SGA DOCUMENTS
Transition 2001:
"science serving america's coasts"

    • articles of incorporation
    • sga bylaws
    • science serving america's coasts
    • a vision for success
    • sga awards
    • theme-centered research
    • funding principles
    • position papers

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January 2001

Appendix 1: Sea Grant Accomplishments

Sea Grant is organized into nine Theme Areas, each with long-term programmatic objectives that address high priority, local opportunities and problems in a national context. Examples of accomplishments in each theme include:

Aquaculture: Sea Grant research and extension results have created the growth and development of fish farming in the United States. IMPACT: The growing of hybrid striped bass in ponds has expanded in just 10 years from a small demonstration project to an industry that produces 10 million pounds of fish valued at $25 million annually. Sea Grant also developed a sterile oyster that can be grown year-round and that now comprises one-third of the $86 million U.S. oyster market.

Coastal Hazards: Based on Sea Grant recommendations, in 1986 the state of North Carolina implemented revisions in the state’s hurricane resistant building code which increased the required minimum depth of foundation pilings for erosion prone coastal buildings. In 1996, Hurricane Fran was the first test of those standards. IMPACT: On Topsail Island, 200 of the 205 newer oceanfront houses built to the “Sea Grant” standards survived the hurricane with minimal foundation damage. In comparison, over 500 older oceanfront houses were destroyed in the same area.

Coastal Communities and Economies: Much of the 32-mile river front along the Detroit River is bulkheaded and in disrepair thus requiring major revitalization investment. “Soft” engineering offered developers cost, maintenance and environmental advantages over traditional hard structures and promoting these advantages was necessary to meet river front renewal goals. Sea Grant has been extensively involved in this effort and chairs the steering committee for the Greater Detroit American Rivers Heritage initiative. IMPACT: Sea Grant sponsored conferences and workshops and published best management practice manuals which led General Motors to utilize less expensive “soft” engineering techniques in the development of its multi-million dollar, _ mile long urban river promenade in the heart of Detroit, thus providing substantial savings to the project while simultaneously helping the environment.

Ecosystems and Habitats: Sea Grant has been instrumental in the development of strategies for wetlands restoration on all four coasts. IMPACT: Wetland loss mitigation strategies have led to the creation and restoration of valuable wetlands while allowing coastal development valued in excess of $100 million.

Education and Human Resources: The nation requires a constant supply of individuals trained in the marine sciences and coastal fields. Each year, Sea Grant supports a variety of educational activities targeting students at all levels, including K-12, undergraduates, and graduate students. IMPACT: Sea Grant-supported graduate students have provided the nation with a new generation of nearly 4,000 trained marine scientists over the last decade. These students have moved into the executive suites of major corporations, become senior scientists in government laboratories, started their own businesses, become professors, and have even been elected to public office.

Fisheries: Sea Grant research has shown that visually modifying salmon gillnets and adjusting fishing schedules can reduce entanglements of seabirds. IMPACT: These findings, coupled with an observer program coordinated by Sea Grant, prevented the closure of the Puget Sound sockeye salmon fishery, saving hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in the region’s economy.

Ocean/Coastal Technology and Marine Biotechnology: Sea Grant organized the first systematic research effort in the United States to develop new drugs from marine organisms. IMPACT: Sea Grant researchers have discovered and described more than 1,000 compounds that may be vitally important as new anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and antibiotic agents.

Seafood Science and Safety: To aid the seafood industry in meeting educational and training needs called for by new FDA regulations, Sea Grant spearheaded the formation of the “Seafood HACCP Alliance,” an intergovernmental agency partnership with industry and academia. IMPACT: The Alliance’s programs reached over 5,000 U.S. processing plants, and 6,000 importers and international suppliers with training on new seafood handling and processing techniques. In addition, it has been estimated that the program has prevented 20,000 to 60,000 seafood-related illnesses a year, thereby saving as much as $115 million annually.

Urban Coast: Sea Grant studies of the White Point sewage outfall in Southern California assessed the effect of sewage effluents on nearby coastal ecosystems. IMPACT: After being provided with this effluent information, Orange County officials were able to receive secondary treatment waivers under EPA’s stringent water quality requirements, saving taxpayers as much as $50 million a year over a 30-year period that would have been spent on additional treatment facilities.

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