[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 20 (Tuesday, January 30, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3026-3029]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-1611]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Research
Energy Research Financial Assistance Program Notice 96-06: Global
Change Integrated Assessment Research
AGENCY: Department of Energy (DOE).
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ACTION: Notice inviting grant applications.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Health and Environmental Research (OHER) of the
Office of Energy Research, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) hereby
announces its interest in receiving applications to support research
and analysis of Global Change Assessment Research. This notice is a
follow on to two previous notices published in the Federal Register
(Notice 93-4 published December 9, 1992, entitled Economics of Global
Change Research Program and Notice 95-12 published December 29, 1994,
entitled Global Change Assessment Research Program). The program has
expanded since 1992 to include core support for integrated assessment
activities and research on assessment in direct support of global
change policy. The research program supports the Department's Global
Change Research Program, the U.S. Global Change Research Program
(USGCRP), and the Administration's goals to understand and mitigate the
rise in greenhouse gases.
DATES: Formal applications submitted in response to this notice must be
received by 4:30 p.m., EST, March 20, 1996, to permit timely
consideration for awards in Fiscal Year 1996 and Fiscal Year 1997.
ADDRESSES: Formal applications referencing Program Notice 96-06 should
be forwarded to: U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Research,
Grants and Contracts Division, ER-64, 19901 Germantown Road,
Germantown, MD 20874-1290, ATTN: Program Notice 96-06. The following
address must be used when submitting applications by U.S. Postal
Service Express Mail, any commercial mail delivery service, or when
hand-carried by the applicant: U.S. Department of Energy, Office of
Energy Research, Grants and Contracts Division, ER-64, 19901 Germantown
Road, Germantown, MD 20874-1290.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. John C. Houghton, Office of Health
and Environmental Research, Environmental Sciences Division, ER-74
(GTN), U.S. Department of Energy, Germantown, MD 20874-1290 (301) 903-
8288, fax (301) 903-7363, or by Internet address,
john.houghton@oer.doe.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: There are two topics that are included in
the DOE Global Change Integrated Assessment Research program for FY
1996 and FY 1997. Approximately 80 percent of the funds are expected to
be allocated to the first topic; 20 percent for the second topic.
The determination of energy policy, such as that contained in the
Department of Energy's National Energy Policy Plan and the President's
Climate Change Action Plan, as well as the policy actions taken in
response to the first Conference of the Parties in Berlin, is tied to
understanding the benefits and costs of potential actions with respect
to the control of greenhouse gases and possible climate change. The
research described in this notice supports the analysis of those
benefits and costs as well as helps in presenting the results of the
U.S. Global Change Research Program to the policy-setting process.
This research will be judged in part on its potential to improve
and/or support the analytical basis for policy development. For
instance, research that supports integrated assessment, which in turn
supports the policy process, is considered relevant. More broadly
applicable research will be preferred to narrowly focussed research on,
for example, particular energy technologies, or narrowly-defined
geographic regions. One of the requirements of the application is to
define the linkage to policy questions that the research expects to
address. Applications that involve development of analytical models and
computer codes will be judged in part on the basis of proposed tasks to
prepare documentation and make the models and codes available to other
groups.
A background document that describes the supplementary information
in more detail is available from Dr. Houghton. Applicants are expected
to be familiar with literature on global climate change. A
representative list of relevant literature is also available from Dr.
Houghton.
A. Integrated Assessment of Climate Change
Integrated assessment (IA) of climate change is the analysis of
climate change from the cause, such as greenhouse gas emissions,
through impacts, such as changed energy requirements for space
conditioning due to temperature changes. The analysis should include
feedbacks and be oriented to evaluating policy options. IA is
sometimes, but not always, implemented as a computer model. Under this
topic, the Integrated Assessment program will support research that
either (a) develops IA's for use by the policy-setting process, or (b)
conducts more narrowly defined research topics, the results of which
would be used by the IA community. Note that the research supports the
development of methodologies or information rather than the exercise of
a model to evaluate specific policy options. In case (a), a criterion
for selecting awards will be the potential contribution to the policy
decision process and the added value of that particular proposed IA
effort (particularly for new IA models) over other ongoing IA
activities. In case (b), a criterion will be the importance of the
research results to the IA community.
The following categories are examples of focused research topics
that would support IA. They are listed in order of importance.
