Back ||NOAA Home Ocean Observations for the Ocean Planet University of Delaware Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr NOAA Administrator May 2, 2002 I. INTRODUCTION Thank you for the opportunity to address you today as the speaker for the Gerard J. Mangone Distinguished Lecture series. First, I'd like to give special thanks go to Dean Thoroughgood for inviting me. Carolyn wears many hats these days - Dean of the Graduate College of Marine Sciences, Director of the Delaware Sea Grant College program, and Acting President of CORE—the Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education, my previous home prior to becoming NOAA Administrator. Carolyn has demonstrated superb leadership in each of these roles. I am especially honored and privileged to be invited as the quest lecturer in a series named for Dr. Mangone. His impressive career filled with notable accomplishments is an inspiration to us all. By all accounts, Dr. Mangone has built a distinguished career in international law, coastal zone law, and marine transportation. Each of these topics, by themselves, have a rich history and complex set of issues. Dr. Mangone has excelled in all three sharing his expert analysis and wisdom with students, scientists and policy specialists over many years. He has published over a dozen books and edited nearly two dozen others. He has enriched the lives of countless students and colleagues, and continues an active schedule of teaching, advising, mentoring and scholarly research well into his eighties – a remarkable and enviable record. Dr. Mangone is here tonight with his family. Please join me in a round of applause to recognize the achievements of this very special individual! (Applause) I have three goals this evening. First is to tell you a little bit about NOAA and why it is important. Second, to tell you a few of the things NOAA is doing in the areas so near and dear to the heart of Dr. Mangone. And finally, to tell you about the importance of observing systems, in particular ocean and coastal observing systems. II. NOAA NOAA is the single agency and center of excellence for the United States in observing our ocean and atmospheric environment, understanding that environment, forecasting that environment and managing and regulating very important portions of that environment. Our Organization consists of 5 product line offices. (Short description) Why is this important? 1) Unique combination of missions and functions leading to synergistic coordination and integration. 2) Our products and services form a key part of the economic backbone of the nation. (Examples) 3) The future depends on NOAA and its partners to succeed in a number of important areas. (Examples) I hope that we can convince many of you to want to work for us! III. Coastal Zone Management, Marine Transportation, and International Affairs. On to the second topic. I think it would be interesting for you to gain a small appreciation for NOAA's interest and involvement in the type of work to which Dr. Mangone has dedicated his life. So allow me to touch on some of the work NOAA does concerning coastal zone management, marine transportation, and international relations. NOAA administers the Coastal Zone Management Act, which provides grants to states with federally-approved coastal zone management plans. The CZMA grew out of the environmental movement in the early 1970s. Since then, 33 of 35 coastal and Great Lake states and territories have federally approved plans, which ensure that commercial, state and federal coastal activities are consistent with state management plans. Put in another context, that means that 99.9% of the Nation's coastline falls under management guidelines. Indiana, the 34th state, is expected to be approved by the end of this calendar year. Only Illinois remains without a plan. The CZMA is up for reauthorization this year, but it is not clear if we will see passage at this time. A bill introduced by Senator Snowe ®-ME) has been held up over Federal Consistency issues and there is no scheduled action on House bills by the full House Resources Committee. The Federal Consistency provision, which is a limited waiver of federal supremacy and authority, is a cornerstone of the CZMA Program and a primary incentive for States to participate. It is also one of the key reasons why this Act, which previously had strong bi-partisan support in each of its reauthorizations, has been held up in the 107th Congress. Congress, states, and interested parties are struggling to find a balance between not impinging on states' rights and the national interest in offshore oil and gas development. NOAA sees this stalemate as an opportunity to make the State review process more effective and efficient. We need to work with states and industry to streamline the review process, clarify requirements and information needs from federal and state entities, and set hard deadlines during the regulatory procedures. We are also making an effort at all levels of NOAA to foster an open dialogue with industry to discuss these needed changes. Just yesterday we met with the American Petroleum Institute to hear their concerns about the CZMA and their ideas on ways to improve the Federal Consistency process. We are committed to continuing these discussions and consider the CZMA reauthorization a high priority of this Administration. Another important component of coastal zone management programs and coastal zone law is the developing Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program. Over the last two decades, nonpoint sources of pollution have been determined to significantly contribute to water quality and ecosystem health. Section 6217 of the Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments of 1990 requires states and territories with approved coastal zone management programs to develop and implement coastal nonpoint management measures. So far 10 states and territories have received approval, including Delaware (in March 2002). (Others are Maryland, Rhode Island, California, Puerto Rico, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, US Virgin Islands.) These programs are implemented through changes to the state nonpoint source program approved by EPA under section 319 of the Clean Water Act, and through changes to the state coastal zone management program. With so many players in the game, nonpoint pollution is a tough problem to solve. Coastal states have been working on the issue for the past 10 years, but they still face significant hurdles, including the need for financial, technical, and political support within their respective state governments. NOAA is working with EPA and our coastal state partners to identify ways to provide more technical assistance to states in developing and implementing their programs and leveraging additional resources through our state and Federal programs, such as the Farm Bill. NOAA's role in marine transportation dates to 1807, when Thomas Jefferson created the Survey of the Coast, the predecessor to our nautical charting and geodetic survey offices. We are the Nation's official chartmaker, and provide a suite of navigation technology and services which enable safe transportation along our Marine Transportation System . Today, over 95% of overseas trade moves through our ports, but vessel sizes and drafts have also increased, straining the capacity of our ports. Some ships have mere inches of clearance under them. It is critical that we