[Coral-List] Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative FY2010 Request for Proposals

Social Science Research Institute Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative hcri_rp at hawaii.edu
Tue Feb 9 15:42:56 EST 2010


The Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative is pleased to release this year’s RFP.  Mandatory pre-proposals are due March 5, 2010.  The full RFP and forms can be downloaded at: http://www.hawaii.edu/ssri/hcri/RFPrelease.html.   Please help distribute this RFP to all interested parties. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Risa Minato at charissa at hawaii.edu.
 
HAWAII CORAL REEF INITIATIVE
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS
FY 2010-2011
Deadline:  March 05, 2010
 
For over a decade, the Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative (HCRI) (www.hcri.hawaii.edu) has worked to provide the best available science to support the wise stewardship and protection of Hawaii’s ecologically, economically and culturally valuable coral reef resources.  Achievements to date have resulted from research and monitoring projects, management-directed activities and educational outreach programs.  
The Hawaii Coral Reef Initiative Management Committee invites proposals for research beginning around September 2010 and running through August 2011.  HCRI anticipates having approximately $700,000 available for competitive research, depending on the amount received from NOAA.  There is no assurance of long-term funding from HCRI.  Therefore, the Management Committee would like to ensure that prospective applicants understand awards are year-to-year, even with multi-year project proposals.  In an era of greater accountability in the use of federal taxpayer funds, any proposal funded – including monitoring – is not guaranteed funding in subsequent years by HCRI and must complete the proposed scope of work within the timeframe covered by this RFP. 
Preliminary proposals (pre-proposals) are MANDATORY and must be received by 4:00 p.m. HST, March 5, 2010.  Applicants who submit successful pre-proposals will be invited to submit full proposals in mid-March 2010. Please contact Risa Minato at charissa at hawaii.edu if you have not heard by March 25, 2010.  The full proposal will be due by 4:00 p.m. HST, April 30, 2010.
The following subsections outline the research and monitoring priorities established by HCRI Management Committee for this solicitation.  Each priority listed contributes to the fundamental mission of the program:  to support monitoring and research to build capacity to more effectively manage Hawaii’s coral reef ecosystems.  Should no fundable proposal be submitted for a particular priority, HCRI may commission research and monitoring activities consistent with the program priorities.
 Priority Area A:  Kahekili (Maui)
The Hawaii Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR) established an Herbivore Fisheries Management Area (HFMA) in the reef region adjoining Kahekili Beach Park in West Maui, effective July 25th 2009.  The Kahekili HFMA was established to reverse the decline in coral cover and increase in algae documented by a decade of benthic community data.  Resource managers predict herbivorous fish stocks at Kahekili will increase because of this new regulation prohibiting their take.  HCRI funding supported characterization of the coastal benthic community at Kahekili regions of west Maui prior to implementation of HFMA and for one year after its closure. This year, HCRI is seeking proposals to monitor biological variables, including density and grazing intensity of herbivorous biota at multiple sites along the west Maui coastline, specifically Maalaea, Olowalu, and Kahekili.  This would allow a comparative assessment of functional responses over time to the ban on herbivorous fish take to reduce invasive species impacts in these areas.
 Priority Area B:  Kona (Hawaii)
The Management Committee is seeking proposals to develop methods for preventing the introduction and spread of new invasive marine species.   Specifically, HCRI is interested in proposals that examine the areas from Honokohau to Kawaihae for vulnerabilities to the spread of invasive marine algae, likely pathways of establishment, and recommendations on best practices and proactive policy actions that can be undertaken to avoid establishment and spread of such noxious species. 
 The HCRI management committee is also interested in proposals to further study the introduced grouper roi (Cephalopholis argus) in this same region.  Based on previous studies sponsored by HCRI, the management committee is interested in research that would elucidate the role of roi predation in community structure and recruitment success of prey fishes. Prey fishes at this time appear to be able to cope with feeding pressure from roi, as their populations have been stable or increasing (HCRI unpublished data). Basic biology, behavior and ecology of roi on the reefs is of keen interest to resource managers. Interesting research questions that should be considered in the research proposal relate to the strong resilience of prey fishes to roi predation and an examination of how fish communities and their recruitment would change in the absence of roi. 
 Priority Area C:  Kaneohe Bay (Oahu)
Kaneohe Bay, the largest estuarine bay with coral resources in the US, faces many challenges from watershed inputs from urbanization over the past 50 years.  The Management Committee is interested in how point and nonpoint source pollutants affect Hawaii’s nearshore reefs. HCRI will consider proposals that will provide scientifically based and practical management recommendations for preventing marine pollution that negatively impacts coral reef ecosystems. The HCRI management committee seeks proposals for projects that will: 
(1) Identify one-to-three catchments in this region that can be used to study mitigation options. 
(2) Recommend practical management options to avoid, minimize, or mitigate negative impacts for each priority catchment; and 
(3) Present the advantages and disadvantages for each management option and provide tools for evaluating the effectiveness of the management measures.
 



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