Priority Issues
Electoral
We help elect members of congress who will fight to protect our oceans, and, we defeat candidates and members who don’t. That, in essence, is what Ocean Champions is all about.
Harmful Algal Blooms
The Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act of 2011 was introduced in the Senate by two of our Ocean Champions in Congress, Senators Olympia Snowe (R, ME) and Bill Nelson (D-FL) on October 12, 2011. The House version was introduced in July and has already been passed out of the Natural Resources Committee and is ready for floor action.
National Ocean Policy
The ocean is vital to the health of the planet and to human survival. It provides critical habitat for marine species, helps regulate climate, and provides half the oxygen we breathe. It provides food, energy, shipping lanes and of course, incredible recreation.
Ending Overfishing
In 2006, Ocean Champions played a significant role in reauthorizing the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (M-S Act). The M-S Act is the primary Federal statute governing how we manage our Nation’s fisheries and its ability to control overfishing, rebuild depleted fish populations and achieve sustainable fisheries management.
Beyond Offshore Oil Drilling
The massive Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico demonstrated that the risks of expanded offshore drilling are far greater than the rewards. Drilling technology is not reliable, and as BP has demonstrated, Big Oil does NOT have the capability to quickly shut down spills when they occur.
The National Endowment for the Oceans (NEO)
On May 12, 2011, Senate ocean champions Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) introduced the National Endowment for the Oceans (NEO) to establish the first annual fund for ocean conservation and restoration. This strong piece of bipartisan legislation was also cosponsored by a number of influential Senators, including ocean champion Bill Nelson (D-FL), Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), and Mary Landrieu (D-LA).
Ocean Acidification
Ocean Acidification occurs when atmospheric CO2 is absorbed by the ocean. As the CO2 is dissolved, a chemical process occurs that causes the ocean to become more acidic. Unlike climate change, acidification is easy to prove. It is simple water chemistry that is easy to measure; it is observable, and it is clearly happening. Over the past 200 years, CO2 absorption has caused the ocean’s pH to decline by .1 (30%).