Nation Receives C- for ‘06 Ocean Reform
OCEANS
Bangor Daily News
Carlene Olsen
Boston University Washington News Service
1/30/07
WASHINGTON, Jan. 30 – State initiatives for ocean policy reform made notable progress in 2006, earning two letter-grades above the national C-minus ranking, according to an ocean commission report released Tuesday.
“The threat [to our oceans] is beyond question,” said retired Navy Adm. James Watkins, co-chairman of the report, in a teleconference Tuesday.
The second annual U.S. Ocean Policy Report Card evaluates the country’s conservation efforts nationally and regionally in six categories. The U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy and the Pew Oceans Commission created the non-partisan Joint Ocean Commission Initiative in 2004 to “accelerate the pace of change” through its annual reports, Watkins said.
“Oceans have a tremendous impact on the American economy,” he said. “These grades are important indicators of America’s progress, or lack of progress, in conserving this important resource.”
States such as Maine and Massachusetts have established ocean councils and regional environmental groups to improve the quality of ocean protection, said Leon Panetta, a former Clinton White House chief of staff, who also co-chaired the report.
“The states are leading the way, but they cannot succeed without the help of the federal government,” he said, in regards to policy reform. “We need to establish a federal approach that supports the states in that effort.”
The Massachusetts Oceans Act, drafted to create a state-wide ocean management plan, was noted as a “significant development” in the policy report, as were efforts by the Gulf of Maine Council on Marine Environment.
“In addition to the [Oceans Act], we are involved in a major partnership with a U.S.Geological Survey group to conduct sea-floor mapping,” Bruce Carlisle, acting director of Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management, said in a telephone interview.
A comprehensive study of the coastal economy also is underway to determine the impact marine industries have on the overall state economy, Carlisle said.
Every dollar invested in ocean conservation could save $184 in the overall economy, Watkins said, adding that an additional $750 million in federal funding is needed.
Though some progress has been made at the federal level with the passage and subsequent renewals of the 1976 Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, more could be done, Watkins said.
The report gave an F to federal funding efforts for ocean reform because of cutbacks last year, Panetta said.
Rep. Wayne Gilchrest of Maryland, the senior Republican on the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries and Oceans, said ocean policy programs may receive more attention with the new majority in Congress.
“Across the board, many of these programs dealing with ocean policy, we hope, will be bumped up to better reflect the ocean commission report,” Gilchrest said in a telephone interview.
The Magnuson-Stevens Act reflects the government’s recognition of the ocean commission report, he said.
“2006 was a year where we finally acknowledged the damage, due to global warming, that is impacting on our planet,” Panetta said. “Our hope is that 2007 will be a year of action to try to save both our planet and our oceans.”
###
