MARCO News | September 2025 | |
Watch Videos from the Seventh Annual
Mid-Atlantic Ocean Forum
| | Videos of presentations and panel talks from the 2025 Mid-Atlantic Ocean Forum are now available for viewing online. Now in its seventh year, the event was convened by the Mid-Atlantic Ocean Planning Committee from May 6-7 in Baltimore. | | | Mid-Atlantic Marine Debris Summit | | Registration is open and abstracts are being accepted for speakers and presentations at the Mid-Atlantic Marine Debris Summit, scheduled Nov. 12-13 in Dewey Beach, Delaware. The agenda will span a wide range of topics, including microplastics research, coastal storm debris challenges, emerging technologies, education and outreach initiatives, and regional management strategies. Expect a dynamic mix of keynote speakers, panel discussions, breakout sessions, and a poster presentation to foster collaboration and drive innovation in marine debris management. | |
MACAN Workforce Development Fellowship
Applications are being accepted through Sept. 21 for this fellowship, which is designed to introduce students to aspects of scientific research, policy, industry, education, and/or outreach related to coastal and ocean acidification.
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Tribal Engagement Coordinator
MARCO seeks a dedicated and collaborative Tribal Engagement Coordinator to strengthen and sustain engagement between MARCO and federally and state-recognized Tribes with interests in ocean and coastal issues across the Mid-Atlantic region.
| | | MARCO Microplastics Webinar Series | | |
MARCO recently concluded a four-part webinar series exploring the impact of microplastics and microfibers on coastal and ocean resources in the Mid-Atlantic region. Leading researchers and policy experts discussed key concerns, research gaps, and emerging solutions to this growing challenge.
Recordings are available for all of the following webinars:
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ROSA Data Governance in Motion Workshop Nov. 12
Registration is open for a Data Governance in Motion Workshop to be hosted by the Responsible Offshore Science Alliance in Cambridge, Mass., on Nov. 12. Supported by MARCO, the full-day forum seeks to identify policy and process needs related to standardized data collection, documentation, storage, and reuse of data on fisheries.
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Meet MARCO's New Chair Ryan Green
Program Manager, Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program
MARCO is very pleased to welcome Ryan Green as MARCO's new Management Board Chair as of July 1, 2025. The MARCO Chair is a two-year position that rotates among the five-member states and is responsible for convening MARCO board meetings, building consensus and providing leadership on vision and programmatic direction.
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Ryan is the program manager of the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program, a networked program housed at the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ), but made of state agencies and local governments that collectively manage Virginia's coastal resources. Ryan stepped into this role when long-time program manager Laura McKay retired in 2023.
Ryan brings more than a decade of experience at VDEQ working closely with localities, state agencies, and other partners to address complex natural resource management challenges through collaboration. In his role leading the Water Supply Planning program, Ryan pushed for policy that promoted data development and data driven decision making to address water supply uncertainty, and he worked to ensure that VDEQ provided localities the tools needed to make good decisions no matter their technical capacity. Prior to that Ryan was a special education teacher for middle and high schoolers, where he picked up most of the skills and experience he relies on in his current role.
MARCO wishes to recognize Casey Nolan of Maryland for his leadership as MARCO chair from July 2023 through June 2025.
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Critical Habitat Areas for Shorebirds
Two new layers show boundaries of areas proposed or designated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as critical for red knot, piping plover, and other species.
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NOAA Critical Habitat Areas
Nine new maps show ocean areas, coastal rivers and watersheds that have been designated or proposed as critical for sturgeon, right whales, salmon, and sea turtles along East Coast.
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NOAA BlueTopo Bathymetry
A compilation of the nation's best available bathymetric data, BlueTopo was recently extended to cover Mid-Atlantic waters and can now be viewed on the Portal.
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Zooplankton Seasonal Sliders
Animate or toggle through maps depicting the seasonal abundance of six zooplankton species or species groups for 2003-09 and 2010-21.
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Right Whale Species Shifts
Maps show critically endangered North Atlantic right whale density by month in 2003-2009, 2010-2019, and the difference between the two periods
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Seafloor Substrates
Six data layers display the probability of cobble, gravel, mud, rock, sand, and shell debris being present in ocean and coastal areas.
| | Have You Tried the Portal Mobile App? | | Download our free mobile app to access Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal maps quickly and easily wherever you are! Available on iOS and Android devices. | | Photo Credits: Header (L-R): Coral, NOAA-OER/BOEM; Wind turbines, Ralf Hettler; Kayaks, Raul Rosa; Shipping container, Dan Barnes; Schooling fish, Jet Chen Tan; U.S. Naval ships, Gina Addison. Body. Footer (L-R) Fishing boat, William Sherman; Diver, Michael Eversmier; Beach scene, Christie Mazzeo-Pfoertner | | |
ABOUT MARCO
Established in 2009 by the Governors of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, MARCO provides a forum for our coastal Mid-Atlantic states to collaborate on shared regional priorities related to marine habitats, renewable offshore energy, climate change adaptation, and ocean water quality. MARCO initiated and oversees the Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal to assist the region with ocean planning efforts. For more information about MARCO, visit our website, MidAtlanticOcean.org.
CONNECT WITH US!
Thank you for your continued interest in MARCO. We welcome questions and feedback you may have, including content for upcoming issues of MARCO News. To provide comments or suggestions, or to join our email distribution list, please click "Join Our Mailing List" below, or contact us at: info@midatlanticocean.org.
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