April 24, 2013 — Last week, the National Ocean Council released its final ocean action plan—a to-do list for our federal agencies to work together to address some of our oceans' biggest threats.
From ocean acidification to pollution and habitat destruction, our oceans are already suffering, and we need coordinated action to ensure a healthy, productive future for our ocean resources. The ocean action plan calls on agencies to, among other things, share data on our ocean resources online for all to use, and to commit resources to regional planning efforts like those taking place in New England and the Mid-Atlantic.
It’s exciting to see the work being accomplished on the ground in these regions. Both regions are just starting – in fact, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Body was only officially announced in early April – but already there’s much we can learn from our New England neighbors.
Right before Thanksgiving last year, the Northeast Regional Planning Body (RPB) – made up of state representatives, a host of tribal partners, a regional fisheries council representative, and federal ocean policy leads – held their inaugural meeting to discuss how best to address the region’s ocean opportunities and challenges together. The RPB just held their second official meeting and they are off to an enviable start.
Read the full story at the Natural Resource Defense Council Staff Blog