Maritime Heritage Grants
Currently, there is no funding available for the Maritime Heritage Grants Program. It is also uncertain when, and if, enough funds will be available for future grants. This is due to environmental and worker safety issues associated with the program’s funding source.
The grants program is funded from 25% of the proceeds from scrapped vessels of the National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF). Unfortunately problems in meeting adequate environmental and worker safety standards during the scrapping process have caused delays in the disposal of NDRF vessels. This has resulted in a decline in the profits generated by this resource and a loss of funds available for our grants program.
Information about the environmental and worker safety issues associated with vessel scrapping may be viewed on the Defense Environmental Network and Information Exchange web site. The Maritime Administration, which manages the NDRF, also maintains a web site. As well, the October 1998 (FY99) report by the United States General Accounting Office entitled Federal Surplus Ships, Government Efforts to Address the Growing Backlog of Ships Awaiting Disposal (GAO/NSIAD-99-18) provides a current overview of the status of these issues.
Link to more information about the grants program, its background and the projects funded in the 1998 competition. |