1. Technology Innovation and Diffusion. This category has been a
primary focus of the Integrated Assessment program for the last three
years. Potential research projects include such issues as:
The representation of technology innovation and diffusion
in IA models. This might include studies such as (a) The expected
impact of increased R&D programs on technology innovation, (b)
decomposing technology improvements into various factors, including a
residual such as the autonomous energy efficiency improvement index,
(c) capital vintaging and embodied technology in capital stock, and d)
analysis of the ``top/down versus bottom/up controversy'',
The rate of technology diffusion from the US to developing
countries and the prediction of the energy-use path for developing
countries, including the influence that future technology improvements
in developed countries will have on developing countries, and
The translation of existing literature on the economics of
technology innovation into a representation that could be adapted for
IA models.
2. Representing Non-Market Impacts in Integrated Assessments: A
major challenge before the integrated assessment modeling community is
to expand the range of representations in integrated assessment models
of the response of ecosystems, socio-economic systems, human health,
and other sectors to potential climate changes. This is especially true
for estimates of the consequences of climate change on the ``non-
market'' goods and services provided by ecosystems. This topic will
emphasize the interface between impacts sectors and integrated
assessment rather than process modeling of the sectors. Of particular
importance are analyses that attempt to predict the change of unmanaged
ecosystems to transient climate change rather than, for instance,
static doubled carbon dioxide regime.
3. Reduced Form Models: This category would support the development
of selected simplified models that portray an important aspect
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of the overall problem and can be used by several of the IA modelers.
This category would also support research that addresses paradigms for
coordinating research on process studies so that they are more easily
reformulated as reduced form models.
4. Uncertainty. Research subjects include how to estimate
uncertainty in IA models, how uncertainty affects the effectiveness of
policy options, the utility of different representations of uncertainty
including surprises, and the value of research on different topics
based on an analysis of the utility of uncertainty reduction.
5. Scale Differences: In linking the physical, biological, and
social science systems together, information and sub-models are often
collected and constructed at different geographical scales and
timeframes. For example, impacts averaged across large latitude and
longitude cells do not correspond to nations, which are often the
appropriate unit in political science models of international
negotiating. This category includes research on combining different
scales in a consistent manner.
6. Data: Some data sets are so important and common to so many
assessment activities that support for collection of that data would
prevent duplication. This category includes two subjects. The first is
to conduct the research necessary to define specific data sets that are
needed by the IA community. The second is to conduct the research
necessary to collect and provide a needed data set.
7. Driving Forces: This research will help understand the
underlying economic forces that drive global change and that form a
foundation for most economic modeling of global change.
B. Assessment in Direct Support of Policy
The following subject areas are defined by categories of policy
concerns rather than by research categories themselves. Successful
research applications in this area will concentrate on the broader
issues of policy activities rather than, for example, specific policy
proposals. Although particular examples or case studies may be
important to understanding the broader theme, the major goal is the
general understanding that can be applied to the broad policy. The
categories are listed in order of importance.
1. U.S. Emission Abatement Strategies: The research would help
predict the direct and indirect effectiveness of emission abatement
strategies, such as cost, impacts, and timing. For example, assessing
effectiveness of voluntary actions would be important for some short-
term abatement actions.
2. R&D as a Policy Option: Investment or other policies to
encourage research and development are options for increasing abatement
and improving adaptation. Research in this category would investigate
such subjects as how to predict the success of research programs and
the effectiveness of alternative modes of implementation, such as
direct grants, cooperative research projects, etc.
3. Global Change in the Context of Other Social and Environmental
Policy Options: Often global change policy issues are discussed in the
context of broader social and environmental goals. This category would
support the extension of global change assessment to include measures
and concepts that would benefit the broader debate, such as
international trade, job formation, and economic competitiveness.
4. International Negotiations: This category includes research on
past roles or future prospects for science and integrated assessments
in international environmental negotiating processes and the formation
and stability of international agreements, for instance, whether
agreements can be generated that are both effective in reducing
emissions and that do not encourage countries to ``drop out''.
Potential applications are strongly encouraged to submit a brief
preapplication in accordance with 10 CFR 600.10(d)(2), which consists
of two to three pages of narrative describing research objectives.
Preapplications will be used to identify potential opportunities for
coordinated research, to enable DOE to advise potential applicants of
DOE's interest in their research ideas, and to serve as a basis for
arranging reviews of formal applications.
