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Launched in 2008 as a partnership between Covanta, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Marine Debris Program, Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc., and NFWF, the program seeks to provide a cost-free solution that allows fishermen to dispose of old, derelict, or unusable fishing gear, with the goal of reducing the amount of gear that ends up in and around  costal waterways. Under this RFP, grants will be awarded to programs that target U.S. coastal waters, with priority given or areas that have been identified for derelict fishing gear prevention, reduction, and gear technology innovation in state or regional plans, or as part of species or habitat conservation plans. Priority locations include areas of the Gulf of Maine that have been identified as priority habitat for North Atlantic right whales; the Chesapeake Bay, with a focus on blue crab habitat;  the Puget Sound, with a focus on killer whale and Chinook salmon habitat; and within the borders of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in Hawaii.