The Cooperative Research Program (CRP) provides opportunity to compete for financial assistance for projects seeking to improve and strengthen the relationship between fisheries researchers from NMFS, state fishery agencies, and universities and the U.S. fishing industry (recreational and commercial) in the Gulf of Mexico (FL, AL, MS, LA, TX), South Atlantic (FL, NC, SC, GA) and Caribbean (USVI and Puerto Rico).
Donor Name: Department of Commerce
State: Selected States
County: All Counties
U.S. Territory: U.S. Virgin Islands, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 09/08/2023
Size of the Grant: $25,000 to $250,000
Grant Duration: 12 months
Details:
The program bolsters partnerships by providing a way for involving commercial and recreational fishermen in the collection of fundamental fisheries information in support of management and regulatory options. This program addresses NOAA’s mission to “Protect, Restore, and Manage the Use of Coastal and Ocean Resources through an Ecosystem Approach to Management.”
Proposals must address one of the priority areas listed below as they pertain to Federally managed species or species relevant to Federal fisheries management plans, informed by the research priorities of the South Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Fishery Management Councils. The priorities are not listed in any particular order of importance. If you select more than one priority, please clearly identify on your application the priority that most closely reflects the objectives of your proposal.
Projects should focus on collecting data that aids in recovering, maintaining, or improving the status of stocks upon which fisheries depend; improving the understanding of factors affecting recruitment success and long-term sustainability of fisheries; and/or generating increased opportunities for fisheries. The main premise for a CRP project is to bolster partnerships between the U.S. fishing industry and fisheries researchers by involving commercial and recreational fishermen in the collection of fundamental fisheries information to aid fishery researchers, scientists, and managers to make informed decisions on management and regulatory options.
Priorities
Program priorities include:
- Commercial (including for-hire) and Recreational Finfish and Elasmobranch Fisheries:
- Develop methodologies, models or datasets to improve life history information on commercial and recreational finfish and elasmobranch species, e.g., movement, habitat usage, age-structure of the catch (both retained and discarded), ageing and age validation techniques, reproductive characteristics of the stock, size or age at maturity and reproductive capacity, natural mortality, longevity, and long-term biological productivity of the stock. Projects including collection of both juvenile and oldest (e.g., max size) life stages to supplement typical sizes/ages caught in fisheries are highly encouraged.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of artificial reefs or marine protected areas (MPAs) in preventing overfishing, restoring overfished stocks, increasing productivity and/or fishing opportunities, and evaluating associated economic and ecological costs and benefits.
- Assess conflicts between sharks and other top predators and commercial, for-hire, and recreational fishing sectors (e.g., depredation) in the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic, e.g., quantify the extent to which sharks or marine mammals affect commercial, charter, or recreational fishing.
- Determine the effects of fishing measures on composition and disposition of bycatch and discards, e.g., changes in discard rates because of altered size limits or possession limits, e.g., improve estimates of discard rates and mortality rates as affected by fish size, gear, area, season and fishing depth.
- Evaluate the potential impacts of offshore wind farm placements and mitigation actions on Federal fishery productivity, e.g., resource effects, habitat loss or gain, hydrologic or environmental changes, effects on fish or fisher behavior.
- Estimate gear-specific post-release mortality of all HMS, especially commercially and recreationally important species, species scheduled for assessment on the Southeast Data, Assessment, and Review (SEDAR) calendar, or species that are frequently caught as bycatch or for which post-release mortality may potentially be a substantial inhibitor of stock recovery.
- Calculate fishing mortality and interactions of HMS in non-HMS fisheries (e.g., in the dolphin/wahoo fishery, shrimp trawl fishery). Examine the feasibility of gear alternatives in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean to reduce bycatch while maintaining target catch (e.g., feasibility of buoy gear for bigeye, albacore, yellowfin, and skipjack tunas).
- Expand the collection of biological samples, for use in ageing and genetic analyses. Bigeye, albacore, yellowfin, and skipjack tunas, shortfin mako and billfish are priorities for otolith and spine collection; other priority finfish and elasmobranchs as cited above could be included.
- Develop citizen science approaches using fishers or other stakeholders to collect pertinent fisheries and environmental information that contributes to improved Federal fisheries management, including habitats, stocks and fisheries, e.g., fishery effects of harmful algal blooms, habitat degradation or restoration; defining species distributions, size structure or fishery changes; or understanding fisheries interactions.
- Socio-Economic Studies:
- Determine how fishing economics change when fishers change their fishing activities regarding target species and fishing dynamics e.g., personal choice: seasonal rotation among fisheries; or management changes: seasonal closures, area closures, industry quotas, commercial trip limits or recreational bag limits, and minimum size limits.
- Conduct socio-economic studies to better understand the implications of catch allocations and other management measures on the perceived relative utility of commercial, recreation, and non-consumptive use of the resource. Studies might estimate the economic value of alternative fishery allocations to the private angler, for-hire and/or commercial sectors, inclusive of all value generated up to the end user/consumer, especially comparing sectors with and without catch shares management.
- Estimate the impacts of proposed management alternatives on recreational fishing by fishery and fishing mode (private boats, charter boats, head boats), or evaluate the economic effects of regulations on recreational fisheries and changes in economic surpluses.
- Develop a system of economic incentives to reduce bycatch in commercial and/or recreational for-hire fisheries. Projects should compare the costs, potential gains, and levels of bycatch reduction associated with traditional bycatch reduction methods (such as gear, season or area restrictions) and any innovative alternative methods addressed by the project.
- Estimate the social and economic impacts associated with management of commercial fisheries with individual transferable quotas. Currently, two IFQ programs are operational in the Gulf of Mexico: red snapper and grouper-tilefish.
Funding Information
Approximately $ 500,000 may be available in fiscal year 2024 for projects. Actual funding availability for this program is contingent upon 2024 Congressional appropriations. The NMFS Southeast Fisheries Science Center estimates awarding approximately four projects that will range from $25,000 to $250,000. The average award is $125,000.
Project Period
Awards can be for a maximum period of up to 12 months.
Eligibility Criteria
Eligible applicants may be institutions of higher education, nonprofits, commercial organizations, individuals, and state, local, and Indian Tribal governments. Federal agencies or institutions are not eligible. Foreign governments, organizations under the jurisdiction of foreign governments, and international organizations are excluded for purposes of this solicitation since the objective of the CRP is to optimize research and development benefits from U.S. marine fishery resources.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
