April 25, 2012 – The international journal Marine Policy has published a new article, “Coming to the Table: Early Stakeholder Engagement in Marine Spatial Planning.” The article describes the results of a two-year project, co-led by the Nicholas Institute at Duke University and the Meridian Institute, that brought together a wide range of individuals associated with ocean industries and the conservation community to seek common ground related to marine spatial planning.
April 2012 – The Battelle Memorial Institute and Coastal States Organization will be organizing a series of Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning Advancement Training (CMSP-AT) workshops in several U.S. regions. Designed for professional coastal managers, the workshops will provide a curriculum based on domestic and international best practices, enhanced regional modules, collaborative and interactive problem-solving activities, and incentives for continued CMSP education and networking. In preparing for the workshops, the presenters invite all coastal managers to participate in a survey about CMSP efforts in their region.
On June 12, 2009, President Obama signed a memorandum establishing an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force, led by the White House Council on Environmental Quality. On July 19, 2010 the Task Force released a set of final recommendations that set a new direction for improved stewardship of the ocean, our coasts, and the Great Lakes. The recommendations provide: (1) our Nation’s first ever national ocean policy; (2) a strengthened governance structure to provide sustained, high-level, and coordinated attention to ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes issues; (3) a targeted implementation strategy that identifies and prioritizes nine categories for action that the United States should pursue; and (4) a framework for effective coastal and marine spatial planning. These documents are available on their website. Learn more...
The purpose of this website is to provide users with coastal and marine spatial planning information related to national level policies, NOAA’s role, and to help managers, policy makers, and all those who use and appreciate the ocean, to understand the concept of coastal and marine spatial planning and advance its implementation in real-world settings.
Coastal and marine spatial planning is a rapidly evolving and dynamic topic area in which strong partnerships are essential. Therefore, users are encouraged to bookmark this website, since content will be frequently updated.
The Ocean Policy Task Force defines coastal and marine spatial planning as a comprehensive, adaptive, integrated, ecosystem-based, and transparent spatial planning process, based on sound science, for analyzing current and anticipated uses of ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes areas. Coastal and marine spatial planning identifies areas most suitable for various types or classes of activities in order to reduce conflicts among uses, reduce environmental impacts, facilitate compatible uses, and preserve critical ecosystem services to meet economic, environmental, security, and social objectives.