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Citing “the challenges of providing input…during the current global pandemic,” the National Science Foundation today announced that it is extending the public comment period on the content and organization of the next 5-year Arctic Research Plan for 2022-2026 through August 2.  The comment period was originally scheduled to conclude on July 2.  The Arctic Research Plan is being developed by the […]

The Northeast Regional Ocean Council’s (NROC) Ocean Planning Committee today held a webinar to provide an update on the Committee’s recent projects and activities, federal progress implementing the nation’s new ocean policy and recent activities of the federal Ocean Policy Council, an update on the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary Management Plan revision, and NROC’s role in providing data

Due to the global pandemic, the United Nations today announced the decision by the United Nations General Assembly  to postpone the 2020 United Nations Ocean Conference that had been scheduled to take place on June 2-6 in Lisbon, Portugal. The notice stated that Conference co-hosts Kenya and Portugal will consult with the General Assembly to decide on possible future

The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation today announced that Capitol Hill Ocean Week will take place in a virtual, 1-day format on Tuesday, June 9, with a focus on protecting biodiversity. The virtual conference will include plenary sessions and concurrent breakout sessions on how science and technology are advancing understanding of the marine environment, the role of protected areas in

The National Science Foundation today announced that it is seeking comments by Thursday, July 2 on the content and organization of the next 5-year Arctic Research Plan for 2022-2026, which is being developed by the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee pursuant to the Arctic Research Policy Act. The Plan seeks to strengthen interagency communication, coordination, and collaboration among the Committee’s

Due to the global pandemic, the United Nations today announced the decision by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s COP Bureau, the United Kingdom, and Italy to postpone the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference that had been scheduled to take place in Glasgow in November. Dates for a rescheduled conference in Glasgow next year will

The Agreement for the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS) this month provided an update on efforts to monitor the abundance and distribution of cetaceans in the ACCOBAMS region. The update specifically highlighted trials carried out through the Sphyrna Odysee project in mid-March off the coast off the French Mediterranean

The Northeast Regional Ocean Council today announced that the upcoming virtual Ocean Policy Committee meeting will feature an abbreviated agenda and will be one part of a series of webinars to replace the previously scheduled in-person meeting.  The meeting was originally scheduled to be held in-person but was changed to webinar due to the pandemic. The webinar will include

The U.S. Coast Guard today announced that comments are being sought by Monday, May 18 on a Port Access Route Study to determine whether existing or additional vessel routing measures are needed along the North Carolina coast and in approaches to the Cape Fear River and Beaufort Inlet.  Requests for a public meeting are due by Friday, April 17.

The United National General Assembly today postponed the fourth (and possibly final) session of the United Nations Intergovernmental Conference on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, which had been scheduled to take place March 23-April 4 in New York, NY.  Citing “the situation concerning the coronavirus disease” in its decision, the