The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy today announced the release of a report on Opportunities and Actions for Ocean Science and Technology (2022-2028), which summarizes the existing Science and Technology for America’s Oceans: A Decadal Vision (2018-2028) and adds new priorities to address climate change, resilient ocean science and technology infrastructure, and a diverse and inclusive blue workforce.
The report seeks to “enable decision-makers to better incorporate the Federal government’s current key priority topics into ocean science and technology…decision-making and implementation,” and identifies the following “immediate opportunities for ocean solutions and collaborative efforts:”
- Facilitate offshore wind energy development
- Coordinate coastal resilience efforts
- Conserve and protect critical ecosystems through the 30×30 conservation effort
- Explore implementation of blue carbon solutions
- Support the National Ocean Mapping, Exploration, and Characterization plan
- Engage in the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development
OSTP Deputy Director for Climate and Environment Dr. Jane Lubchenco said in part that “all Americans should have opportunities to participate in the excitement of ocean science and to benefit from ocean information,” and that implementing this vision “will strengthen evidence-based decision-making about climate change, biodiversity loss, and growing a sustainable ocean economy.”
In addressing 30×30, the report notes that the conservation initiative is “an opportunity to mitigate, and potentially reverse, the observed decline in our Nation’s ocean resources” and is “paramount to preserve key ecosystem services.” The report also highlighted “the valuable role” of dynamic management, stating that identification and evaluation of critical habitat areas “should be an ongoing scientific exercise with consideration of all tradeoffs associated with a protected area.”
Elsewhere, it notes that critical habitat conservation and protection can increase nature-based carbon sequestration and mitigate climate impacts, and that establishing protected and conserved areas “helps delineate” baseline research and monitoring priority targets, including long-term observation networks.
