Cooperative Agreement NA26NOSX420C0010

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources a cooperative agreement totaling one million three hundred thirty thousand dollars on September 1, 2026, to support operations, research, monitoring, stewardship, training, and education activities at the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve under the Coastal Zone Management Estuarine Research Reserves program (CFDA 11.420).

The award funds habitat protection, water quality monitoring, and environmental change assessment consistent with the National Estuarine Research Reserve System's strategic priorities and the Grand Bay reserve's 2023–2027 management plan. Programmatic activities include habitat restoration, scientific studies contributing to coastal landscape improvement, data dissemination to local decision makers, and community training and education. Work encompasses large-scale wet pine savanna restoration and monitoring as part of a separate Natural Resource Damage Assessment land acquisition and habitat management project, and stormwater management and green infrastructure implementation in partnership with the City of Moss Point.

The period of performance runs from September 1, 2026, through February 28, 2028, with place of performance in Biloxi, Mississippi. The obligated amount is one million three hundred thirty thousand dollars, comprising nine hundred thirty-one thousand dollars in federal funds and three hundred ninety-nine thousand dollars in state matching funds from the Mississippi Tidelands Trust Fund representing thirty percent support to all project costs except indirect costs. The State of Mississippi provides up to two hundred thousand dollars annually for building repairs as additional program support outside the match requirement.

Mississippi State University partners with the recipient on a portion of the work.