Background Information:
The Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) was established "for the purpose of protecting important coastal and estuarine areas that have significant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, or aesthetic values, or that are threatened by conversion from their natural or recreational state to other uses." The program gives priority to lands that can be effectively managed and protected, provide public access to coastal and estuarine resources, and have significant ecological value.
Funding Overview
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) historically calls for project proposals in late December or early January each year. The call for proposals is dependent upon Congressional appropriations and does not occur every year.
The Indiana LMCP worked with partners to develop a state CELCP plan. The plan identifies biologically important areas within the Coastal Area. The document also includes the State Application process. The NOAA approved the Indiana CELCP plan on August 16, 2012.
Project proposals should identify and discuss the project's primary focus and in addition describe all other relevant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, and aesthetic values, and discuss threats of conversion of the project from its natural or recreational state to other uses. The proposals should also detail how the project will be completed in a timely manner, existing and proposed uses of the property, and how the project site will be managed in the future for long-term qualifications. Primary consideration for projects should focus on the ecological value of the property. Lands with Coastal influence and ecological importance are the most successful in the NOAA review process. As such, properties within 1 mile of the Lake Michigan shoreline should receive priority.
Upon publication of a Federal Funding Opportunity for CELCP Projects, the Indiana LMCP shall solicit project proposals from our partners in the coastal area. The LMCP may select and submit to NOAA up to three project proposals with a requested funding level not to exceed $3,000,000 per project. The standard financial assistance award period is 18 months.
Application Guidance and Forms
Please note: The Application Form contains all the items required by NOAA for consideration. The Application is numbered to match the formal NOAA Guidance Document. Please note that we added some "editorial" comments in the application that you can keep or delete as you see fit. The Guidance Document also includes the NOAA scoring criteria for each item.
