Data, Tools and Portals

To adequately inform the decision-making process, the National Ocean Policy implementation relies on sound science, best available information, and decision support tools. Various priority objectives underline the need to coordinate scientific studies and to strengthen and integrate data and mapping capabilities.  

Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) will rely on physical, biological, and human-use data to create a baseline understanding of the ocean and coastal environment and to plan for existing and future uses. In many ways, this process parallels the science-based decision-making framework embraced by BOEM for managing energy and mineral resources on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

BOEM-sponsored scientific research and data will be available to the Regional Planning Bodies (RPBs) and other engaged stakeholders through the Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS). Selected spatial datasets will also be made available through the Multipurpose Marine Cadastre (MMC).      

Environmental Studies Program Information System (ESPIS) 
ESPIS makes all completed Environmental Studies Program (ESP) reports, including images and graphics, available online as full electronic PDF documents accessible using free Adobe Reader software. Technical summaries of over 700 BOEM-sponsored research projects, as well as full PDF documents of over 2,000 research reports are available for online full-text search. Currently, ESP is revamping ESPIS to enhance its search capabilities, to enable easier discovery of archived data, and to allow linkages with the Multipurpose Marine Cadastre (MMC).

Multipurpose Marine Cadastre (MMC) 
MMC is an integrated marine information system that provides legal, physical, ecological, and cultural information in a common geographic information system (GIS) framework. This tool was created to comply with Section 388 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, but is also providing the geospatial framework needed for the broader Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) initiative. This tool is also extensively used by federal agencies and others who are screening alternative energy sites, and by people working on regional and state marine spatial planning efforts.