UMaine receives $18 million for research

ORONO – Hardier fish, more accurate missiles and longer-lasting piers all could be on the horizon thanks to federally budgeted research funds for the University of Maine that increased by nearly 30 percent.

Due in part to successful lobbying from the state’s congressional delegation, the flagship campus received an all-time high of $18.2 million, around $4 million dollars more than last year. The funding shows “the high regard that federal-level experts have for the work of our scientists … the value of state investment in research and development infrastructure and … the outstanding work of Maine’s congressional delegation,” said Robert Kennedy, UM’s executive vice president and provost.

Sometimes called pork barrel or earmarked funding, the grants are “appropriations that members of Congress give for projects involving specific colleges and universities bypassing the normal competitions for federal funds,” according to the Chronicle of Higher Education’s Web site.

Describing the appropriations during a phone interview on Tuesday, Kennedy said the largest amount, $9.15 million, comes from the Agricultural Research Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The funds will be used to begin developing a $25 million cold-water finfish aquaculture facility at UM and at the university’s Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research in Franklin. Faculty scientists and students will work on raising various species of fish, including halibut, haddock and cod, that have not been produced in aquaculture anywhere in the country. As part of a project with the U.S. Army, $3.5 million will be used to improve the design of defense missiles via computer models. Another $1 million from the Department of Transportation will be used to design decay-resistant waterfront facilities. And $1.2 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will be spent on investigating more efficient and environmentally sound ways to bleach wood pulp for paper production. Also from the USDA, $260,000 will be spent on looking at the health benefits of blueberries and $160,000 to improve potatoes for fresh market or for processing.