Energy Department and Federal Partners Announce up to $14.5 Million for Offshore Wind Environmental Research
Posted Jan 15, 2021
Concept Paper Due Date: Mar 1, 2021
Full Proposal Due Date: May 5, 2021
Description:
On January 15th the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced up to $14.5 million for environmental research to support U.S. offshore wind development. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) will support regionally-focused, coordinated research efforts to increase understanding of the environmental impacts of offshore wind, as well as projects that advance and validate tools to monitor and minimize impacts.
This FOA was released in conjunction with the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP), and in coordination with partnering agencies, including the Interior Department’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA NMFS), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). DOE is providing $13 million and BOEM intends to contribute up to $1.5 million for this effort. This FOA will support work across three Topic Areas:
- Development of methodologies and evaluation of offshore wind impacts on wildlife in U.S. Atlantic waters;
- Development of methodologies and evaluation of offshore wind impacts on the ecology of commercially fished species; and
- Environmental baseline studies and environmental monitoring technology development and validation focused on U.S. waters off of the U.S. West Coast, in preparation for future floating offshore wind development.
DOE anticipates issuing a single award of up to $7.5 million for Topic Area 1, a single award of up to $3.5 million for Topic Area 2, and 3–4 awards ranging from $750,000 to $2 million for Topic Area 3. Additional cost share of 30% is required for Topic Areas 1 and 2 and 20% is required for Topic Area 3. Concept papers are due on March 1, 2021.
| Topic Area Number | Topic Area Title | Anticipated Number of Awards | Anticipated Minimum Award Size for Any One Individual Award (Fed Share) | Anticipated Maximum Award Size for Any One Individual Award (Fed Share) | Approximate Total Federal Funding Available for All Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Environmental Research, Validation of Tools and Methods, and Multi-Year Evaluation of Impacts of Offshore Wind Energy Development on Wildlife in U.S. Atlantic Waters | 1 | $7,000,000 | $7,500,000 | $7,500,000 |
| 2 | Environmental Research, Validation of Tools and Methods, and Multi-Year Evaluation of Impacts of Offshore Wind Energy Development on Ecology of Commercially Fished Species | 1 | $3,000,000 | $3,500,000 | $3,500,000 |
| 3 | Environmental Baseline Data Collection and Monitoring Tool Development and Validation for Evaluating Impacts of Offshore Wind Energy Development on Wildlife in U.S. Waters off of the West Coast | 3-4 | Subtopic 1: $1,000,000 Subtopic 2: $250,000 | Subtopic 1: $2,000,000 Subtopic 2: $750,000 | $3,500,000 |
For more information please visit:
https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/#FoaId182e2c98-f862-4377-9cc8-8c065abaf6ec
