Social, Cultural, and Economic Assessment of Harmful Algal Blooms
The Social, Cultural, and Economic Assessment of Harmful Algal Blooms (SEAHAB) program is a national, peer-reviewed, competitive research funding program that seeks to assess the social, cultural and economic impacts of harmful algal bloom (HAB) events at both the individual and community levels. The goal of this program is to facilitate the development and implementation of strategies that prevent or mitigate such impacts. Social, cultural and economic research provides critical information that allows communities, resource management, public health agencies, affected sectors, and scientists to develop and implement coordinated, effective responses to HAB events at local, state and regional scales.
Program Details
SEAHAB funds research that may guide future research on the social, cultural and economic impacts of HAB events at a local, state, and regional, and national level, and inform the selection of management strategies and methods most appropriate to a specific HAB event and ongoing issues. Resulting research will also provide the necessary building blocks that can lead to a better national assessment of the social, cultural, and economic impacts from HAB events.
Prior to the establishment of the SEAHAB program, socioeconomic research to assess impacts of HAB events and the costs and benefits of mitigation strategies was previously funded through the Prevention, Control, and Mitigation of HABs (PCMHAB) program.
SEAHAB was authorized by the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act (HABHRCA, 33 U.S.C. §§ 4001 et seq.) in 1998 and reauthorized in 2004, 2014, and 2017.
Program Priorities
SEAHAB funds research that addresses
Social and/or cultural impacts of HAB events response at local, state and/or regional scales.
Economic impacts of HAB events at local, state and/or regional scales.
Impacts of HAB events on subsistence at local, state and/or regional scales.
Funding Announcement
Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) announcements for SEAHAB and other national competitive HAB programs are available on the
NCCOS Funding Opportunities page.
Check back for available funding.
Funding Details
Contact the NCCOS for details. – Hide when not available
Additional Resources
For more information:
- Contact Brittany King, SEAHAB Coordinator
- SEAHAB Program One-Pager
For additional HAB Competitive Research Programs, visit
Past Projects
View HAB event responses since 2015 that received funding support from the HABER Program; responses organized by funding recipient in each region and state.
- Responding to Harmful Algal Bloom – Sitka Tribe of Alaska ($12,950)
- Responding to Multispecies Mortality Event Occurring in Norton Sound Region ($15,000)
- Testing Tribal Shellfish for Toxin in Southwest Alaska ($48,507)
- Collecting Real-Time Harmful Algal Bloom Data in Alaska ($29,923)
- Communicating Harmful Algal Bloom Risk to Communities in the Bering Strait Region ($15,000)
- Investigating Unusual Marine Animal Mortalities and Possible Harmful Algal Bloom around Kachemak Bay ($5,000)
- Responding to Multispecies Mortality Event in St. George Island, Alaska ($5,344)
- Sampling Harmful Algal Bloom In Kachemak Bay ($19,800)
Ohio
Massachusetts
New York
- Investigating Diamondback Terrapin Die-Offs ($5,400)
- Responding to Ongoing Harmful Algal Blooms in Long Island ($19,000)
Virginia
Florida
- Assessing Martin County Threat of Blue-green Algal Toxin ($9,273)
- Monitoring Brown Tide in Indian River Lagoon ($7,096)
- Studying Airborne Health Risks from Cyanobacteria Blooms ($5,000)
- Investigating Unusual Fish Behavior in the Florida Keys ($25,000)
Puerto Rico
- Supporting Sargassum Response ($38,467)
Alabama
Florida
- Responding to Red Tide ($19,200)
- Examining Sea Turtle Mortalities and Dietary Exposure to Red Tide Toxins ($10,045)
- Testing Treatment for Birds Sickened by Red Tide ($8,250)
- Sampling Ongoing Red Tide to Determine Impacts ($28,000)
- Quantifying Toxin Accumulation in Seabirds and Prey Fish ($7,820)
Louisiana
- Responding to Cyanobacterial Blooms in Lake Pontchartrain Caused by Opening Bonnet Carre Spillway ($12,907)
Texas
California
- Responding to Southern California Harmful Algal Bloom Event ($14,250)
- Investigating Bioluminescent Red Tide Event Off Southern California Coast ($17,950)
- Responding to Harmful Algal Bloom in the San Francisco Bay ($15,420)
- Responding to Harmful Algal Bloom Following Marine Mammal Strandings in Southern California ($12,550)
- Responding to Marine Mammal Mortality Event Occurring in Southern California ($4,520)
Washington