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June 5, 2007: House Science Subcommittee on Environment

 

House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans: Legislative Hearing on H. Con. Res. 147, H. Res. 186, H.R. 1834 and H.R. 2400 June 5, 2007

Witnesses:
Craig McLean, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Programs and Administration, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce
Robert Ballard, Ph.D., President, Institute for Exploration, Mystic Aquarium
Larry A. Mayer, Ph.D., Professor and Director, Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, NOAA-UNH Joint Hydrographic Center, University of New Hampshire
J. Frederick Grassle, Ph.D., Director, Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences, Rutgers University
Walter McLeod, President, Clean Beaches Council
Bob Richards, P.E., Vice President, Alaska Division, FUGRO PELAGOS, INC.

On June 5, 2007, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans held a Legislative Hearing on two bills and two resolutions related to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Subcommittee Chair Madeleine Bordallo (D-GU) noted that the week of June 5th was "Capitol Hill Oceans Week." As the representative from an island territory, she noted the importance of NOAA's work and the need for increased awareness of the role that oceans play in our lives. "The American public has only a superficial awareness" of the oceans, she explained. H.R. 2400, the Ocean and Coastal Mapping Integration Act, which Bordallo introduced, takes into account recommendations that the National Research Council made in a report to the committee. The bill would establish "an integrated federal ocean and coastal mapping plan for the Great Lakes and coastal state waters, the territorial sea, the exclusive economic zone, and the Continental Shelf of the United States." Bordallo stressed the need for communication and cooperation among various government agencies.

Ranking Member Henry Brown (R-SC), who represents major tourist areas such as Myrtle Beach, described the importance of the oceans to tourism. "Nobody comes here to see myrtle," he quipped, "they come here to see the beach." Brown is the author of H. Con. Res. 147, which recognizes "200 years of NOAA research, service, and stewardship." He briefly spoke about NOAA, saying "coastal and ocean survey data is important… for the conservation of our coastal resources." He added that he supports "efforts to explore the oceans for scientific purposes." Brown also commended Frank Pallone (D-NJ) for authoring H. Res 186, the "National Clean Beaches Week" resolution.

Craig McLean, the Deputy Assistant Administrator for Programs and Administration of NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, commented that the bills under consideration provide a "solid foundation" and "promote a greater understanding and knowledge of our oceans." He mentioned the benefits of "combining resources" with other governmental institutions, and thus supported the intent of H.R. 2400 and H.R. 1834, which authorizes the national ocean exploration program and the national undersea research program within the NOAA. McLean also stressed the need for an accessible registry of completed mapping projects in order to prevent duplicate research. Ocean research is "needed to maintain America's competitive edge in science and technology," he concluded.

Robert Ballard, the president of the Institute for Exploration at the Mystic Aquarium, read a passionate testimony that documented the United State's long history of exploration. He mentioned President Jefferson's "foresight to create a survey of the coast," and made reference to the Lewis and Clark expedition as a driving force in America's early economy. "It is time to mount a modern day Lewis and Clark expedition," he surmised. Ballard also noted the significant advantage exploring oceanic resources would give over other countries, noting that "neither China nor India are ocean explorers. We need to explore the oceans… before other nations take advantage of our inaction." He described the oceans as something for humans to exploit, saying that increased NOAA mapping would "allow the oceans to offer up their resources to enrich the economy." Ballard claimed that NASA's yearly budget would support NOAA for 1639 years, and NOAA should be better funded as "our destiny is here on planet earth… or should I say ocean earth." When questioned by Bordallo about his previous comments that NOAA's Ocean Exploration and Undersea Research Programs should not be combined, Ballard stated that there was a new "synergy" between the programs, and he now believes that they should be combined.

Larry A. Mayer, Professor and Director at the Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, which is at the NOAA-University of New Hampshire Joint Hydrographic Center, mentioned that the United States depends on the oceans for a multitude of reasons, including food, national security, and recreation. "We need an integrated and coordinated process" for mapping the ocean floor, he stated, citing an example of one region of the Gulf of Mexico being mapped six times by six different groups who were all unaware of each other's work. He echoed McLean's call for an online registry of federal data to prevent this replication. Mayer expressed concern that the bills "do not go far enough," but stated that they are "a good initial step." J. Frederick Grassle, Director of the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences at Rutgers University, also supported both bills under consideration, and called for an "enhancement of ocean literacy among our youth."

Walter McLeod, President of the Clean Beaches Council, offered a perspective that differed from the other witnesses who focused on NOAA. McLeod focused instead on H. Res 186 and the importance of maintaining clean beaches for recreation. "More than half the population lives within 50 miles of the coasts," he stated, adding, "we are a nation of beach lovers." He tied the idea of clean beaches to concerns that could apply to NOAA, such as maintaining clean beaches to protect coastal habitats and marine species.

Bob Richards, Vice President of the Alaska Division of FUGRO PELAGOS, an independent coastal mapping company, was happy to see an effort to increase coordination. He noted that accurate mapping data is necessary in order to accurately assess earthquake and tsunami hazards. He showed support for both bills, but urged the use of "stronger language to include the private sector" within the coordinative efforts.

Representative Jim Saxton (R-NJ), expressed concern that some recent NOAA work, especially in the Long-term Ecosystem Observatory at 15 meters (LEO-15) program at Rutgers University, may be using out-of-date equipment. "In the two decades that I have been here, technology has run wild," he stated, and asked about NOAA's use of modern mapping equipment. Grassle described new systems including a high frequency radar system that allows modeling of sea breezes for better hurricane path prediction. He gave the accurately predicted path of Hurricane Ernesto as an example of its use. Grassle also mentioned advanced tagging technologies that work like "EZ-Pass for fish," recording data each time a fish passes near a sensor. "We are really learning a lot about fish habitats with new technologies," he said.

Full text of the bills and resolutions can be found here:
H.Con.Res 147
H.Res.186
H.R.1834
H.R.2400

-PS

Sources: Hearing testimony.

Contributed by Paul Schramm, 2007 AGI/AIPG Summer Intern

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Last updated on June 18, 2007.

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