Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO)
In 2009 the Governors of New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia in 2009 signed the Mid-Atlantic Governors’ Agreement on Ocean Conservation. The Agreement established the Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO) as a partnership to address shared regional priorities and provide a collective voice on region-wide coastal issues and advancement.
MARCO leverages existing state and federal resources, knowledge, and partnerships to build a stronger base of information and experience to make well-informed decisions in the best interest of the states and their constituents.
The Governors’ Agreement identified four regional priorities for shared action to improve ocean health and contribute to the high quality of life and economic vitality of the region: Climate Change Adaptation, Renewable Energy, Marine Habitats, and Water Quality.
MARCO developed a white paper in 2009 that profiles the status of climate change and sea level rise activities in the five MARCO states. The document also presents the states’ activities organized into nearly a dozen distinct categories addressing policy development, data and tools, technical assistance, and more.
MARCO developed the Mid-Atlantic Ocean Data Portal which is an online toolkit and resource center that consolidates available data and enables state, federal, and local users and the general public to visualize and analyze ocean resources and human use information such as fishing grounds, recreational areas, shipping lanes, habitat areas, and energy sites, among others. The Portal offers access to dozens of datasets in seven categories: Administrative, Fishing, Marine Life, Maritime, Recreation, Renewable Energy, and Security.
Phone: info@midatlanticocean.org
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