ERP Mandates

The ERP is governed by a series of statutes that require NOAA to provide managers with scientific knowledge, increased management capabilities, financial assistance, and other support to manage the coastal zone to support society’s needs. The following statutes, executive orders, and international agreements are the major Requirements Drivers for the ERP.

The following is a summary of major requirements drivers (See Appendix A of the ERP Charter for the complete list):

1. U.S. Ocean Action Plan

  • Support ecosystem approaches to management, which requires indicators of ecosystem health and socio-economic impacts.
  • Support a Regional Partnership in the Gulf of Mexico.
  • Advance Ocean Stewardship through Implementation of Cooperative Conservation Executive Order.
  • Develop an Ocean Research Priorities Plan and Implementation Strategy - The Implementation Strategy will identify how the various ocean science sectors (i.e., government, academia, industry, and other non-government entities) can and should be engaged, individually or through partnerships. (These types of strategies would include cooperative research).
  • Build a Global Earth Observation Network, including the Integrated Oceans Observation System (IOOS): Develop a strategy for integration and possible convergence of existing and future requisite coastal observing systems of the IOOS.
  • Increase ocean education coordination: Data collected through ecosystem research programs and through NOAA Sea Grant partnerships are translated into usable forms for teachers, students, and the general public.
  • Support an Integrated Approach to Oceans Management and Reduction of Land-based Pollution.
  • Advance the Use of Large Marine Ecosystems.

2. Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research Control Act:

  • NOAA, through its ongoing research, education, grant, and coastal resource management programs, possesses a full range of capabilities necessary to support a near and long-term comprehensive effort to prevent, reduce, and control harmful algal blooms (HABs) and hypoxia; “funding for the research and related programs of [NOAA] will aid in improving the Nation's understanding and capabilities for addressing the human and environmental costs associated with harmful algal blooms and hypoxia”.
  • NOAA shall develop research plans and assessments and examine alternatives to reduce, mitigate, and control hypoxia and HABs in coastal waters including the Great Lakes.
  • NOAA shall support a comprehensive effort to examine the causes and ecological and economic consequences of HABs and hypoxia, and to describe the potential ecological and economic costs and benefits of policy and management actions to prevent, reduce, and control HABs and hypoxia.
  • NOAA shall assess HABs and hypoxia not less than once every 5 years.

3. National Sea Grant College Program Act:

  • The objective of the Sea Grant Act is "to increase the understanding, assessment, development, utilization, and conservation of the Nation's ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources by providing assistance to promote a strong educational base, responsive research and training activities, broad and prompt dissemination of knowledge and techniques, and multidisciplinary approaches to environmental problems."
  • The Act directs the Secretary of Commerce to “ . . .provide support for . . . national strategic investments in fields relating to ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources...” The Act funds a National Sea Grant network with 32 Sea Grant state programs, which includes fisheries extension. The Sea Grant Act is explicit in requiring that each Sea Grant program maintain “a program of research … in fields related to ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources.”

4. Magnuson Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act:

  • This is the primary law governing U.S. marine fisheries. Section 404 of the Act mandates the following research focus areas:
  • “Research to support fishery conservation and management, including but not limited to, biological research concerning the abundance and life history parameters of stocks of fish, the interdependence of fisheries or stocks of fish, the identification of essential fish habitat, the impact of pollution on fish populations, the impact of wetland and estuarine degradation, and other factors affecting the abundance and availability of fish.”
  • “Conservation engineering research, including the study of fish behavior and the development and testing of new gear technology and fishing techniques to minimize bycatch and any adverse effects on essential fish habitat and promote efficient harvest of target species.”
  • Section 404 identifies the Deep Sea Coral Research and Technology Program:
    • (1) to identify existing research on, and known locations of, deep sea corals and submit such information to the appropriate Councils;
    • (2) to locate and map locations of deep sea corals and submit such information to the Councils;
    • (3) to monitor activity in locations where deep sea corals are known or likely to occur, based on best scientific information available, including through underwater or remote sensing technologies and submit such information to the appropriate Councils;
    • (4) to conduct research, including cooperative research with fishing industry participants, on deep sea corals and related species, and on survey methods;
    • (5) to develop technologies or methods designed to assist fishing industry participants in reducing interactions between fishing gear and deep sea corals; and,
    • (6) to prioritize program activities in areas where deep sea corals are known to occur, and in areas where scientific modeling or other methods predict deep sea corals are likely to be present.”

5. Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA):

  • The MMPA mandates the protection of marine mammals and their habitats to maintain sustainable populations as functional components of the ecosystems upon which they depend.
  • The MMPA directs the Secretary of Commerce to undertake a scientific research program to monitor the health and stability of the Bering Sea Ecosystem and to resolve uncertainties concerning the causes of population declines of marine mammals, sea birds, and other living resources of that marine ecosystem.
  • The MMPA directs the Secretary of Commerce, in consultation with others (Interior, Marine Mammal Commission, and marine mammal experts, including stranding network participants), to establish the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program.

6. Endangered Species Act (ESA):

  • The ESA requires the Secretary of Commerce (with responsibility delegated to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)) to evaluate the status of species (or lower taxa) as stable, threatened or endangered; to designate critical habitat; and to evaluate Federal management activities to ensure that these actions do not jeopardize the continued existence of threatened or endangered species or adversely modify critical habitat. The information standard for the ESA is the best available scientific information.

7. Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) - 1972) and Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments - 1990):

  • The goal of the Coastal Zone Management Act is to encourage states to preserve, protect, develop and, where possible, restore and enhance valuable natural coastal resources.

8. National Marine Sanctuaries Act:

  • The National Marine Sanctuaries Act mandates that NOAA shall support, promote, and coordinate scientific research on, and long-term monitoring of, the resources of marine sanctuaries, and evaluate the implementation of each sanctuary’s management plan and goals.
  • It also mandates NOAA to “prevent or eliminate damage to the environment and biosphere and stimulate the health and welfare of man.”

9. Oceans and Human Health Act:

  • Under the mandates of the Oceans and Human Health Act, the Secretary of Commerce established an Oceans and Human Health Initiative to coordinate and implement research and activities of NOAA related to the role of the oceans in human health.
  • NOAA shall provide support for (1) program and research coordination; (2) an advisory panel; (3) one or more NOAA national centers of excellence; (4) research grants; and (5) distinguished scholars and traineeships.

10. Public Health and Welfare – Pollution Prevention and Control Act (PPCA):

  • The PPCA requires “The Administrator [of the EPA], in cooperation with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, shall conduct a program to identify and assess the extent of atmospheric deposition of hazardous air pollutants (and in the discretion of the Administrator, other air pollutants) to the Great Lakes, the Chesapeake Bay, Lake Champlain and coastal waters.”

11. National Aquatic Invasive Species Act (NISA) -1990; and the National Invasive Species Act (NISA) - 1996:

  • The Non-indigenous Aquatic Nuisance Prevention and Control Act and NISA (16 USC 4701+) give NOAA a leadership role in the planning, coordination, and execution of invasive species prevention, monitoring, and control actions, supported by research and outreach activities.

12. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA):

  • The NEPA requires each federal agency to assess the impact of alternatives for their actions (including activities conducted, funded or permitted by the agency) on the human environment. The cumulative impacts of each activity, in combination with other natural and anthropogenic phenomena, are included among the analyses.

13. The Estuary (Estuarine) Protection Act:

  • The Estuary (Estuarine) Protection Act is administered by the Department of the Interior and provides a means to protect, conserve, and restore estuaries in a manner that maintains balance between the need for natural resource protection and conservation and the need to develop estuarine areas to promote national growth. The Act requires the Secretary of the Interior to work with the States and other Federal agencies in undertaking studies and inventories of the Nation’s estuaries. These studies and inventories shall include the assessment of the wildlife and recreation potential of estuaries, their ecology, their value to the marine, anadromous and shell fisheries, and their aesthetic value; their importance to navigation and flood control and their mineral value their value for more intensive economic development.

14. Charting the Course for Ocean Science in the United States for the Next Decade: An Ocean Research Priorities Plan (ORPP)and Implementation Strategy:

  • The ORPP describes national ocean research efforts that must be pursued over the next ten years. Developed with extensive ocean community involvement, this document represents the first national effort to identify research priorities that address key interactions between society and the ocean. This document will serve to guide research efforts for the ocean community, including the Federal agencies, for the next decade.

15. America Competes Act [P.L. 110-69] Title IV of this Act directs NOAA to:

  • Coordinate with NSF and NASA to establish a coordinated program of ocean, coastal, Great Lakes, and atmospheric research and development (in collaboration with academic institutions and other nongovernmental entities) that focuses on the development of advanced technologies and analytical methods that will promote United States leadership in ocean and atmospheric science and competitiveness.
  • Conduct, support, promote, and coordinate formal and informal educational activities at all levels to enhance public awareness and understanding of ocean, coastal, Great Lakes, and atmospheric science and stewardship by the general public. This will drive formal and informal educational and outreach activities within ERP so that resource managers and the public are able to use the best available science to make informed ecosystem-based decisions.
Examining the Beach