June 25, 2018 — Whenever I return to Southeast Alaska, I’m always filled with a renewed sense of optimism and awe for our state. Our beautiful landscapes draw tourists from across the world. Our waterways help make our state the “super power” of seafood and the home of the largest Coast Guard presence in the Pacific. Indeed, it’s largely because of the importance of our fisheries and the Coast Guard that I pushed to be the Chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and the Coast Guard. In this committee, we are making progress on important issues that greatly impact Southeast.
First, throughout Alaska, and particularly in Southeast, our oceans are our lifeblood. It’s imperative that they remain sustainable. That’s why I authored the Save Our Seas (SOS) Act with Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, which unanimously passed the Senate.
Over the course of decades, marine debris, particularly plastics, deposited in the ocean half a world away finds its way to our coastal communities and ecosystems. This is especially detrimental to our state, with its 47,300 miles of shoreline and bountiful fisheries.
Our bill provides the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) with funds for ocean debris cleanup, and allows the NOAA Administrator to declare severe marine events which authorizes additional funds for states, like Alaska, for cleanup and response efforts. Importantly, the SOS bill also focuses on the international component of the marine-debris crisis by directing the State Department to work with countries that are the source of such pollution. Our bill has helped spur international awareness of this problem. We’re hopeful it will pass the House soon and become law.