The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Coastal Management (DCM) announced the availability of more than $40 million in funding through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Coastal Zone Management Habitat Protection and Restoration Competition for habitat restoration and conservation projects. Funds are available for coastal habitat restoration; coastal habitat restoration planning, engineering, and design; and land conservation projects that support the goals and intent of the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA), the Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
DCM is inviting interested parties to submit project ideas for consideration. Project ideas should be no more than five pages and include a statement of purpose, brief project description, milestones, equity and inclusion, site geography, pre-existing uses, partnerships, project timeline, budget summary and project readiness. For more information on the competition and the Letters of Intent (LOI) requirements refer to the Notice of Federal Funding.
NOAA will competitively award approximately $44.6 million to or through approved state and territory Coastal Management Programs. Project categories and funding ranges:
- Habitat restoration engineering, design and planning (approximately $200,000-$500,000)
- Habitat restoration (approximately $2-$6 million).
- Land conservation, (approximately $1-$4 million)
Applicants may propose projects with less than or more than these amounts, up to $6 million. While there is no non-federal matching requirement, leveraged funding is strongly encouraged and will be reviewed in evaluations.
DCM, as the state’s approved Coastal Management Program, may submit up to three LOIs to this funding competition, under any of the above project categories and funding levels. NOAA may make awards to DCM or directly to eligible sub-applicant partners with DCM’s concurrence.
Projects should support the principles of equity and inclusion and should be “shovel ready” or reasonably advanced in the acquisition due diligence process. Habitat restoration planning, engineering and design projects should create a pipeline of future implementation projects. Proposals that include on-the-ground implementation will be given priority.
DCM will select three LOIs to submit to this competition by the Aug. 15 deadline. Please email project ideas to: rachel.love-adrick@deq.nc.gov by July 19, 2024. Questions about this opportunity and process should also be directed to Rachel Love-Adrick at the same email address. Full proposals (by invitation only) must be submitted to NOAA by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on Jan. 10, 2025.