Ocean Zone News Blog

From: Dive News Network

The National Ocean Policy is currently coming into question regarding its verbiage and its potential to unnecessarily harm the terrestrial and marine economic landscape. Concerned divers are stepping up to question congressional representatives about the affects the NOP may have on agriculture, commercial and recreational fishing, as well as construction, manufacturing, marine commerce and renewable energy. The concern is if the NOP and its funding is not protected it could affect jobs and the U.S. economy.

The U.S. House of Representatives last week approved an amendment from Congressman Steve Southerland that would prohibit federal funding for expansion of so-called “catch shares” in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic fisheries during the coming fiscal year.

Southerland’s amendment to the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations act was approved by a 220-191 margin. The appropriations bill must still be approved by the U.S. Senate.

“This is a small victory for recreational and commercial fishermen, and coastal communities,” said Chip Blackburn, who captains the charter boat Miss Mary out of Mexico Beach.  “Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent to try and implement an agenda.

From: Science Insider

The U.S. House of Representatives has decided that the country can’t afford several federally funded research programs.

The list includes the entire political science portfolio at the National Science Foundation, as well as a $10-million NSF program on climate change education. The House would also pull the plug on the American Community Survey, a monthly questionnaire from the Census Bureau that has replaced the long form of the decennial census. And it voted to withhold funds from the Obama Administration’s effort to implement a National Ocean Policy (NOP).

From: Science Insider

Coaxing U.S. federal agencies to work together is no small feat. But an emerging National Ocean Policy (NOP) is attempting to do just that. The Obama Administration’s proposed NOP will help federal agencies better organize marine research efforts and inject data into policy decisions—and potentially prevent conflicts between ocean users and save money, U.S. officials argue. But recent public comments on the Administration’s plan for implementing the new policy suggest that researchers are concerned that budget shortfalls and program eliminations could undermine efforts to realize these goals.

From:  The Hill

By Jim Hutchinson, Jr., managing director, Recreational Fishing Alliance -05/03/12 11:58 AM ET