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NMI gets $83K grant for reefs management
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Posted on Apr 30 2002
Gov. Juan N. Babauta officially signed the grant documents yesterday that would enable the Commonwealth to receive $83,000 from the U.S. Department of the Interior for the coral reef program of the Coastal Resources Management Office.
Babauta said the additional funding was approved and awarded partly in recognition of the outstanding progress that the CNMI has made in the past several months in developing the Coral Reef Initiative, a coral reef management program.
With the money, Babauta said the CRMO could carry out a number of projects that include coral reef monitoring and assessment in the Northern Islands.
The grant, officially called the Coral Reef Initiative Grant CRI-CNMI-2, was signed in the presence of CRM officials. Besides the Interior Department, the grant was also made possible through the Office of Coastal Resources Management of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
In his letter to the Governor, Office of Insular Affairs acting Director Nikolao Pula said that, although coral monitoring and assessment are generally not a high priority for Coral Reef Initiative funds, his office believes that these activities will provide important baseline information on the coral reefs in the Northern Islands.
“This information will be helpful in guiding and evaluating management decisions regarding the development planned for the Northern Islands. Information and tools developed under this and previous grants will also be helpful in developing a broad marine management strategy for the CNMI that includes specific management actions and steps for implementation, as envisioned under this grant program,” Pula said.
The grant, however, is being given on a reimbursable basis, which means that the CNMI will have to first spend up to $83,000 for the project out of its own pocket. It will then submit a quarterly report and a final narrative performance report on the expenditure of the fund, together with a voucher requesting for reimbursement of the money expended.
