How do you turn controversy about climate change science into an opportunity to create progressive new sea level rise policies? The cover story of this edition of Coastal Services looks at how coastal resource managers in San Francisco turned controversy into an educational, outreach, and collaborative opportunity.
For three years the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission worked with residents, local governments, and the business and nonprofit communities to address the identified challenges of sea level rise in the region.
On October 6, 2011, the commission voted unanimously to amend the San Francisco Bay Plan to more broadly address climate change adaptation, with a specific focus on sea level rise.
Read the article to learn the steps the commission went through and what the new policies mean for the near- and long-term growth of the City by the Bay.
Here at NOAA’s National Ocean Service, we are also embracing an opportunity. This is the opportunity to better integrate coastal management. It’s not clear, yet, what this will look like, but the focus is on determining the best way the Coastal Services Center and the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management (OCRM) can bring even better products and services to a larger coastal management community.
To fully explore this opportunity, Margaret Davidson has been appointed acting director for OCRM, and I am stepping in as acting director for the Coastal Services Center. Within OCRM, John King is continuing his duties as acting deputy director for the next five months, and Nicholas Schmidt will serve for the next four months as the acting deputy of the Coastal Services Center.
Throughout the decision-making process, we will share progress reports with you.
One of the best ways to stay informed about the Coastal Services Center and its services is to follow us on social media. Find us on Twitter @coastalservice and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/NOAACoastalServices.
We will also be soliciting your ideas and feedback as we work through this process.
These are exciting times for the coastal management community and NOAA. Both Margaret and I firmly believe that by working together in a broader and more cohesive way, we will find the best solutions.
-- Jeff Payne, Acting Director
