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Volume
3, Issue 2 |
November
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December 2010 | |
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IN THE
ZONE is a service from
the Maryland Department of Natural Resources'
Chesapeake &
Coastal Program (CCP) that delivers timely
information, tools and resources to those who live, work
and play in Maryland's coastal
zone. |
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CCP SPOTLIGHT: MARYLAND'S DRAFT ENFORCEABLE
COASTAL POLICIES SUBMITTED TO
NOAA
Official
Review Period Begins Today, November
19, 2010
CCP Spotlight is a feature of the In the Zone
e-mail service that highlights programs that have been
developed by the Chesapeake & Coastal Program or
through partnership and support from federal, state and
local partners helping to advance coastal management in
Maryland.
 Today, Maryland
officially
submitted a Routine Program Change (RPC)
to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) for approval. The Routine Program Change will
update, clarify, and improve access to the Maryland
Coastal Management Program's enforceable policies. This
RPC - the culmination of a challenging, multi-year
project - reflects the contribution of staff from
DNR,
the Environmental Law Institute and our partner state
agencies as well as ongoing communication with
NOAA. The enforceable policies
contained in this RPC are derived from the NOAA-approved
Maryland Coastal Management Program and
EIS document and are based on current state
law.
In
response to a Necessary Action from NOAA's 2007 Section
312 Program Evaluation, these clarified and updated
enforceable policies provide the guidelines for
determining whether a federal action, such as a federal
project, a federal license or permit, or federal
assistance to state or local government, is consistent
with the Maryland's Coastal Management Program. Called
"federal consistency," this potentially powerful
management tool ensures State priorities and policies
are considered when federal actions have foreseeable
effects on Maryland's
coastal resources.
The
official review period begins today, November 19, 2010,
with publication of a public notice in the Maryland Register.
Reviewers will have three weeks to provide comments
to NOAA (due by December 10, 2010). Once approved by
NOAA, the enforceable policies in the Routine Program
Change will be available on the CCP website in a concise
user friendly format. By updating and making
Maryland's
enforceable polices more accessible, CCP hopes to
streamline the federal consistency process, engage in
more meaningful early consultation with stakeholders
when a federal action has foreseeable effect on
Maryland's
coastal zone, and use federal consistency to improve the
quality of Maryland's
coastal resources.
For
information on Maryland's
coastal enforceable policies, e-mail Joe Abe with Maryland's
Chesapeake & Coastal Program or call
410.260.8740. |
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FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT ISSUES A REQUEST FOR INTEREST IN COMMERCIAL
WIND POWER LEASING IN MARYLAND
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| Kentish flats wind
power farm off the coast of England. Photo by
Vattenfall. |
On
November 8, 2010, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management,
Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) announced a
significant step forward in its efforts to bring
offshore wind power generation to Maryland's coast. The
federal government, which controls the Outer Continental
Shelf, accepted the planning recommendations of the
Maryland Offshore Wind Task Force. As a result, it
issued a Request for Interest (RFI) in commercial wind
power leasing in federal waters adjacent to Maryland's
Atlantic Coast in the Federal Register. Through this
notice, BOEMRE is now accepting comments about the RFI
wind leasing area through January 10, 2011; a map
of the RFI area is now available.
For the
past year, Maryland's Chesapeake & Coastal
Program worked to compile data and information
about habitats, human uses, and resources in Maryland's
Atlantic Ocean. WIth that data,
CCP developed Maryland's Coastal Atlas to
serve as an ocean planning tool to help identify areas
most suitable for various types of activities in order
to reduce conflict among uses, facilitate compatible
uses, and reduce environmental impacts to preserve
crucial ecosystem services. To learn more about CCP's
efforts to plan for offshore wind and to help the State
to balance multiple uses in the ocean, visit our Ocean Planning and Renewable Offshore
Energy webpage.
Using the
results of this approach, Maryland made recommendations
to the Task Force about the RFI map area for offshore
wind. As a result, Maryland was able to work to avoid
many natural resource and human use conflicts early on
in the siting process.
We hope
you will continue to inform the offshore wind energy
process. Please take some time to visit these webpages
below to learn more about the Federal Register
notice, the status of wind energy in Maryland and DNR's
stakeholder outreach efforts:
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PUBLIC
COMMENT PERIOD FOR DRAFT 309 ASSESSMENT AND
STRATEGY
Deadline
for Comments is December
3, 2010
 The Maryland Chesapeake &
Coastal Program (CCP) recently issued the Draft
2011-2015 Coastal Zone Section 309 Assessment and
Strategy, prepared as part of the NOAA
Coastal Zone Enhancement Grants Program. The
outlined strategies will improve
the State's ability to plan for climate change, protect
critical coastal resources and foster clean coastal
industries.
The
Draft 309 Assessment & Strategy
document was developed through consultation with CCP
partners in response to the needs and gaps identified in
the nine assessments areas. The
public comment period is from
November 3 through December 3,
2010. An overview of the document can be found
here.
For
more information on the draft Section 309
Assessment and Strategy, e-mail Catherine McCall or call 410.260.8737.
Visit
CCP's 309
Assessment & Strategy webpage to learn more
about Maryland's
Chesapeake & Coastal Program, the NOAA Coastal Zone Enhancement
Grants Program and to access previous Section 309
Assessment and Strategy
documents. |
MARYLAND COASTAL
AND WATERSHED ADVISORY
COMMITTEE
Next
Meeting: Friday, December
10
 The Coastal and Watershed Resources Advisory
Committee (CWRAC) is scheduled to meet on
Friday, December 10 from 10
a.m. to
12:30
p.m. at the
Calvary
United
Methodist
Church in
Annapolis,
Maryland.
The
main topics are (1) the Sustainable Maryland
Certification Program, (2) DNR's
Climate Change Policy: Building
Resilience to Climate Change, and (3) Planning
CWRAC's 2011 Agenda. The Committee
will also get updates on the
following: the Coastal Policy Update
Project, the Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP)
and the Draft Section 309 Assessment and
Strategy.
CWRAC,
established in 1976, is comprised of representatives of
local government, concerned local citizens, special
interest groups, state and federal agencies and academic
institutions. CWRAC acts as an independent advisory body
to the Secretary of Natural Resources and to
Maryland's
Chesapeake & Coastal Program on policy issues
affecting the coastal areas of Maryland. Funding is
provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration under the Coastal Zone Management
grant.
If
you are interested in attending the upcoming meeting or
in need of more information on CWRAC, e-mail Joe Abe with the Chesapeake &
Coastal Program or call
410.260.8740. | |
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 Please feel free to contact us
with any comments, questions or ideas for future IN THE ZONE
e-mails.
Sincerely,
Your Chesapeake & Coastal Program
Team
Maryland Department of
Natural Resources |
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A
publication of the Maryland Coastal Zone Management Program
pursuant to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Award No. NA10NOS4190204. This publication is funded (in part)
by a grant/cooperative agreement from the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The views expressed herein
are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the
views of NOAA or any of its
sub-agencies. | | |
