From: Sacramento Bee
Published: Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2011 – 1:00 am
WASHINGTON — House members clashed Tuesday over a White House plan that essentially calls for zoning the oceans, with Republicans charging that it already has created more job-killing bureaucracy and Democrats saying it could give Americans more certainty on how they can use busy public waters.
“It has the potential to stunt economic growth and the jobs associated with that growth,” said Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.
Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, the top-ranked Democrat on the panel, likened the idea – formally known as marine spatial planning – to making plans for air space.