On May 24, 2010, shortly after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, BP announced a commitment of up to $500 million over 10 years to fund an independent research program designed to study the impact of the oil spill and its associated response on the environment and public health in the Gulf of Mexico. These funds have been distributed through different funding programs.
GoMRI Funding Programs
Year-One Block Grants (June 2010)
$50 million in funding provided directly from BP to Gulf State Institutions and the National Institutes of Health to establish critical baseline data as the foundation for subsequent research as well as support for studying the health of the oil spill workers and volunteers.
Bridge Grants (RFP-III, July 2011)
$1.5 million in support to ensure continuity of observations and sampling while the peer-review process was underway for Year 2-4 Consortia.
Year 2-4 Consortia Grants (RFP-I, August 2011)
$112.5 million in grants announced to eight research consortia comprising experts from over six-dozen research institutions in 27 U.S. states and five countries.
Year 3-5 Investigator Grants (RFP-II, Awards to be announced Summer 2012)
$22.5 million available for grants to individuals or collaborative efforts involving a principal investigator (PI) and up to three co-principal investigators (co-PIs) from no more than three additional institutions.