know what obstructions and clearances exist in navigable channels. NOAA's real-time tides and current data (generated by a system of real-time oceanographic sensors called PORTS) provide precise information of a ship's under keel clearance, enabling ships to maximize their loadings and still maintain safe clearance. PORTS is a cost-sharing, partnering effort based on extensive collaboration between NOAA and maritime communities to identify and satisfy local needs. This observing system measures water levels, currents, tides, and other environmental conditions which factor into safe and efficient navigation. NOAA has 8 PORTS sites in place, and one in progress right in your backyard. The Delaware River and Bay PORTS site will be the largest installation implemented by NOAA in 2002 and will be completed and online by this summer. So if the PORTS program is so valuable than why is it not a national program, you might ask? Unfortunately, the Marine Transportation Infrastructure is largely taken for granted. It is an investment in the economy and government that must be recognized at the local, state, and federal levels. The greatest hurdle to overcome is the authorization for funding the national infrastructure to ensure the federal government is able to support the expansion of the programs and adequately support it's local partners. This is just one example of how oceanographic observing systems are integral to society, our economy, and our environment. IV. APEC Oceans related Ministerial Meeting (Description of recently completed conference and Seoul Declaration) V. OCEAN OBSERVING SYSTEMS I would now like to focus on ocean observing systems. Ocean observations are important because they help us to take the pulse of the planet and help us better understand our environment and the dynamic processes which impact our daily lives. Ocean observing systems are extremely important to understanding the earth's complex interactions between the oceans and atmosphere and to improving our assessment and predictions capabilities. I am committed to the development of an observing system and currently provides both financial and personnel assets toward ocean observations and associated climate programs. Therefore, we need a good national and global observing system which will be able to meet oceanographic and meteorological operations and research needs in key societal areas. At NOAA, I am working hard with my team to evaluate all the pieces within the agency that can fit into this larger observational system. Every major Line Office within NOAA(OAR, NOS, NESDIS, NWS, and NMFS) has activities that are fundamental to an integrated and sustained observing system. For example, the data from the TAO (Tropical Atmosphere Ocean project) array is again helping to identify the recurrence of El Niño. My chain of leadership is also interested in this array and understands the link between research, observations and predictions. Additionally, NOAA has the Nation's oldest coastal observation program which began in 1807 to produce nautical charts of our coastal waters. This tidal program now includes the National Water Level Observation Network (NWLON) which consists of 190 stations nation wide. This system can serve as a backbone for a coastal observing system since it is already an end to end system located along the coastal United States. Additionally, NOS has developed the Physical Oceanographic Real Time System or PORTS which is providing the maritime community with valuable information in specific US ports. This system is important to the Marine Transportation System I mentioned before. The Weather Service's National Data Buoy Center operates the largest and most diverse national marine observation system. This system uses data obtained through moored and drifting buoys, ARGO floats, Voluntary observing ships, and Coastal monitoring sites. A higher density of observations in ocean areas will directly help the National Weather Service improve its forecast capabilities on the high seas, offshore and coastal areas, as well as improve numerical prediction models for providing better global forecasts. Coupled ocean/atmospheric models. On the satellite side, our two polar-orbiting and geostationary satellites are already providing critical ocean data. We are also working with DOD and NASA on our future polar system, the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), with nearly a third of its data stream design addressing ocean requirements. It is important to consider the satellite input when designing a global observing system: Satellites give us a global view of what is going on at the surface of the oceans, and complement the measurement taken at specific depth with buoys. Some of the marine related satellite data include sea surface temperature, sea surface heights, sea ice distribution, even ocean color. NESDIS also provides key capabilities for communications and data management for operational observing systems. So why is an observing system so important? Let me give you an example. It is not the ocean observations per se that result in a savings for the nation; it is the products to which they contribute and how we use those products. Here is my best example. Understanding ENSO and its influence on the atmosphere requires a capability to observe the physical state of the oceans and atmosphere on a continuing basis. For this we have a combined satellite / in-situ observing system, specifically including a moored array, the TAO array, and complementary subsurface observations spanning the Tropical Pacific which make up the entire ENSO Observing System. Resulting observations are used to produce seasonal forecasts of the impact of ENSO over North America. The economic consequences of ENSO are huge in cost and global in extent. For example, the 1997/98 El Niño caused $10 billion of damages in the U.S. alone, $3 billion of which was in the agricultural sector. Just in California, damage from flooding associated with this forecast El Niño was about $1.1 billion, half the amount associated with the comparable—but not forecast—1982/83 El Niño. The forecast of the 1997/98 flooding enabled such seemingly mundane things as repairing roofs and cleaning out storm drains and arroyos. However, city planners feel that these actions mitigated the damages resulting from this forecasted El Niño in the amount of ~$1 billion. This is an important example and additional observations, both coastal and open ocean, can only help us provide better forecasts concerning climate and even short term weather. I have mentioned a few of NOAA's priorities and key programs involved in observations and we still are working to put the pieces together even within NOAA. These systems should also be strengthened and aligned along the Nation's priorities. We must have a clear understanding of the steps required to implement an integrated and sustained observing system and this plan should build upon the baseline of current capabilities such as those I mentioned. We will need both significant investment in the system as well as efficient management of resources and science. Not just by NOAA but by all the Nation's agencies that work on climate. We need to foster partnerships nationally and internationally in order to develop an observing system which will be of substantive and long lasting benefit to the nation and world. I would again like to thank you for inviting me here today and I am willing to take a few questions.