jobs” component
Importance/applicability
Historic condition/problem
Anticipated benefits to NOAA trust resources & how will benefits be achieved
Part of a larger planning effort or conducted in a protected area
Acres/stream miles restored, reconnected, cleaned up etc
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

15. Assistance from NOAA Staff
Never too early or too late to contact NOAA RC staff regarding a proposal
Answer questions
Assistance with project design
Guidance on level and scope of information needed for NEPA compliance
Never assume prior knowledge of the project by reviewers
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

16. Important Funding Requirements
Financial Reports
Progress Reports
Minimum Monitoring
When developing a proposal, account for the time and resources necessary to complete these requirements
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

17. NOAA Restoration Center
Minimum Monitoring
Four steps to an effective plan
Develop one broad goal
Develop two quantifiable objectives
For each objective, identify a parameter to monitor
Define a target value for each parameter
Structure - Greater than 40% cover of native plant species
Function - 10% increase in desired fish population utilizing the marsh
Data are analyzed collectively to help improve restoration success
Results do not determine whether a project succeeds or fails
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP

18. NOAA Restoration Center
Contact info
Erika Ammann
(907)
NOAA Restoration Center
CRP