HR001121S0012-Amendment-02.pdf

The purpose of Amendment 2 to HR001121S0012, the Reefense Broad Agency Announcement, is to make changes to the program’s structure and timeline – introducing wave tank testing in Phase 1, delaying shoreline deployment and permitting, and reducing end-of-program structure length. Changes are highlighted below.

Section 1.1.2, Technical Area 1, is revised as follows:

1.1.2 Technical Approach

The program is comprised of three technical areas (TAs). While only one organism type should be proposed, performer teams must propose to all TAs for that organism type, in order to produce fully integrated systems. Proposals that do not address all TAs as characterized within this section will be deemed non-conforming and not considered for review.

The functionality of the integrated Reefense structure will be evaluated through demonstrations in maritime environments throughout the program, though some aspects (see TA3) may remain in laboratory settings through Phase 2. Preference will be given to approaches that prioritize field-testing early and often.

Technical Area 1: Substrate Design and Structure TA1 focuses on the base structure and component materials to serve two purposes: provide immediate wave attenuation through deployment, and promote the establishment and growth of marine life while attenuating this energy. TA1 will employ innovations in materials science, micro and macro reef component design, and hydrodynamic modeling for wave attenuation and larval attraction. Materials could include but are not limited to cementitious materials such as marine-, Roman-, or alternative-cement concrete, upcycled materials, and coated natural materials. The structure may comprise modular and/or monolithic components, and may consist of geometric designs optimized for wave attenuation over a large area. In Phase 1, proposers will pursue permits for eventual field deployment, and will have their physical model structural approaches evaluated against the program metrics in a wave tank provided by the independent verification and validation (IV&V) team (nominal flume width of 3 meters). The exact scale relative to full size will be determined at kickoff but coral teams should plan for 1:25 – 1:55 and oyster teams 1:10 to 1:25. The reef structure will be deployed as a 50-meter-long segment in Phase 2 with an additional 50 meters of structure in Phase 3, for a total structure length of 100 meters by the end of the program. The material costs of the reef structure in production quantities should not greatly exceed that of conventional solutions (e.g., seawalls and riprap) for the system produced by the end of Phase 3. See Table 1 for the specific wave energy attenuation metrics.

Other important considerations for the base structure’s material include compressive strength, flexural strength, penetration resistance, abrasion resistance, expected service life, cost per volume of material and/or region of coastline protected, local sourcing, and practical transport and installation. Standard tests such as those developed by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) should be employed in the development and assessment of proposed solutions. The structures must be robust enough to ensure they neither degrade nor become dislodged in a coastal seawater environment. To accomplish this, wave tank experiments will enable assessment of structural design with respect to reef height, width, slope, rugosity (a measure of surface convolution), and depth relative to different sea state conditions, including wave height and frequency, prior to fielding the base structures and testing them under real-world conditions. Standard National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) protocols will be followed to ensure that reef structures are included in navigational charts (and US Navy charts as a consequence), and the required buoys to mark the reef locations will be installed by the Government team so that they are visible to mariners.

Section 1.1.3 is revised as follows:

1.1.3 Program Phases

Reefense is a 60-month program divided into three phases. Based on the criteria outlined below, there will be a down-select after Phase 1 (see Section 1.5).

Phase 1 (18 months) For TA1 during Phase 1, structures will be designed (in concert with the prerequisites for TA2 and TA3 success) by way of modeling and wave tank experiments with consideration for structure height, width, slope, rugosity, and depth relative to different sea state conditions including wave height and frequency. Efforts will produce a reduced-scale structure suitable for wave tank testing at the IV&V facility as mentioned in Section 1.1.1, which will then be deployed at full scale and evaluated under real-world conditions in Phase 2. The IV&V Government team will conduct tests on performer technologies, and generate reports on the performance of all teams’ TA1 tank-tested structural solutions for Phase 1 by no later than month

16. Teams must demonstrate wave attenuation by reef structures of 70% compared to control (no protective structure) during the Phase 1 IV&V testing in the wave tank.

In the first phase, TA2 teams will establish their ecosystem engineering approaches and demonstrate a rudimentary ability to mitigate different predation and competition activities by biological organisms. In laboratory experiments or at performer-designated field test locations, the ecosystem engineers must maintain algae cover < 10% compared to a control for corals. The solutions must achieve improved recruitment (new settlement by juvenile organisms) of at least 10% for oysters, or 5% for corals, compared to a control.

