NSS PRESERVES RESEARCH INITIATIVE
POLICY

The goals of this research initiative are to provide grants for biological and environmental research in the Society's caves that will provide a baseline for the monitoring of potential degradation and the effective management of these caves.

Research proposals will be judged on (a) scientific merit, (b) feasibility, and (c) value to the management goals of the relevant NSS preserve(s).

Specific areas of interest include:
Biological inventory and census; including the development of standardized protocols to facilitate future follow-up studies.

Paleontological assessment; emphasis on assessment, not major excavation.

Assessment and mapping of bio-geological resources, including sediments, guano deposits, and paleontological deposits etc.

Water quality assessment; especially where relevant to the status of aquatic cave fauna.

Geographic Information System development; in the context of mapping sensitive biological and geobiological resources onto cave maps.

Rules:
Focus must be on NSS owned (or, in the case of the Potter Unit preserve, NSS managed) caves, but does not preclude extension to other caves outside but explicitly relevant to NSS sites.

Grant recipients must provide a full accounting of all funds.

Two thirds of each grant shall be paid in advance; the remaining third will be paid upon project completion and the receipt of the specified deliverables.

All projects must have the approval of the relevant Preserve management Committee(s); data will become the property of the MPC who may, where necessary, restrict distribution of sensitive data.

Applicants must provide evidence of all relevant State or Federal permits before receipt of any funding.

All projects must conform to the general rules pertaining to research in/on NSS preserves: http://www.caves.org/nss-business/bog/app-ae.html; variances must be approved by RAC and/or the NSS Board of Governors.

9/15/07

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