Coastal Issues | Public Access | Activities
What Is OCRM Doing to Enhance Public Access?
Through its coastal management efforts, the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM) is supporting efforts to increase and enhance public access opportunities to the coast. OCRM also ensures that these opportunities are compatible with the environment and user conflicts are minimized.
- Coastal Zone Management Program
- National Estuarine Research Reserve System
- Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program
- Measuring Success
Coastal Zone Management Program
One of the main objectives within the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) is to "provide for public access to the coasts for recreation purposes." As such, OCRM's Coastal Zone Management Program, in partnership with state coastal management programs, use technical assistance and funding to support state and local efforts to ensure that the public can reach its beaches and other shorefront areas. Projects range from the physical construction of dune walkovers and boat ramps, to inventorying access sites, publishing coastal access guides, purchasing new access sites or access ways, and placing signage to identify public access ways.
Public boat ramps provide the public with boating access to the coast.
Through the Coastal Zone Enhancement Program’s five-year assessments and strategies, states and territories have incentives to enhance their coastal management programs in a wide array of coastal issues of national significance, including public access. The Coastal Zone Enhancement Program provides state programs with an opportunity to undertake public access planning efforts such as conducting a public access needs assessment to determine if current access opportunities are adequate or identifying suitable locations for new or enhanced access. States can also develop new regulations, policies and management programs to enhance public access.
National Estuarine Research Reserve System
The National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) is a network of 27 protected areas established for long-term research, education and stewardship. The Reserves offer a variety of public access opportunities including nature trails, boat launch sites, boardwalks, fishing piers and observation platforms for birding, nature photography, or just enjoying the coastal area.Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program
Fishing is a popular activity at Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.
The Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) was established to protect coastal and estuarine lands considered important for their ecological, conservation, recreational, historical, or aesthetic values. The program provides funding to acquire coastal land to create new public access opportunities.
Measuring Success
Because providing the public with access to coastal waters is a critical coastal management issue and primary objective of the CZMA, OCRM has worked with our state coastal program partners to develop a suite of public access performance indicators as part of the CZMA Performance Measure System. The indicators will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the national coastal management program in addressing public access issues.