The national oceanic and atmospheric administration (NOAA) is providing $500,000 in federal funding to the state of maryland through the national estuarine research reserve system (nerrs) land…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) awarded $588,500 to the State of Maryland Department of Natural Resources on October 1, 2025, under the Coastal Zone Management Estuarine Research Reserves program (CFDA 11.420). This Project Grant funds the development of engineering and design plans for a CoastSmart Energy-Smart field station in the Monie Bay area of the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The primary deliverable consists of comprehensive architectural and engineering designs for a two-phase field station facility, with the initial phase covering dorm and kitchen facilities and the second phase addressing office, laboratory, and classroom space, along with associated infrastructure plans.

Under this 36-month project period (concluding September 30, 2028), the recipient will engage a contractor to produce detailed construction plans and implementation timelines for the multi-phase development. The field station will support the reserve's expanding research and educational mission by providing improved facilities to accommodate growing operational needs in the region. This award falls within NOAA's broader Coastal Zone Management Estuarine Research Reserves program, which assists states in establishing and operating estuarine reserves as natural field laboratories for coastal monitoring, research, and public education.

The national oceanic and atmospheric administration (NOAA) is providing $500,000 in federal funding to the state of maryland through the national estuarine research reserve system (nerrs) land acquisition and construction program for fiscal year 2025 (NOAA-NOS-OCM-2025-29258). This funding will build the ability of the chesapeake BAY, maryland national estuarine research reserve within the maryland department of natural resources to construct a field station to accommodate our growing sector needs in the monie BAY area of the reserve. The end goal for this project is to produce engineering and design plans to construct a coastsmart energy-smart field station for research and educational purposes. A multi-phase approach will be used for the full field station construction. In this phase the recipient will seek a contractor to design and provide plans and timelines for the construction of a field station built in two stages. First, a building to house dorm facilities and a kitchen area will be designed. The second building, consisting of offices, lab, and classroom space, will be designed. The design work will include the plans for both buildings and connected infrastructure.