Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force
Interim Report Issued on National Coastal and Ocean Plan Development
Sep 18, 2009
American boaters have a vested interest in the proper stewardship of the country’s oceans, lakes and shorelines. Those working and playing on the waterfront understand their reliance on the coastal environment and its management.
In June of 2009, President Barack Obama established an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force to be supervised by the White House Council on Environmental Quality. In a memorandum to federal agencies and departments, President Obama said, "The oceans, our coasts, and the Great Lakes provide jobs, food, energy resources, ecological services, recreation, and tourism opportunities, and play critical roles in our Nation’s transportation, economy, and trade, as well as the global mobility of our Armed Forces and the maintenance of international peace and security. We have a stewardship responsibility to maintain healthy, resilient, and sustainable oceans, coasts and Great Lakes resources for the benefit of this and future generations."
The Task Force started meeting on June 22, 2009 and have actively encouraged public engagement in their planning. Four elements required of the future National Policy of the Ocean, Our Coast, and the Great Lakes were identified by the group. They are an overview of the policy should accomplish, a framework for coordinating agency management efforts, and how to implement the changes suggested by the plan. Consistent with the charge made of the Task Force by the President, an interim report was released on September 10, 2009 that outlined the group’s progress.
Proposed Implementation of National Ocean and Coastal Policy
The section of report that should be most interesting to boaters and others reliant on a vital waterfront is how new polices will be implemented. Several suggestions for implementation are outlined in the interim report:
- Ecosystem-Based Management – Use ecosystem based management in resource planning efforts
- Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning – Spatial planning is a way to combine information and data coming from multiple sources into a proactive plan that hopefully allows for better resource management decisions
- Inform Decisions and Improve Understanding – Capacity building to increase knowledge of resources and improve management decisions
- Coordinate and Support – Improve coordination between managers and decision makers at all levels
- Resiliency and Adaptation to Climate Change – Promote efforts that allow ecosystems to better cope with climate change and ocean acidification
- Regional Ecosystem Protection and Restoration – Establishment of an integrated, science-based strategy to preserve and restore habitat
- Water Quality and Sustainable Practices on Land – A look at reducing the effects of land based pollution and storm water runoff
- Changing Conditions in the Arctic – The North is seeing the effects of climate change at an accelerated pace. Research here can provide a forecast of what is to come for the rest of thwe country
- Observation Infrastructure – Improvement of ocean observing systems and water data collection in an integrated fashion
The interim report includes a draft framework for the National Policy of the Ocean, Our Coast, and the Great Lakes for public review. This outline provides some clues on what issues the Task Force believes should be addressed. The interim report can be viewed online and the Task Force is seeking public comment on it contents.
Follow the progress of the Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force at the White House’s website.
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