Ocean Law and Policy

Governing Our Actions to Ensure Healthy, Thriving Coasts and Oceans

The health of our coast and ocean is declining, in part because our regulatory structures are mismatched with the environment they are supposed to protect.  Laws mistakenly keep water quality policies separate from policies managing our use of coastal lands, water flows, and fish and wildlife, when in reality they are all connected.  For example, a June 2009 NOAA Fisheries Biological Opinion found that a lack of sufficient water in California’s Central Valley is jeopardizing the existence of Southern Resident killer whales, which rely on disappearing Chinook salmon runs for food.  Our current, single-focus laws also fail to address climate change impacts, which are altering the fundamental biology, physiology, and chemistry of our oceans.  

President Obama, the national Joint Ocean Commission and California’s Ocean Protection Council have unanimously called for “ecosystem-based approaches” in state and national ocean policies. 

In July 2010, the President released the Final Recommendations of the Ocean Policy Task Force, which would establish a National Policy for Stewardship of the Ocean, Coasts and Great Lakes and create a National Ocean Council to strengthen governance and coordination.   Read answers to FAQ about the new National Ocean Policy here, and register for the California and the World and Ocean Conference, to be held September 7-10 in San Francisco, to learn more,

CCKA is Taking Action

On June 12, 2009 President Obama established an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force led by the White House Council on Environmental Quality to bring cohesiveness to the many agencies involved in marine management.  The Task Force was charged with drafting a national ocean policy that ensures protection, maintenance, and restoration of our oceans and coastlines.  On September 17, 2009, the Task Force held a public hearing San Francisco at which CCKA's Executive Director Linda Sheehan was invited to provide expert testimony to the Task Force, specifically on West Coast water quality. CCKA since provided written comments to the Task Force on ocean governance and on marine spatial planning, which informed the Final Recommendations of the Task Force.

CCKA’s Linda Sheehan also was recognized as a "California Coastal Hero" by Sunset Magazine and the California Coastal Commission for her efforts to clean up the waters that flow through California communities to the ocean, and to provide the public with the tools and information needed to hold government decision makers accountable.  This award is a credit to the coordinated efforts of all of California’s Waterkeepers to protect and enhance the health of California’s world-renowned coast and ocean.