Obama Administration and Ocean Task Force

I’m a little late in posting this, but on June 12, 2009, the Obama Administration created a Task Force to develop recommendations on a national policy that ensures protection and restoration of the health of ocean, coastal and Great Lakes ecosystem and resources and a framework for coastal and marine spatial planning.  The memo announcing creation of the task force can be downloaded here. The Task Force must issue recommendations on national ocean policy within 90 days and a framework for marine spatial planning within 180 days. Interested parties can chart the Task Force’s progress or submit comments at the Ocean Task Force Website.

The Task Force has been reaching out to stakeholders and other interest groups which might be affected by marine spatial planning.    A few weeks ago, I attended one of these meetings on behalf of the Ocean Renewable Energy Coalition and found that the Task Force was extremely receptive to the needs of the fledgling marine renewables industry.   But marine spatial planning (MSP) is a daunting task and I question how much can be accomplished within the 180 day time frame.

Other countries already lead the United States on the MSP front.  UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has created an MSP resource page to aggregate information on different programs around the world. In June 2009, UNESCO also released this very practical step by step guide to marine spatial planning which is worth a read to gain familiarity with the basic concepts.

MSP poses another challenge – and opportunity – for the fledgling marine renewables industry.  If done correctly, MSP can expedite siting of marine renewables projects since advance planning upfront can minimize disputes over projects and their impacts down the road.   At the same time, data on ocean ecosystems and alternative uses is needed to facilitate meaningful MSP.  Otherwise, an MSP program could wind up excluding potentially beneficial uses like marine renewables from certain areas even though marine renewables projects might be fully compatible within those regions. The important aspect of MSP is that it must be a fluid process that allows for changes as additional information emerges. For example, an area previously designated as “off limits” to avoid damage to habitat of a certain species could potentially be opened up to projects that are compatible with a sensitive environment. There’s a more detailed discussion of some of these issues in this testimony that I gave on the Hill last year on coastal zone management legislation.

In addition, as noted in this earlier post, other states such as Massachusetts and Rhode Island are engaging in their own coastal planning initiatives. Federal MSP efforts need to coordinate closely with ongoing state initiatives to avoid duplication of effort or worse, potential conflicts.