The TA3 tasks in Phase 1 will identify adaptive biology techniques that focus on the actual reef builders (corals and oysters) with the ultimate goal of achieving resilient organisms that can thrive on Reefense structures. In this first phase, teams will characterize their solutions and begin laboratory studies. The resilient organisms must achieve a 15% growth improvement for coral, or 10% for oysters, over their control counterparts. Teams working on corals will need to achieve coral survivability at conditions 0.5oC above ambient, while teams working with oysters will need to show a 10% increase in lab disease tolerance of Perkinsis marinus (Dermo) compared to control treatments in a laboratory setting. By the end of the phase, performers should be able to show a viable pathway to field deployable TA3 solutions by Phase 3.

Phase 2 (18 months) In the second phase, TA1 structures will need to be fully permitted and deployed as a 50-meter segment by the 6-month mark (month 24), where they will remain in-water for the duration of the program, to serve as a host platform for Phase 3 extensions and for long-term evaluation. The structures will need to persist and demonstrate that they support the growth of emplaced reef organisms and attract new calcareous reef builders. During Phase 2, TA1 structures will be evaluated over an extended deployment period between program months 24 and 33. The structure should incorporate any improvements identified during Phase 1 IV&V evaluations and Phase 2 performer-conducted assessments to demonstrate resistance to erosion, waves, disease, and other natural phenomena. For TA2, performers will focus on down selecting their best field solutions. The larval attractants will be tested, as performers will need to demonstrate recruitment improvement of 50% for oysters and 25% for corals above the control. In addition, the healthy reef will be assessed through metrics of algal reduction of 30% over the control. For TA3, not only do teams need to achieve the metrics but they must conclusively prove why and how they were able to do so by identifying specific biomarkers that resulted in metric performance (Table 1) on growth, disease resistance, and temperature tolerance. Teams will need to demonstrate increased growth of 10% for oysters, or 15% for corals, in laboratory settings. For oyster approaches, disease tolerance for Dermo needs to be 15% higher compared to controlled settings. Teams working on corals must achieve temperature tolerance and survivability at 1oC above ambient conditions.

Phase 3 (24 months) The final phase will combine all aspects of the project in the field, to demonstrate the fielding of healthy reefs that are resilient and can protect the shoreline with greater efficacy and persistence than current storm mitigation solutions. The TA1 structures placed during Phase 2 will be lengthened by 50 meters of improved structure to reach the total length of 100 meters, and will continue to be evaluated for long-term endurance after two years of total deployment. The 100-meter-long structure will need to attenuate 90% or more of the wave energy by the end-of-phase.

TA2 approaches, having proven initial capability for sustaining a healthy reef ecosystem in the field, will continue to improve on ecosystem engineering metrics. The larval attractants will be tested, as performers need to demonstrate increased recruitment by 4x for oysters, or 35% for corals, above the control in the field. In addition, the healthy reef will be assessed through metrics of algal reduction of 50% over the control. Most of TA3 metrics will be evaluated in the field during Phase 3. One laboratory test of note is that sufficient adaptations have been implemented to provide improved survival at a seawater temperature increase of 3oC above ambient, to ensure compatibility with surface seawater temperature projections. For the reefs in the field, teams must demonstrate increased growth of 15% for oysters, or 30% for corals, relative to control. For oyster approaches, disease tolerance for Dermo needs to be 20% higher compared to control, as evaluated in the field.

Figure 1. Program Schedule

Section 1.2, Table 1 is revised as follows:

Table 1. Program Metrics

Section 1.3, Table 2 is revised as follows:

Table 2. Program Milestones and Deliverables

Milestones Deliverables

Phase 1 (18 months)

Technical Area 1

Month 1: Identify materials sources (vendor and country of origin)

Month 3: Model design report for proposed structure and materials based on IV&V team site feedback

Month 9: Model structure and demonstrate design plans, show wave attenuation in flume wave tank up to 70%

Month 15: Conduct assessment of the TA1 installation’s structural integrity in wave tank at the IV&V team facility

Month 5: Report plan for wave tank experiment

Month 10: Report on Model TA1 structure demonstration in flume and wave tank

Month 16: Preliminary techno-economic assessment of the material production and installation (anticipated costs of ≤ $500 per cubic meter of deployed structure at the end of Phase 1)

Month 16: Report on final Phase 1 performance and path forward

Technical Area 2

Month 2: Identify and characterize solutions in laboratory setting

Month 12: Identify progress on increasing recruitment densities in laboratory settings

