An interim report by President Obama's Council on Environmental Quality recommends federalizing regulations for ocean, shoreline, coastal and Great Lakes water quality. The report outlined the following elements for a national takeover of state and local water policy:

1. "A vision of what a National Policy should achieve for the ocean, our coasts, and the Great Lakes;
2. A brief context section describing the value of these important areas, the various issues confronting them, and the urgency to take effective action;
3. The statement of our National Policy; and
4. A set of overarching guiding principles for United States management decisions and actions affecting the ocean, our coasts, and the Great Lakes."

Currently, marine and shoreline water control is administered to varying degrees by states, regional EPA offices, local agencies, or in the case of much of the Great Lakes, a consortium of states. The council recommended these efforts be coordinated in a National Ocean Council, to be organized at the federal level.

Among its recommendations, the committee suggested the President:

• Consolidate and strength the principal- and deputies-level components within a single National Ocean Council (NOC) structure;
• Strengthen decision-making and dispute-resolution processes by defining clear roles for the NOC, and the NOC leadership;
• Create a governance advisory committee to formally engage with state, tribal and local authorities, and regional governance structures;
• Create an integrated steering committee of the NOC; and
• Strengthe coordination between the NOC and other federal entities.

A final report with recommendations for organizing such a council is due in November.

Links

• Read the report: