White House Requesting Comments to Inform US Ocean Action Plan

Courtesy of NAA:
The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), on behalf of the interagency Ocean Policy Committee (OPC), request input from all interested parties to inform the development of a U.S. Ocean Climate Action Plan (OCAP) that will help guide and coordinate actions by the Federal government and civil society to address ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes-based mitigation and adaptation solutions to climate change.
 
The OCAP will summarize planned Federal ocean-based climate action and the benefits of these actions, identify gaps in knowledge and application of knowledge to emerging ocean-climate issues, and recommend actions to advance the effectiveness of the Nation's response to the impacts of climate change. The input received will be used to inform the development of the OCAP.
 
DATES: Responses are due by 11:59 p.m. eastern time on November 18, 2022. Submissions received after the deadline may not be taken into consideration.
 
ADDRESSES: Interested individuals and organizations should submit comments electronically to ocean@ostp.eop.gov and include ``RFI Response: OCAP'' in the subject line of the email. Email submissions should be machine-readable (PDF, Word) and should not be locked or password protected.
 
Instructions: Response to this RFI is voluntary. Each individual or organization is requested to submit only one response. Commenters can respond to one or many questions. Submissions are suggested to not exceed a total of five (5) pages in 12 point or larger font.
 
Input: Comment is requested from the public on the following:

1. Background information. Please briefly describe the role that you/your organization has in ocean-based climate solutions. If relevant, please describe how you/your organization engages with underserved communities.
2. Critical Actions. What ocean-based climate solutions should be considered, and over what time scales? What are specific examples of ocean-based climate mitigation and adaptation activities that the United States should seek to advance? Which are higher priority? Are there actions that should be avoided, and if so, why?
3. Knowledge, Science, and Technology. What kind of research is needed to implement and evaluate the effectiveness and impacts of ocean-based climate solutions? How can Indigenous knowledge be highlighted to inform solutions? What are important questions, issues, and unknowns that need to be addressed? What existing technologies might advance implementation of ocean-based climate solutions, and what innovations are needed?
4. Environmental Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. How can the benefits of ocean-based climate solutions be shared equitably? How should we engage communities in local implementation? How should we ensure that ocean-based climate solutions are implemented in ways that do not harm underserved communities? What opportunities exist for training and employing a diverse and inclusive blue workforce in implementing ocean-based climate solutions?
5. Partnerships and Collaboration. What solutions can/should come from outside of government? Where and how can the Federal government partner with external stakeholders across regions and sectors to effectively mitigate and adapt to climate change through ocean-based climate solutions?
6. Additional Comments: Please provide any other input that you believe is pertinent to this RFI, within the page limit.

To read or download the Federal Register notice on this topic, please click here. If you would like to contribute to the National Aquaculture Association’s comment letter, please email your thinking to the naa@thenaa.net with “US Ocean Climate Action Plan” in the subject line.