Month 3: Report on solutions for achieving TA2 that outlines all strategies

Month 16: Report on metrics performance for Phase 1 with path outlined for achieving Phase 2 metrics

Technical Area 3

Month 2: Begin preliminary lab testing identifying plan forward

Month 17: Show viable pathway to field able solution

Month 3: Report characterizing approaches and target species

Month 5: Report outlining adaptive biology techniques being employed

Month 16: Report on metrics performance for phase 1 with path outlined for achieving phase 2 metrics

Technical Area 1

Month 24: Deployment of 50-meter reef base structure

Month 24: Secure Permits Month 25: Technical interchange meeting TIM (for all TAs, topics TBD by government team)

Month 28: Report on fielded TA2 solutions

Month 34: Structural assessment on structure after field deployment

Months 21 & 35: Report on structural integrity of deployed system Month 25: Report on deployment of structure

Month 28: Report on mid-phase demonstration

Month 35: Final techno-economic assessment of the material production and installation (assessed costs of ≤ $300 per cubic meter of deployed structure at the end of Phase 2)

Month 35: Report on final phase demonstration

Phase 2 (18 months)

Technical Area 2

Month 25: Create and outline plan for density increase and algae cover decrease

Month 28: Report on field deployment of solutions

Month 35: Report on final phase demonstration

Technical Area 3

Month 19: Demonstrate increased organism growth in the laboratory

Month 24: Conduct optimized temperature, growth and disease resistance experiments

Month 30: Identify biomarkers

Month 25: Report on organisms’ growth and disease resistance tolerances

Month 35: End of phase report including biomarkers

Technical Area 1

Month 39: Technical interchange meeting (TIM) (for all TAs, topics TBD by Government team)

Month 45: Deployment of 50-meter extension to reef base structure (100-meter total length)

Months 39, 46, 52: Assess long-term robustness of structure

Month 40: Report on structure deployment

Month 40: Report on TIM (all TAs)

Month 40, 47, 53: Reports on structural integrity

Month 59: Report on final phase demonstration

Technical Area 2

Month 37: Deploy new solutions Months 39, 46, 52: Assess performance of new solutions

Months 43, 47, 53: Report on performance of new TA2 solutions

Month 59: Report on final phase demonstration Phase 3

(24 months)

Technical Area 3

Month 38: Identify biomarkers used across three generations

Month 38: Deploy organisms in field

Months 46, 52: Demonstrate increased organism growth in the field

Month 47: Conduct optimized temperature, growth and disease resistance experiments

Months 40, 47, 53: Report on organisms’ growth and disease resistance tolerances

Month 59: Report on final phase demonstration including biomarkers and field deployment techniques for organisms

Note: All mid-phase and end of phase reports must address performance against tested metrics as well as mitigations and strategies for achieving future metrics

Section 1.4 is revised as follows:

Essential program demonstrations are outlined below. Additional demonstrations may be proposed, but those outlined below must be included, per the schedule set below.

Phase 1

Month 9: Model TA1 structure demonstration in flume or wave tank showing 70% attenuation.

Month 15: Final Phase 1 Demonstration Demonstration of 70% wave attenuation by physical model structure in wave tank measured by the IV&V team at their facility.

Achieve temperature tolerances that confer survivability at 0.5oC above ambient conditions in laboratory settings (for coral).

Achieve 10% decrease in Dermo disease for oysters vs. control populations in laboratory.

Phase 2

Month 27: Mid-phase demonstration showing increased (> 75%) wave attenuation and increased (> 10% over control) densities for corals and oysters. Laboratory studies for TA3 must show that they are on track to meet end-of-phase metrics.

Month 34: Final Demonstration Demonstrate wave attenuation (80%) in the field, with 50-meter long reef structure, as measured by the IV&V team. Reduce algae cover by 30% over control (coral teams).

Demonstrate recruitment densities of 50% (oysters) and hard cover (coral) of 25% over control. Show oyster size distributions in 10-75 mm range.

Demonstrate temperature tolerances and survivability of coral at 1.0oC above ambient conditions in the laboratory.

Demonstrate increased laboratory disease tolerance of Dermo by 15% compared to control.

Phase 3

Month 48: Mid-phase demonstration showing increased > 80% attenuation and increased > 35% over control densities for corals and oysters. Laboratory studies for TA3 must show that they are on track to meet end-of-phase metrics and that all necessary permits are obtained for deployment.

