OpportunityTitle: Halibut Research Publication
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: This is a cooperative agreement Notice of Intent to award to the University of Alaska Fairbanks.  No other cooperators will be selected.
Description: NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD This Funding Announcement is not a request for applications. This announcement is to provide public notice of the National Park Service (NPS), intention to fund the following project activities. ABSTRACT Funding Announcement: J9815100510 Project Title: Halibut Research Publication Recipient: University of Alaska Fairbanks Principle Investigator: Andrew Seitz Total Anticipated Award Amount: $15,000 Cost Share: N/A New Award Or Continuation: New Anticipated Length of Agreement: 2 Years Anticipated Period of Performance: September 1, 2010 &#150; December 31, 2012 Award Instrument: Cooperative Agreement/CESU Statutory Authority: 16 U.S.C. &#167;1(g): The National Park Service may in fiscal year 1997 and thereafter enter into cooperative agreements that involve the transfer of National Park Service appropriated funds to State, local and tribal governments, other public entities, educational institutions, and private nonprofit organizations for the public purpose of carrying out National Park Service programs pursuant to section 6305 of title 31 to carry out public purposes of National Park Service programs. CFDA# and 0.00 Not Elsewhere Classified Single Source Justification Criteria Sited: BACKGROUND: In 1991, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) initiated a study of Pacific halibut movement in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska in order to support decisions about potential commercial fisheries closures in park waters. The research was conducted to address the need for information on the movement of important biological resources, such as Pacific halibut, within the park and across park boundaries. The original manuscript resulting from this research was a compilation of results from fine-scale acoustic tracking, large-scale acoustic tracking, and harvest tag returns. This manuscript was submitted to the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences in 2002 and was rejected. As of 2008, all authors had left the service of the USGS and no further plans to revise and re-submit the manuscript existed. However, obtaining a published manuscript from this research continues to be a Park Service priority. Although this research was initiated nearly 20 years ago, it still provides compelling, novel insights into the fine-scale movement of halibut that will be valuable for managers at the Park Service as well as researchers from other agencies. In addition, the Park Service has already invested heavily in the research both financially and philosophically so Park Service personnel welcome a finished product. An opportunity exists to revive, review, reanalyze and publish this valuable research that will simultaneously satisfy Park Service information needs, fulfill USGS responsibilities for completing the research, and provide an educational opportunity for an Alaskan fisheries scientist. Because revising this manuscript dovetails with Julie Nielsen&#146;s proposed Ph. D. research project on the movement of Pacific halibut at multiple scales, this task order will direct Ms Nielsen to revise and publish this information as a chapter in her Ph.D. dissertation in addition to a peer-reviewed journal article. Information such as daily movement rates, home range, and site fidelity during summer foraging obtained from the revision of this manuscript will be used in subsequent dissertation chapters as parameters for models that predict seasonal movements of populations. Thus, information provided by this important research in Glacier Bay will immediately be utilized to expand our understanding of the multi-scale movements of Pacific halibut populations. Following is a description of the manuscript revisions that are necessary for this to be accomplished, project timelines, and requested financial support. 1) 505 DM 2 Single Source - Only one responsible source will satisfy agency requirements. University of Alaska Fairbanks An opportunity exists to revive, review, reanalyze and publish valuable research that will simultaneously satisfy Park Service information needs, fulfill USGS responsibilities for completing the research, and provide an educational opportunity for an Alaskan fisheries scientist. A PHD candidate has considerable previous specialized experience as a USGS researcher investigating animal (marine fishes and invertebrates) movements and her dissertation research will investigate fish movement as a model parameter for managing fisheries populations and harvest. This candidate is eminently familiar with the previous USGS Glacier Bay movement research on halibut and this work will provide a key component that will dovetail with and inform her dissertation research. Because this work would mesh so well with this particular individual&#146;s proposed dissertation work, there exists an unparalleled opportunity for NPS to have this project completed by somebody with specialized knowledge in this field. 2) Nature and description of the deliverable required to meet the agency&#146;s needs: Publication of this work in a refereed technical journal is the desired goal. The anticipated delivery schedule is as follows: Project work elements Expected date Attend animal movement workshop/ present poster: Oct. 1, 2010 Present research results locally in Alaska: Jan. 31, 2011 Identify journal &amp; produce technical, journal formatted document: Feb. 28, 2011 Submit draft manuscript for journal publication: Mar. 31, 2011 Manuscript peer reviewed and accepted: Dec. 31, 2011 3) Criteria for justifying award without competition. In order for an assistance award to be made without competition, the award must satisfy one or more of the following criteria. Please explain which criterion specifically addresses the proposed agreement. Unique Qualifications - The applicant is uniquely qualified to perform the activity based upon a variety of demonstrable factors including previous experience, academic background, project familiarity, technical expertise, and local knowledge and familiarity with bathymetric and physical oceanographic conditions within Glacier Bay National Park where this research was conducted as a consequence of previous research experience within the park. 4) A description of the market research that was conducted and the results, or a statement of the reason a market research was not conducted: Market research was not conducted because this individual has specific technical expertise in monitoring and analyzing animal movement data (marine fishes and invertebrates) qualifying them for this work, a strong desire to complete this work as an integrated component of their dissertation, is familiar with this particular research, and the area where the research was done. This candidate has worked previously with one of the contributing scientists associated with the original halibut movement manuscript, monitoring movements of Tanner and king crab in Glacier Bay National Park. Moreover, they will be working with a University of AK faculty member (Dr. Andrew C Seitz) and an International Pacific Halibut Commission researcher (Tim Loher) with similar technical expertise and experience on this topic. 5) Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition: Graduate student research costs are typically discounted relative to competitive open market sources available through private consultants. 6) A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers for competition before any potential future agreement award: NA National Park Service Point of Contact: Erica_Cordeiro@nps.gov
GrantorContactEmailDescription: Work email
GrantorContactText: Erica Cordeiro &lt;br/&gt;Contract Specialist &lt;br/&gt;Phone 907-644-3303