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

Sea Grant's Growth Plan

The Sea Grant Network has agreed on the following recommendation:

Appropriations to support the Sea Grant Program should increase substantially over the next five years to respond to major coastal challenges, needs and opportunities.

Of the numerous challenges and opportunities facing America’s coasts, three are particularly compelling and deserving of better-funded attention by Sea Grant:

Promoting Sustainable Coastal Community Development Coastal communities depend on healthy ecosystems and economies for their survival. Research to better understand the inter-connectivity between the economy and the environment, and outreach to expand the scientific understanding of community planners, business leaders, and citizens, need to be greatly expanded. Among Sea Grant's assets are ready access to the university social science community (not available elsewhere in NOAA), an existing local infrastructure to deliver programs at the community level, and existing or emerging programs in such areas as waterfront renewal, brownfield redevelopment, tourism development, transportation planning, ports development, coastal hazards mitigation, and planning and zoning which all are catalysts for growth. Sea Grant’s Coastal Community Development Program will focus on helping communities that are experiencing a decline of their resource-dependent industries and/or are facing complex requirements associated with environmental regulation to develop robust, sustainable economies.

Using and Conserving Coastal and Marine Resources Coastal habitats and fisheries represent some of our Nation’s most valuable resources. To address the complex problems in coastal water quality and fisheries management, the ability to work at a regional level will take on increased importance. Sea Grant is well positioned to organize collaborative efforts on whatever scale is most appropriate. Sea Grant will determine the impacts of natural and man-made change on coastal, marine, and Great Lakes ecosystems, and develop innovative approaches to protect these habitats from further degradation and to reverse the changes that have occurred. Sea Grant will emphasize the role of the land in determining the quality of coastal waters and will provide coastal managers with the scientific and technological tools they need to address local problems. Sea Grant will collaborate with the National Marine Fisheries Service and the private sector to develop new approaches to fisheries management to conserve existing fish stocks and rebuild depleted fisheries. In addition, research and extension personnel will provide fisheries managers with the socioeconomic data and insights necessary to manage fisheries in ways that will minimize the impacts on fishermen. Marine aquaculture offers vast potential for reducing the demand on wild fisheries, and Sea Grant is committed to enhancing this budding industry’s development in an environmentally sound manner.

Creating Value through Marine Biotechnology As one of the fastest-changing areas of modern science, biotechnology has revolutionized research and the economy. The recent completion of the human genome project has created a wealth of scientific and commercial opportunity. Though not yet well developed, the potential applications of marine biological technologies promise oceans of opportunity. An increased investment in this area is critical to enable marine researchers to apply today’s rapid advances in molecular biology to the marine environment. Marine plants, animals and microorganisms produce a myriad of unique biochemicals not found on land, and marine natural products derived from them have demonstrated potential to treat diseases such as cancer and inflammatory disorders. Even so, most drugs currently on the market were derived from land-based organisms. There is a vast potential for developing new drugs from the sea. These same technologies offer equally important opportunities in the environmental arena. Molecular biology has provided environmental managers, seafood processors and the aquaculture industry with an accessible toolbox that enables them to make better decisions on critical resource and economic issues. The next generation of technology for monitoring of biological processes and remediation of pollutants will be based on the application of these new biological technologies. Sea Grant has led the Federal effort to target biotechnology research to seek solutions to pressing problems, to develop novel applications, and ultimately to realize the immense economic potential of this emerging field.

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