Marine Debris Program

 

To provide grants and cooperative agreements to help identify, determine sources of, assess, reduce, and prevent marine debris and its adverse impacts on the marine environment and navigation safety within the coastal United States, territories, and Freely Associated States. Awards that are made under this program from annual appropriations, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Supplemental Appropriations Act, Inflation Reduction Act, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021) will remove marine debris from coastal habitats, including through interception technologies; explore non-regulatory incentives to reduce the quantity and impacts of derelict fishing gear, abandoned and derelict vessels, and other large debris; support regional coordination among marine debris practitioners, states, and tribes; conduct outreach and education activities aimed at preventing marine debris; develop interagency plans to respond to severe marine debris events and other natural disasters; assess debris composition, volume, and trajectory in different marine and coastal ecosystems; conduct research and development on marine debris impacts and distribution; and estimate the potential impacts of marine debris on coastal resources, habitats, and economies.

Active 11.999 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce B - Project Grants; Z - Salaries and Expenses Fiscal Year 2020 FY2020 Marine Debris Removal; $1,298,805; 10 projects supported. FY2020 Marine Debris Prevention; $1,372,308; 13 projects supported.
Fiscal Year 2021 FY2021 Marine Debris Removal; $1,765,018; 10 projects supported. FY2021 Marine Debris Research; $1,431,780; 5 projects supported.
Fiscal Year 2022 Fiscal Year 2022: FY2022 Marine Debris Removal; $1,995,000; 6 projects supported. FY2022 Marine Debris Prevention; $1,658,642; 8 projects supported.
Fiscal Year 2023 FY23 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law: 11 large-scale marine debris removal projects supported, $66,163,270; 2 interception technology projects supported, $1,016,825; and 1 award to support removal of marine debris in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, $1,200,000. FY23 Marine Debris Program base appropriations: 3 marine debris prevention awards supported, $341,605; 1 award to support International Coastal Cleanup, $300,000. Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act
Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act (33 U.S.C. § 1951 et seq.) To establish a program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United States Coast Guard to help identify, determine sources of, assess, reduce, and prevent marine debris and its adverse impacts on the marine environment and navigation safety, in coordination with non-Federal entities, and for other purposes. Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act, 2019 (P.L. 116-20), June 6, 2019 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2019 Pub. L. 116-113, Title IX Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act, 2021, Pub. L. 117-43 (September 30, 2021) The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”, P.L. 117-58), 2021 Eligible applicants for assistance include 1) state and local governments including public universities and colleges; 2) U.S. territorial agencies and organizations; 3) federally and State-recognized Indian Tribal governments; 4) private universities and colleges; 5) private / commercial for-profit organizations; and 6) nonprofit research and conservation organizations. This program benefits Federal, State, and interstate marine resource conservation and management agencies; U.S. Territories and Freely Associated States; U.S. and foreign commercial and recreational fishing industries; conservation organizations, academic institutions; international and Indian Tribal treaties; private and public research groups; consumers; and the general public. Applicants are required to satisfy all DOC/NOAA standards and regulations as it relates to applying for and administering financial assistance, including routine and special terms and conditions, for financial assistance programs application and conduct. Preapplication coordination is required. An environmental impact statement is required for this listing. This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review. This program is excluded from coverage under 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards. Proposals are evaluated by the appropriate NOAA subject matter experts, and are subject to review for technical merit, soundness of design, competency of the applicant to perform the proposed work, potential contribution of the project to national or regional goals, and appropriateness and reasonableness of proposed costs. Projects approved for funding will be submitted to the NOAA Grants Management Division and the Department of Commerce's Office of Federal Assistance for review and approval. Contact the headquarters or regional location, as appropriate for application deadlines More than 180 days. Refer to the federal funding opportunities posted on www.grants.gov for specific submission and deadline information. Not applicable. From 60 to 90 days. Grants and cooperative agreements are approved on an annual basis. Financial assistance may be continued beyond the original project period, but cannot exceed 5 years. Such extensions depend on NOAA approval of the project's scope of work, satisfactory progress toward project goals, and availability of agency funds. Renewal of an award to increase funding or extend the period of performance is at the sole discretion of the Department. Applications for marine debris removal projects are funded through competitive solicitations for proposals, non-competitive awards, or unsolicited applications for which no competition exists. Proposals are evaluated by at least three individual technical reviewers and scored according to the criteria and weights described in the specific funding opportunity description. These criteria are: Importance and Applicability; Technical/Scientific Merit; Overall Qualifications of Applicants; Project Costs; and Outreach and Education. Reviewer comments, composite project scores, and a rank order of reviewed proposals are presented to the NOAA Marine Debris Program Selecting Official. The Selecting Official, in consultation with NOAA Marine Debris Program staff, will identify the proposals to be recommended to the NOAA Grants Management Division for funding and will determine the amount of funds available for each approved proposal. Financial assistance can be used to support the implementation of locally-driven marine debris projects that achieve the objectives of the program listed above. These generally include prevention, identification and assessment, research, and removal projects including reducing and preventing fishing gear loss that will benefit coastal habitat, waterways, and NOAA trust resources. Education and outreach projects directed at stakeholders and the general public are also high priorities for this program. Performance Reports: Performance monitoring is required as referenced in 2 CFR 200.328 and other associated terms and conditions applicable at the time of award. In accordance with the provisions of 2 CFR 200, Subpart F - Audit Requirements, nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance of $750,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Non-Federal entities that expend less than $750,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in 2 CFR 200.503 Generally, a recipient is required to retain records relating to a particular grant for three years from the date of submission of the final financial report. In cases where litigation, claim or an audit is initiated prior to expiration of the three-year period, records must be retained until the action and resolution of any issues associated with it are complete or until the end of the three-year retention period; whichever is latest. Statutory formula is not applicable to this assistance listing.

