Through the National Ocean Policy, we have a tremendous opportunity to protect and restore our oceans, Great Lakes and ocean ecosystems and the wildlife that depend on them.
Ensuring the health and resiliency of our ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes is also crucial to the health of our nation’s economy. Our oceans and coasts support tens of millions of jobs and are a vital part of the U.S. economy.
The National Ocean Policy is good for the environment and good for our economy. Finalizing the implementation plan for the National Ocean Policy will help keep our ocean and coasts healthy and create stronger economies for our coastal communities.
Dear Chairs Sutley and Holdren and National Ocean Council Members,
On behalf of the undersigned we thank you for the time and effort that you, your staff and the agency participants have dedicated to the National Ocean Policy Implementation Plan. We write today to urge you to finalize this action plan to ensure we move forward with on the water actions to help protect, maintain, and restore our oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes.
The National Ocean Policy is our nation's blueprint for strong long-term health of our oceans, coasts and Great Lakes. It coordinates the ocean work of our federal agencies and encourages all stakeholders to work together to help address big challenges facing ocean life. Through implementation of the National Ocean Policy, we have a tremendous opportunity to protect and restore our oceans, Great Lakes, and ocean ecosystems and the wildlife that depend on them.
The National Ocean Policy Implementation Plan reflects over two years worth of hard work, investment and commitment made by state governments, commercial and industrial users, university and scientists, 25 federal agencies and departments and tens of thousands of citizens across the country to move our oceans toward better ocean management. We now need to move forward with full implementation of the National Ocean Policy, including this final action plan to ensure on the water actions to help keep our ocean and coasts healthy and create stronger economies for our coastal communities.
Ensuring the health and resiliency of our ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes is crucial to the health of our nation's economy. Our oceans and coasts support tens of millions of jobs and are a vital part of the U.S. economy. The National Ocean Policy is good for the environment and good for our economy. We urge you to finalize the action plan to support full implementation of the National Ocean Policy today.
