National marine sanctuary offices and visitor centers closed to the public; waters remain open

NOAA's Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary's office is closed to the public while the waters remain open for responsible use in accordance with CDC guidance and local regulations. Note, the mooring buoys are not currently being maintained and the sanctuary assumes no liability for use of the buoys. Once normal on-water activities are restored, we will resume buoy maintenance as soon as possible. More information on the response from NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries can be found on sanctuaries.noaa.gov/coronavirus/.

Permits

A diver installing a scientific instrument on the reef.

Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary regulations provide for temporary permitting of specific activities that are not otherwise permissable. Such activities are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

Permit requests are evaluated based on their potential impacts to sanctuary resources versus the potential benefits the activity may provide in terms of resource protection.

You may download permit application materials below:

Permit Application (311kb pdf)

Permit Application Instructions (198kb pdf)

Collections Data Form (159kb pdf)

Please submit permit applications well in advance of your proposed project start date.

For more information, please contact the Research Coordinator or visit the National Marine Sanctuaries Permits page.