Preapplications should include no more than two to three double-
spaced pages (10 pt.), including proposed research; names and telephone
numbers for all principal investigators (PIs), coprincipal
investigators, and collaborators; and telefax number, Internet address
(if available) and mail address for the PI. Preapplications referencing
Program Notice 96-06 should be sent to Dr. Houghton, Office of Health
and Environmental Research, ER-74, Germantown, MD 20874-1290, or to
john.houghton@oer.doe.gov. Preapplications arriving close to the
deadline for submission of applications may not receive adequate
attention.
Preapplications and formal applications will be reviewed relative
to the DOE interests described by this notice and in reference to scope
and research priorities of the U.S. Global Climate Change Research
Program (USGCRP). Preapplications will be reviewed for relevance to
Program needs and interests. Formal applications will be subjected to
merit review and will be evaluated against the evaluation criteria set
forth in 10 CFR Part 605 as well as the specifics referenced above.
It is anticipated that approximately $2 million will be available
for grant awards in Fiscal Years 1996 and 1997, contingent upon
availability of appropriated funds. Previous awards for this type of
research have ranged from $30,000 up to $250,000 per year, with most
not exceeding $150,000. While most awards are expected to range from
$50,000 to $150,000 per year, a few larger awards may be granted for
large integrated assessment activities, which may be funded at up to
$500,000 per year. Funding of multiple year grant awards of up to three
years is available and is also contingent upon availability of
appropriated funds.
Information about the development and submission of applications,
eligibility, limitations, evaluation, selection process, and other
policies and procedures, may be found in 10 CFR Part 605, and in the
Application Guide for the Office of Energy Research Financial
Assistance Program. The Application Guide is available from the U.S.
Department of Energy, Office of Health and Environmental Research,
Environmental Sciences Division, ER-74, Germantown, MD 20874-1290.
Telephone requests may be made by calling (301) 903-4902. Electronic
access to ER's Financial Assistance Guide is possible via the Internet
using the following e-mail address: http://www.er.doe.gov.
Related Funding Opportunities
Investigators may wish to obtain information about the following
related funding opportunities:
National Science Foundation: In concert with other US/GCRP
agencies, NSF has established Methods and Models for Integrated
Assessment to sponsor high-quality, fundamental and methodological
research in two related categories: (1) Research that advances the
development of methodologies and models that will integrate or couple
multiple component systems; and (2) research that develops and enhances
the scientific components of the integrated approach. For both research
categories, NSF encourages participation and collaboration of
researchers from all appropriate scientific and engineering
disciplines, including the mathematical
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sciences. In FY 1995, NSF awarded approximately $3.4 M through the
special MMIA competition. Funding in FY 1996 is anticipated at
approximately the same level, depending on availability of funds.
Proposals submitted for this competition must be postmarked no later
than March 11, 1996. For more information on this program, please
contact; Dr. Robin Cantor, Directorate for Social, Behavioral, and
Economic Sciences, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Blvd.,
Arlington, VA 22230, PH: (703) 306-1757, FAX: (703) 306-0485, Internet:
rcantor@nsf.gov.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: Within the context
of its Economics and Human Dimensions of Climate Fluctuations Program,
the Office of Global Programs of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration will support research that identifies and analyzes
social and economic impacts associated with seasonal, year-to-year and
intradecadal climate variability, improves our understanding of factors
that determine human vulnerability to such fluctuations, and identifies
options for reducing vulnerability. The program is particularly
interested in learning how advanced climate information, as well as an
improved understanding of current coping mechanisms, could be used for
reducing vulnerability and providing for more efficient adjustment to
these variations. Notice of this program is included in the Program
Announcement for NOAA's Climate and Global Change Program, which is
published each spring in the Federal Register. The deadline for
proposals to be considered in Fiscal Year 1997 is expected to be in
late summer 1996. For further information, contact: Claudia Nierenberg;
Office of Global Programs; National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration; 1100 Wayne Ave., Suite 1225; Silver Spring, MD 20910;
Phone: (301) 427-2089, Ext. 46; Internet: nierenberg@ogp.noaa.gov.
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number for this program
is 81.049, and the solicitation control number is ERFAP 10 CFR part
605.
John Rodney Clark,
Associate Director for Resource Management, Office of Energy Research.
[FR Doc. 96-1611 Filed 1-29-96; 8:45 am]
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