The nation's ocean and Great Lakes economy grew at nearly three times the U.S. as a whole from the pre-recession levels of 2007, fueling growth across the country, according to a new NOAA report. The report, U.S. Ocean and Great Lakes Economy, 2014, from NOAA's Office for Coastal Management, looks at data from the years 2005 to 2014, the most up-to-date data available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the Census Bureau. However, researchers began their analysis by looking at economic statistics from 2007, the last normal year before the recession, as their starting point to gauge post-recession recovery. "Our communities rely heavily on the ocean and Great Lakes for tourism, jobs, businesses, transportation and recreation," said W. Russell Callender, Ph.D., assistant NOAA administrator for the  National Ocean Service. "NOAA's National Ocean Service is committed to providing science-based tools and solutions to support the continued growth of the nation's coastal communities and economies."
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EPA is releasing a request for applications (RFA) from eligible entities to administer a sub-award grant program to support goals of the Southeast New England Program for coastal watershed restoration. EPA expects the total estimated funding for this competitive opportunity will be up to $5 million for FY2017, and up to $12 million over three years pending federal appropriations. The Southeast New England Program (SNEP) serves as a collaborative framework for advancing ecosystem resiliency, protecting and restoring water quality, habitat, and ecosystem function, and developing and applying innovative policy, science, and technology to environmental management in southeast coastal New England. Objectives under these goals include improving water quality to reduce the impact of nutrients on water quality and aquatic life; restoring physical processes that support critical habitat and ecosystem function; and aligning restoration and management efforts on a regional scale to achieve greater effectiveness and efficiency.
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The Pensacola Bay Living Shoreline Project has been awarded more than $217,000 in RESTORE grant funding from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. According to a statement from Escambia County, the funds will be used to support the first phase of planning, engineering, design and permitting of the environmental restoration project.
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The New York District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (District) is preparing plans and specifications for construction of the Phase II, Contract 4 components of the Port Monmouth Hurricane and Storm Damage Reduction Project in Middletown Township, NJ.
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West Coast and Pacific Islands