Bipartisan legislation now before the U.S. Senate would identify and assess communities dependent on coastal and ocean resources that may be impacted by ocean acidification.
The Coastal Communities Ocean Acidification Act of 2017 was introduced in mid-December by
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, with Senators Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., Susan Collins, R-ME, Gary Peters, D-MI; and Sheldon Whitehouse, D-RI.
The act calls for coastal community vulnerability assessments related to ocean acidification. It would strengthen collaborations with a wide range of stakeholders, including regional ocean acidification networks and sea grants, into the planning and implementation of coastal community vulnerability assessments, Murkowski said.
The companion bill in the House, HR 2719, sponsored by Rep. Chaellie Pingree, D-ME, was introduced in May.
The act would require that the assessment identify communities most dependent on ocean and coastal resources the nature of the social and economic vulnerabilities of the communities, and identify the harmful impacts of ocean acidification on those communities.
These assessments will take us a step further in understanding the nature of those risks by identifying the knowledge gaps that exist where further research could be devoted and whether adaptation strategies can be put into place to help these communities, said Sarah Cooley, director of the Ocean Conservancy’s ocean acidification program.
“This is a major threat to a variety of ocean resources that coastal communities depend on, and we must rise to the challenge and tackle this problem head-on,” she said.