Matching is voluntary. 50%. The Marine Debris Act Section 3 (c) (2) (a) requires that Federal funds for any grant under this section must not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of such project. The non-Federal share of project costs may be provided by in-kind contributions and other non-cash support. The Marine Debris Act allows the NOAA Administrator to waive all or part of the matching requirement in certain instances.

MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. Award periods are normally for 12-24 months, but may vary. Award funds must be spent in the indicated budget period and expended in accordance with DOC/NOAA finance and reporting procedures. See the following for information on how assistance is awarded / released. Funds are released as needed through the Department of Treasury’s Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) or by reimbursement, as indicated in the Standard Terms and Conditions document required for each grant. None/Not specified. Kadija Baffoe-Harding
1305 East West Highway
SSMC 4 Rm 13267
Silver Spring, MD 20910 US
Kadija.BaffoeHarding@noaa.gov
Phone: 301-713-3050
Fax: 301-713-4292 http://www.marinedebris.noaa.gov 13-1450-0-1-306 (Salaries and Expenses) FY 22$4,471,482.00; FY 23 est $4,695,546.00; FY 24 est $4,695,545.00; FY 21$4,531,580.00; FY 20$2,671,113.00; FY 17 est $2,213,514.00; FY 16$1,944,901.00; FY 18 est $2,000,000.00; - (Project Grants (Cooperative Agreements or Contracts)) FY 22$8,317,750.00; FY 23 est $69,021,700.00; FY 24 est $69,021,699.00; - Projects funded through the NOAA Marine Debris Program's IIJA grants competitions in FY22-FY23 will range from $100,000 to $15,000,000. The average NOAA Marine Debris Program award is $246,500 Not applicable. Fiscal Year 2020 The NOAA Marine Debris Program regularly provides funding to support eligible organizations to conduct research directly related to marine debris through field, laboratory, and modeling experiments.
Fiscal Year 2021 The NOAA Marine Debris Program regularly provides funding for projects that create long-term, quantifiable ecological benefits and habitat improvements through on-the-ground marine debris removal activities, with highest priority for those targeting derelict fishing gear and other medium- and large-scale debris. The NOAA Marine Debris Program also supports projects that actively engage and educate a target audience (such as students, teachers, recreational fisher communities, state or local governments, industries, elected officials, etc) in hands-on programs designed to raise awareness, reduce barriers to marine debris prevention (e.g., lack of access to waste receptacles or alternatives to single-use items), and encourage and support changes in behaviors to ensure long-term prevention of marine debris.
Fiscal Year 2022 The NOAA Marine Debris Program regularly provides funding for projects that create long-term, quantifiable ecological benefits and habitat improvements through on-the-ground marine debris removal activities, with highest priority for those targeting derelict fishing gear and other medium- and large-scale debris. The NOAA Marine Debris Program also supports projects that actively engage and educate a target audience (such as students, teachers, recreational fisher communities, state or local governments, industries, elected officials, etc) in hands-on programs designed to raise awareness, reduce barriers to marine debris prevention (e.g., lack of access to waste receptacles or alternatives to single-use items), and encourage and support changes in behaviors to ensure long-term prevention of marine debris.