Month 58: Final Demonstration Demonstrate wave attenuation of 90% in the field, with 100-meter long reef structure, as measured by IV&V. At this time, the long-term endurance will be evaluated by IV&V after the more than three-year deployment of the structure to see how they were affected by hurricane seasons.

Demonstrate reduced algal cover by 50% over control in the field. Recruitment densities for oysters should be 4x above Phase 1 numbers with size distributions from 10-150 mm. Temperature tolerance of corals in laboratory must survive at 3.0oC.

Demonstrate an increase in-lab disease tolerance of Dermo by 20% compared to control in laboratory settings for oysters.

Section 1.5 is revised as follows:

1.5. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

Proposing Teams It is expected that proposals will involve multidisciplinary teams that include expertise from multiple complementary disciplines (e.g., coral and/or oyster biology, chemistry, engineering, epigenetics, marine ecology, hydrodynamics, data science, acoustics, analytics, oceanography, and physics). Specific content, communications, networking, and team formation are the sole responsibility of the proposer teams. Proposer teams must submit a single, integrated proposal led by a single program integrator/manager or prime contractor that addresses all program phases as applicable.

Data Sharing The Reefense program will require that performer data, analysis, and software executables (or source code) be shared with DARPA, the Government IV&V team, and U.S. Government stakeholders. Performers are strongly encouraged to establish the appropriate agreements to enable collaboration and data sharing beyond these organizations. DARPA encourages sharing of pre-existing data, including those generated through funding from other sources, although this is not a requirement of the program.

Biocontainment / Bio Safety This program will not support proposals that include engineered organisms.

Permits and Compliance It is the proposing team’s responsibility to obtain all necessary federal, state, and local government permits and approvals prior to deployment of the in-water structures in Phase 2 (program month 24), and abide by all applicable laws where necessary for the proposed work to be conducted. Proposing teams are expected to design their proposals so that they minimize the potential adverse impact on the environment. Proposals will be reviewed to ensure that they have sufficient environmental documentation to allow the Government team to determine whether the proposal is categorically excluded from further National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis, or whether an Environmental Assessment or Environmental Impact Statement is necessary to conform with NEPA requirements. For those applications needing an Environmental Assessment, affected proposers will be informed after the proposal review stage and will be requested to assist in the preparation of a draft of the assessment (prior to award).

Failure to apply for and/or obtain federal, state, and local permits, approvals, letters of agreement, or failure to provide environmental analysis where necessary (e.g., NEPA environmental assessment) will also delay the award of funds if a project is otherwise selected for funding. DARPA intends that execution of the Reefense program comply with all applicable laws and regulations protecting marine life, including Executive Order 12114, Endangered Species Act, and Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Ethical Legal Social Implications (ELSI) Activities Proposers are expected to engage with relevant regulatory bodies to identify and mitigate challenges to the transition of resulting technology and in anticipation of future deployment. The proposers should plan to support ELSI activities with DARPA, including semi-annual teleconference calls with the Reefense Program ELSI Group and consideration of feedback from the group regarding research activities. ELSI activity outcomes will be reported regularly to

DARPA.

Down-select A down-selection process (as mentioned in Section 1.1.3) will occur at the end of Phase 1. The down-selection process will be based on the performer’s ability to meet the following metrics:

Achieve threshold performance subset of metrics:

o Wave energy must be reduced by 70% after performer base structure is installed compared to no structure present, based on wave tank testing Demonstrate viable path towards meeting Phases 2 and 3 metrics in Phase 1 report

Performers will provide their physical model structures to the IV&V team for assessment. The wave attenuation performance will be determined by the IV&V partner at their wave tank facility during testing in Month 15, with results provided to DARPA and to all teams by Month 16. The Phase 1 report is due to DARPA in Month 16. In addition, teams will be subject to the below priority weighting during performance evaluation:

50% technical: Most reasonable technical path to achieving Phases 2 and 3 metrics 25% management: Effective intra-team working relationships across co-/sub-PIs 25% cost: clear ability to achieve Phases 2 and 3 objectives within proposed budget

The performer teams with the highest weighted scores will be considered for progression.

Other Requirements Performers are expected to attend program level meetings to provide scientific and technical updates to the other performers on the Reefense program on progress towards their milestones and scientific goals, and to summarize outstanding challenges and limitations that must still be overcome to achieve the overarching goals of the program. Program level meetings will be held at the kick-off of each phase (Phases 1, 2, and 3), as well as mid-phase (Phases 1, 2, and 3) for the program duration.