An Ocean Blueprint For The 21st Century

An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century calls for a new governance framework, more investment in marine science and a new stewardship ethic by all Americans - all within the context of an ecosystem-based management approach - to halt the decline of this nation's oceans and coasts. In total, the U. S. Commission on Ocean Policy put forward 212 recommendations for a new national ocean policy in the report. The value of the oceans and coasts to the nation is immense and their full potential remains unrealized. Over half the U.S. population lives in coastal watershed counties and roughly one-half of the nation's gross domestic product ($4.5 trillion in 2000) is generated in those counties and in adjacent ocean waters. A comprehensive and coordinated national ocean policy requires moving away from the current fragmented, single-issue way of doing business and toward ecosystem-based management. This new approach considers the relationships among all ecosystem components, and will lead to better decisions that protect the environment while promoting the economy and balancing multiple uses of our oceans and coasts.

America is a nation intrinsically connected to and immensely reliant on the ocean. All citizens—whether they reside in the country's farmlands or mountains, in its cities or along the coast—affect and are affected by the sea. Our grocery stores and restaurants are stocked with seafood and our docks are bustling with seaborne cargo. Millions of visitors annually flock to the nation's shores, creating jobs and contributing substantially to the U.S. economy through one of the country's largest and most rapidly growing economic sectors: tourism and recreation. The offshore ocean area under U.S. jurisdiction is larger than its total land mass, providing a vast expanse for commerce, trade, energy and mineral resources, and a buffer for security. Born of the sea are clouds that bring life-sustaining water to our fields and aquifers, and drifting microscopic plants that generate much of the oxygen we breathe. Energy from beneath the seabed helps fuel our economy and sustain our high quality of life. The oceans host great biological diversity with vast medical potential and are a frontier for exciting exploration and effective education. The importance of our oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes cannot be overstated; they are critical to the very existence and wellbeing of the nation and its people. Yet, as the 21st century dawns, it is clear that these invaluable and life-sustaining assets are vulnerable to the activities of humans. Human ingenuity and ever-improving technologies have enabled us to exploit—and significantly alter—the ocean's bounty to meet society's escalating needs. Pollution runs off the land, degrading coastal waters and harming marine life. Many fish populations are declining and some of our ocean's most majestic creatures have nearly disappeared. Along our coasts, habitats that are essential to fish and wildlife and provide valuable services to humanity continue to suffer significant losses. Non-native species are being introduced, both intentionally and accidentally, into distant areas, often resulting in significant economic costs, risks to human health, and ecological consequences that we are only beginning to comprehend. Yet all is not lost. This is a moment of unprecedented opportunity. Today, as never before, we recognize the links among the land, air, oceans, and human activities. We have access to advanced technology and timely information on a wide variety of scales. We recognize the detrimental impacts wrought by human influences. The time has come for us to alter our course and set sail for a new vision for America, one in which the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes are healthy and productive, and our use of their resources is both profitable and sustainable. It has been thirty-five years since this nation's management of the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes was comprehensively reviewed. In that time, significant changes have occurred in how we use marine assets and in our understanding of the consequences of our actions. This report from the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy provides a blueprint for change in the 21st century, with recommendations for creation of an effective national ocean policy that ensures sustainable use and protection of our oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes for today and far into the future.

Accompanying DVD contains 2 segments: the first shows the developmental process into making the report, the second shows a summary of the findings and recommendations of the report.

Contains balanced & practical proposals for the establishment of a comprehensive & coordinated ocean policy for our nation. Contents: Our Oceans: A Nat. Asset; A New Nat. Ocean Policy Framework; The Importance of Educ. & Public Awareness; Econ. Growth & Resource Conservation Along the Coast; Coastal & Ocean Water Quality; Enhancing the Use & Protection of Ocean Resources; Advancing Our Understanding of the Oceans; U.S. Participation in Internat. Policy; & Implementing a New Nat. Ocean Policy. Illustrations. Includes a DVD & CD-ROM; U.S. Ocean-Related Academic Infrastructure; Inventory of U.S. Ocean & Coastal Facilities; & Review of U.S. Ocean & Coastal Law: The Evolution of Ocean Governance Over Three Decades.

Accompanying DVD contains 2 segments: the first shows the developmental process into making the report, the second shows a summary of the findings and recommendations of the report.

Accompanying DVD contains 2 segments: the first shows the developmental process into making the report, the second shows a summary of the findings and recommendations of the report.

This book offers an assessment of the naval policies of emerging naval powers, and the implications for maritime security relations and the global maritime order. Since the end of the Cold War, China, Japan, India and Russia have begun to challenge the status quo with the acquisition of advanced naval capabilities. The emergence of rising naval powers is a cause for concern, as the potential for great power instability is exacerbated by the multiple maritime territorial disputes among new and established naval powers. This work explores the underlying sources of maritime ambition through an analysis of various historical cases of naval expansionism. It analyses both the sources and dynamics of international naval competition, and looks at the ways in which maritime stability and the widespread benefits of international commerce and maritime resource extraction can be sustained through the twenty-first century. This book will be of much interest to students of naval power, Asian security and politics, strategic studies, security studies and IR in general.

Marine debris from ships and other ocean-based sources-including trash and lost fishing gear-contributes to the spoiling of beaches, fouling of surface waters and the seafloor, and harm to marine animals, among other effects. Unfortunately, international conventions and domestic laws intended to control marine debris have not been successful, in part because the laws, as written, provide little incentive to change behavior. This book identifies ways to reduce waste, improve waste disposal at ports, and strengthen the regulatory framework toward a goal of zero waste discharge into the marine environment. Progress will depend on a commitment to sustained funding and appropriate institutional support. The Interagency Marine Debris Coordinating Committee should, through planning and prioritization, target research to understand the sources, fates, and impacts of marine debris. It should support the establishment of scalable and statistically rigorous protocols that allow monitoring at a variety of temporal and spatial scales. These protocols should contain evaluative metrics that allow assessment of progress in marine debris mitigation. The United States, through leadership in the international arena, should provide technical assistance and support for the establishment of additional monitoring and research programs worldwide.