July 21, 2016 — Coastal managers and policy advisers representing the six Mid-Atlantic states have issued a draft Mid-Atlantic Ocean Plan, a new approach to shaping management decisions regarding ocean resources in the region.
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Planning Body (RBP), with representatives from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, two federally recognized tribes, federal agencies and the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, led the three-year, ocean planning process with input from thousands of marine stakeholders and released a draft plan on July 5.
The plan focuses on nine major areas of ocean use: national security, ocean energy, commercial and recreational fishing, ocean aquaculture, maritime commerce and navigation, sand management, non-consumptive recreation, tribal interests and uses, and critical undersea infrastructure. The plan is now open for a 60-day public comment period until Sept. 6.
“The plan provides a refreshing understanding of diverse ocean uses from an integrated point of view – that is the intertwined human, commercial and natural ecosystem upon which we all depend,” said Anne Merwin, director of ocean planning at Ocean Conservancy. “And remember, the plan is a living document that will mature as new data becomes available and needs change.”
Under the new plan, state and federal agencies have committed to using better data and working with local stakeholders such as fishermen, offshore wind developers, maritime interests, educators, tourism businesses and recreational organizations on planning and permitting projects that could impact important fisheries, habitats, cultural sites and commercial enterprises in the region.