US Harmful Algal Bloom Control Technologies Incubator (US HAB-CTI)

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US Harmful Algal Bloom Control Technologies Incubator (US HAB-CTI)

The USHABCTI is releasing the 2nd Request for Proposals, please see Application Resources for more information. Letters of Intent (LOIs) were due February 5, 2024. Responses to LOIs were sent to PI's on February 16, 2024. An LOI must be completed in order to submit a full proposal. Full proposals must be submitted by April 15, 2024.

 
Want to get news about future funding calls and information about US HAB-CTI? Email USHABCTI@umces.edu to be added to the listserv
 
About US HAB-CTI
 
*The term ‘harmful algal bloom’ means marine and freshwater phytoplankton that proliferate to high concentrations, resulting in nuisance conditions or harmful impacts on marine and aquatic ecosystems, coastal communities, and human health through the production of toxic compounds or other biological, chemical, and physical impacts of the algae outbreak.*
 
The United States Harmful Algal Bloom Control Technologies Incubator (US HAB-CTI) is a partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), University of Maryland’s Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET), and Mote Marine Laboratory (Mote).  The objective of the US HAB-CTI is to fund extramural proof of concept, innovative Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) control tools and technology projects to assess their real-world feasibility. The US HAB-CTI will offer annual competitive calls for proposals for projects not to exceed 12 months and generally expected to be less than $200K.  As demonstrated in the image to the right, it is anticipated that US HAB-CTI research will largely be conducted as "Tier 1" in small scale lab testing and "Tier 2" in tanks, mesocosms, and raceways. 
 
HABs are a ubiquitous problem that affect coastal and Great Lakes waters around the United States.  Science has made significant advancement towards our understanding of the dynamics that lead to the formation and spread of HABs; however, effective means to control, and mitigate blooms at multiple geographic scales, remains elusive.  Promising US HAB-CTI tools and technologies will be encouraged to apply to relevant future NOAA Prevention Control and Mitigation HAB competitive funding announcements or other opportunities independent from the US HAB-CTI (shown as "Tier 3" and "Tier 4" in below image). The US HAB-CTI provides guidance to end users and stakeholders on navigating the relevant licensing and permitting processes (e.g., state requirements, National Environmental Protection Act, and Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act requirements). The goal of this incubator is the preliminary assessment of novel HAB control strategies to facilitate the development and implementation of those that are promising. Additionally, US HAB-CTI is archiving tool and technology project data for use/dissemination to the broader HAB  and resource management community.
 
The US HAB-CTI is administered by an Executive Team composed of NOAA, IMET, and Mote.  HAB management and research crosses many scientific disciplines and government responsibilities requiring various technical, scientific, and policy expertise – and mitigation research often lacks efforts to synergize work, target proof of concept science/funding, and actively avoid duplicative processes/research.  Thus, the US HAB-CTI will receive guidance from an Advisory and Review Board with representatives from the Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental Protection Agency, US Geological Survey, NOAA, a state agency, an academic institution, a non-governmental institution, and a related industry.