The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently announced in a press release a Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that allocates nearly $3 billion of funding over 5 years to NOAA. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina M. Raimondo announced funding opportunities to address the climate crisis and strengthen coastal resilience and infrastructure. Targeted investments will be in the areas of habitat restoration, coastal resilience, and climate data and services that will advance ongoing federal efforts toward building climate resilience.
“The climate crisis is affecting every community in the U.S. and impacting our nation’s economy,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “The funding from NOAA will be used to support transformational projects that will help communities, especially underserved communities, build up local climate resilience and climate-ready infrastructure.”
“This funding provides NOAA and its partners with a historic opportunity to invest in the climate smart infrastructure of the future,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “Together, we’ll help ensure our coasts are climate-ready, our fisheries and protected resources are resilient, and our climate and data products reflect the needs of decision makers.”
Funded projects will support three major initiatives:
Climate Ready Coasts will help coastal communities build the future they want to see, investing in natural infrastructure projects that build coastal resilience, create jobs, store carbon, remove marine debris, and restore habitat. ($1.467 billion over five years)
Climate Data and Services will support a whole-of-government effort to address the climate crisis by getting critical information and tools in the hands of decision-makers, particularly to address floods, wildfire, drought, and ocean health. ($904 million over five years)
Fisheries and Protected Resources will advance efforts to restore important fisheries habitat and promote community economic development. ($592 million over five years).
Photo courtesy of NOAA
