Coastal Issues | Public Involvement | Activities
What Is OCRM Doing to Encourage Public Involvement?
Through its coastal management efforts, the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM) encourages public involvement in a number of ways.
Public Comment
Volunteers with the Florida Keys Greensweep Initiative remove non-native plants from West Summerland Key. The Florida Coastal Management Program partnered with The Nature Conservancy to support the Greensweep Initiative to protect the unique habitat of the Florida Keys. West Summerland Key is now 99 percent free of non-native plant species.
The Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM) encourages public participation in coastal management decisions in several ways. OCRM ensures that the development of each state coastal management program and National Estuarine Research Reserve offers many opportunities for public participation during the program approval process or designation. Approved coastal programs also incorporate several mechanisms to ensure continued public participation in program decisions including program enhancements, program changes, and program evaluations as well as key program functions such as federal consistency and environmental protection. Many of the 34 state and territory coastal programs also provide for ongoing public involvement through formal public advisory groups established to represent the many interests in the coastal zone.
OCRM solicits public concerns and priorities on coastal issues through environmental impact assessments, meetings, workshops, and federal register notices for public comment periods. The Office also establishes advisory committees to involve the public, as needed. The Marine Protected Areas Federal Advisory Committee has been a successful example of this method of public involvement.
Education and Outreach
For the public to be involved in coastal decision-making, they must also have access to information about coastal management issues and a general understanding of the governing laws and policies. To support this level of public involvement, OCRM and our state partners offer education and outreach programs and provide volunteer opportunities for the general public. In conjunction with our state partners, OCRM also provides technical assistance to other coastal decision-makers. For example, the National Estuarine Research Reserve System (NERRS) supports local governments through the Coastal Training Program. NERRS sites also provide active K-12 educational programs on site and via the Internet on EstuaryLive.
Coordination
By working with local governments and involving the public, OCRM can better identify local needs, connect local priorities to national goals, and coordinate agency actions to better support local management of coastal resources. For example, through the Coral Reef Conservation Program, OCRM successfully coordinated with local governments to develop local action strategies for addressing key threats to coral reefs.
Measuring Success
OCRM has worked with our state partners to develop a suite of performance indicators as part of the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) Performance Management System. The indicators are a tool for evaluating the effectiveness of state coastal management programs and NERRS programs at addressing the goals of the CZMA. Public involvement and support for local governments are tracked by state coastal programs through several measures under the category of Government Coordination and Decision-Making. NERRS also measure these types of activities through their indicators for the Coastal Training Program.