TESTIMONY OF
LAURA
ASSOCIATE DEPUTY SECRETARY
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
UNITED STATES SENATE
REGARDING
THE
NOVEMBER 4, 2009
Chairwoman Cantwell, Ranking Member
Snowe and members of the Subcommittee, my name is Laura Davis. I am the Associate Deputy Secretary of the Department
of the Interior. I appreciate the
opportunity to appear before you today to discuss the President’s Interagency
Ocean Policy Task Force and the Department of the Interior’s role in the
process and its oceans and coastal responsibilities.
In establishing the
Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force, the President said, "We have a stewardship responsibility to
maintain healthy, resilient, and sustainable ocean, coasts and
As the Nation's principal conservation agency, the Department of the Interior is responsible for conserving and providing access to many of our significant coastal and ocean resources.
The Department manages and conserves ocean and coastal lands
and waters to protect native species and their habitats, provide recreational
opportunities for the public, and ensure safe and responsible natural resource
energy development. Department scientists
conduct extensive ocean, coastal, and
Our oceans, coasts and uplands are interconnected and interdependent
both ecologically and economically. As a
steward of our ocean and coastal resources, we see first hand, the affects of
climate change and other threats and the imperative to increase the resiliency
and adaptability of these ecosystems in the face of these challenges.
The
1.7 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf that we manage are crucial to
securing our energy independence through conventional and renewable energy
development. The 35,000 miles of coastal
lands and waters of the ocean and
I want to convey to
you, Madam Chairwoman, and to the members of the Subcommittee, that the
Secretary shares the President’s commitment to making our ocean, coasts and the
Recognizing that the time has come for a clear and
comprehensive national ocean policy to uphold our stewardship responsibilities,
and serve as a model of coordinated, consistent, efficient and informed ocean
and coastal decision-making, on June 12, 2009, President Obama issued a
memorandum to the heads of executive departments and Federal agencies
establishing an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force. The Task force is led by the White House
Council on Environmental Quality and charged with developing a recommendation
for a national policy that ensures protection, maintenance, and restoration of the
ocean, our coasts and the
The Department of the Interior has been proudly and actively
engaged in the Task Force from the outset.
We appreciate that the Task Force collaborations have already strengthened
DOI coordination and planning. Interior has also participated in and supported each
of the expert roundtables and the series of six public regional meetings with
interested stakeholders. Close
partnering and extensive public engagement has resulted in greater
understanding of the common challenges and opportunities our diverse ocean and
coastal responsibilities present and the need for innovative, science-based and
ecosystem-based strategies to guide our decision making now and for the
long-term.
I am honored to be the Department of the Interior
representative on the Task Force. The
Department has very actively participated in contributing to the Interim Task
Force report that was presented to the President and released to the public in
September and we continue to participate in the development of the proposed
Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning Framework that will be delivered in
December. Senior Departmental and bureau
representatives are fully engaged in the numerous subgroup, working group and
Task Force meetings that have supported the development of the interim report
and the proposed Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning framework. Along with sister agencies, The Department has
contributed extensive staff resources to support CEQ in writing these
documents. David Hayes, our Deputy
Secretary and I have attended the public hearings associated with the Task
Force, and the Department hosted the virtual
ACTIVITIES OF INTERIOR
AGENCIES
As noted above, the Department of
the Interior conserves, protects, and manages more than 35,000 miles of
coastline, and 254 ocean and coastal parks and refuges, as well as over 1.7
billion underwater acres of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Our scientists conduct extensive ocean,
coastal, and
Through these efforts, Interior has improved its role and effectiveness
within the ocean and coastal community at the State, regional, and national
levels.
The Department of the Interior is helping lead the
development of large-scale ocean and coastal ecosystem-based policies, allowing
us to cross jurisdictional lines and tackle key problems with partners to carry
out on-the-ground projects, and catalyze collective agency and public
involvement to find solutions. I would
like to highlight for the Committee a few examples our recent success in
coordinating on ocean and coastal issues.
Pursuant to Congressional direction,
the Minerals Management Service (MMS), working with NOAA and other Federal
agencies, has developed the Multipurpose Marine Cadastre (MMC), which allows Federal
managers and technical staff, as well coastal States; local, territorial, and
tribal governments; private industry; and the academic community, to directly
access information and resources necessary to promote and conduct good ocean
governance.
The MMC is an integrated submerged lands spatial information system consisting of legal (e.g., real property/cadastre), physical, biological, human resource, and cultural information in a common reference framework. It is an ambitious, multiyear endeavor that will help greatly inform any marine spatial planning approach.
The MMS has leasing, permitting and oversight responsibility
for oil and gas, renewable energy, and mineral activities within the OCS. MMS employs a robust environmental and
collaborative process in reviewing these activities including memoranda of
understanding with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the U.S.
Coast Guard, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of Defense,
among others.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS),
a world leader in natural science, is an unbiased,
multi-disciplinary earth and biological science agency that works in full partnership with States and
Federal agencies, to provide data and maps of the seabed and characterization
of the aquatic habitat. From the upper
watersheds to the abyssal deep of the ocean, USGS is engaged in monitoring
water quality and assessing water availability; forecasting coastal change; building
a better understanding of ocean-based hazards from landslides, submarine
volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, and extreme storms.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the Office of Insular Affairs and the Bureau of Land Management all have numerous successful programs underway that work with Federal, State, territory, tribal, international, and private partners to fulfill extensive coastal and marine-based natural resource conservation planning and coordinate statutory responsibilities. Notable activities involve science, mapping, and monitoring, as well as restoring and protecting barrier islands, coastal wetlands, watersheds, and ocean ecosystems.
THE COASTAL AND MARINE
SPATIAL PLANNING FRAMEWORK AND INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE
The Department of the Interior looks forward to ongoing
cooperation and coordination with our partners and stakeholders to meet the
President’s call to develop a recommended framework for effective coastal and
marine spatial planning (CMSP). We share
and fully support the President’s goal of working toward establishing a
framework that is a comprehensive, integrated, ecosystem-based approach to
address conservation, economic activity, user conflicts, and sustainable use of
ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes resources consistent with international law.
With management responsibility over 35,000 miles
of shoreline, Interior very much recognizes the threats to the sustainability of our coastal
communities, economy, and natural resources, posed by rising sea levels as
today’s coasts may be become part of tomorrow’s oceans. Additionally, Interior supports securing
clean, renewable energy security derived from the oceans as a national priority
CONCLUSION
Interior has and will continue to take a leadership role in national, regional, and local efforts to build the long-term engagement with non-Federal partners to meet goals for coastal and ocean ecosystem and economic health. We stress the coordination of coastal and ocean activities across the bureaus that are responsive to regional priorities established by the states, and effectively meet departmental strategic goals. We work closely with the ocean and coastal community at the state, regional, and national levels. An Ocean and Coastal Activities Coordinator helps to facilitate this critical coordination.
The President’s Interagency Ocean Task Force provides an
exciting and important opportunity for us all to work together to develop and
implement a coordinated, comprehensive plan for our oceans, coasts and