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The Gulf of Mexico Alliance is pleased to open registration for the
2019 All Hands Meeting at Alabama's premier destination,
The Lodge at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
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Alliance Meetings Next Steps
Due to the Federal government shutdown, the Gulf of Mexico Alliance canceled a number of meetings this month. The Alliance is working with partners to still accomplish the agendas of those engagements. This may include virtual sessions, rescheduled face to face meetings, or conference calls. Stay in touch with your Team's Coordinators for next steps.
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Wednesday Webinars Are Back
You just missed our first webinar of the year on the beneficial use of dredged materials. Mark these dates on your calendar to be sure to join our next program.
- March 27th Living Shorelines
- May 29th Marine Cadastre and Ocean Reports
- July 31st Embrace the Gulf 2020
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2018 Gulf Star Report
The Alliance recently released the 2018 Gulf Star Report to partners. The public-private partnership supports the goals of Action Plan III.
Gulf Star boasted some impressive numbers. Actions taken through the Alliance's Teams produced 1000 volunteer hours and 162 outreach activities serving 14 communities and 74 organizations.
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Gulf Star & Seagrass Monitoring
Seagrass monitoring and mapping have been sporadic and spatially limited over the decades. The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (2010) accentuated the lack of available data and information. It underscored the necessity to convene a seagrass monitoring and needs assessment workshop to capture experience and knowledge for future generations of scientists and decision makers.
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance (Alliance) Habitat Resources Team identified this as a priority. Utilizing 2017 Gulf Star funding, the Team held a held a workshop in 2017. The results, delivered in October 2018, recommended a
Seagrass Community of Practice and tiered concept to develop an inventory and monitoring protocol.
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Resources
Dune Restoration and Enhancement for the Florida Panhandle
This manual may serve as a tool to assist managers and homeowners with development of restoration goals, introduce restoration practitioners to required permitting processes, or assist contractors with timelines for implementing restoration activities based on the knowledge of the impacted flora and fauna.
Texas Water Journal
This open source
journal is an online, peer-reviewed journal for Texas water resources management, research, and policy. Volumes beginning in 2010 and running consecutively up through 2018 are available.
Climate Communications Initiative Strategic Plan
In 2018, the National Academies launched the
Climate Communications Initiative to leverage and unlock the storehouse of climate-related work from across the institution to more effectively meet and anticipate the needs of decision makers at all levels of society.
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Restoration
Activities related to Deepwater Horizon oil spill research and restoration are updated monthly.
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (RESTORE Council) -
U.S. Department of Treasury - All RESTORE Act Direct Component activities administered by the Department of Treasury are listed on the official website.
In the States
Florida -
The
Gulf Consortium
and
Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) maintain websites
of related restoration information. Check these for regular program updates.
Mississippi -
Visit the Office of Restoration web page for announcements, procurement opportunities, project updates, and more.
Louisiana - On January 28, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) released the Draft Fiscal Year Annual Plan 2020 for public comment. Restoration activities are conducted in conjunction with the State's Master Plan. C
oastal Louisiana restoration updates are available on the
CPRA website.
Texas -
For more information on Texas activities go to
www.restorethetexascoast.org
.
NOAA RESTORE Science Program -
This month the program updated their funding calendar to include projections 2019 - 2021. Current information on this program is available through the RESTORE Science Program website.
National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Gulf Research Program -
2019 Early-Career Research and Science Policy Fellowships are open with a February 20th deadline. 2019 Science Policy Fellowships applications are due March 6, 2019. Learn more about these awards and other program activities.
National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) -
On January 1st, NFWF kicked off the third year of their Oceanic Fish Restoration Project. Ten fisher volunteers will help to restore a portion of fish injured in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Voluntary participants will refrain from pelagic longline fishing. For more on this story and a complete list of the NFWF supported projects, go to their website.
North American Conservation Wetlands Act fund (NAWCA) - The 2019 grant cycle deadlines are now available. Information for this program is available on the
NAWCA website.
Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) - The 2019 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill and Ecosystem Science Conference (GoMOSES) is a go for February 4-7, 2019 at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans in New Orleans, LA. The
2019 program is online. Comprehensive GoMRI information is on
gulfresearchinitiative.org.
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Funding
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance maintains a
Funding Opportunities web page of programs. Below are selected opportunities from that page.
For federal applications, from the Grants.gov website, "
During a lapse in federal appropriations, the Grants.gov system will remain in an Operational status. Additionally, the Grants.gov Support Center will remain available to provide assistance to applicants."
The Florida RESTORE Act Centers of Excellent Program opened its third Request for Proposals FLRACEP-2019-01. Applications are encouraged across three topical areas: marine wildlife, Florida Panhandle estuary system assessment, and West Florida benthic mapping. Pre-proposals are due February 8, 2019 and full proposals are due April 8, 2019.
NAS Gulf Research Program
Advancing Safety Culture in the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry - They seek proposals for research and/or design of pilot projects to understand and improve offshore safety culture around four key issues: global database of incident and safety data; near-miss and incident reporting systems; measurement of safety culture; and human-systems integration. Letters of intent are due February 13, 2019. Full proposals are due April 17, 2019.
Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium
2020-2022 Research RFP - One to two-year proposals are being accepted on coastal issues in Alabama and Mississippi that are the priorities of the program. The deadline for pre-proposals is February 15, 2019.
USDA NRCS Texas
Agricultural Conservation Easement Program - The Wetlands Reserve Easements and Agricultural Land Easements programs are open. This is a voluntary program. Application should be made through your state's NRCS service center. The deadline is February 15, 2019.
Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA)
2023 Coastal Master Plan Project Ideas - CPRA is accepting project ideas that Louisiana citizens, governmental bodies and concerned organizations would like to see evaluated and considered for possible inclusion in the next Comprehensive Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast that will be submitted to the Louisiana Legislature in 2023. The deadline is March 1, 2019.
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Events
Our
events page lists workshops, conferences, symposia, trainings, webinars, and other notable activities. Please
email us with things to post and share.
Selected February events:
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Comment Periods
Click here to request a comment period to be shared in our next newsletter.
Waters of the United States (WOTUS) Rulemaking
The EPA and Department of the Army are proposing new definitions for what constitutes "waters of the United States". An open comment period to this revised definition is pending. Learn more about these
proposed changes.
Louisiana Sea Grant Program Review
The Louisiana Sea Grant College Program is undergoing its scheduled 4-year review. They are accepting public comments on the program no later than February 5, 2019. Comments should be e-mailed to the National Sea Grant College Program at
[email protected] with "Louisiana Sea Grant Site Review" in the subject line.
USDA Highly Erodible Land and Wetland Conservation
An
interim rule was issued on December 7th to clarify how the USDA delineates, determines, and certifies wetlands. The deadline for public comment is February 5, 2019.
NOAA Research and Development Plan
The NOAA Research Council is developing the
research and development plan. Comments are due by February 8, 2019.
CPRA Annual Plan Fiscal Year 2020
CPRA released the
Draft Annual Plan Fiscal Year 2020 and announced public meetings and a deadline to receive public comments. Comments are due March 9, 2019.
For all federal rules, comments, adjudications or supporting documents visit regulations.gov.
The NOAA Fisheries Southeast Regional Office maintains a bulletin of public notices and news releases related to topics of importance on many Gulf of Mexico issues.
The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has a website that includes fish regulations, amendments, and meeting announcements. See their
Public Hearings for updates on sea turtle release protocol, venting tools, state management of recreational Red snapper, and other pertinent fishery management issues.
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