Alaska Senator Mark Begich is quick to name the issue that's giving him the biggest earful so far in his new post as chairman of the Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Fisheries, and Coast Guard: "marine spatial planning."
The concept is listed as a top priority by the 2010 National Ocean Council, which is already preparing to draft action plans on nine coastal/ocean objectives. It would affect all users and uses, on and beneath the oceans.
"I don't think Dr. (Jane) Lubchenco, the director of NOAA, appreciated my blunt categorization of it," Begich added, "but as a former mayor, that's what it is. You are determining winners and losers in terms of utilization of the oceans, and that is what zoning does.
"What is the value in it? And by what authority are they able to do this?" he continued. "In land use zoning there is a whole process you must go through by law. Here they are talking ocean zoning, but there has yet to be any stakeholder involvement or economic analysis."
And just who are "they"?
"It is a classic situation of people within the bureaucracy believing it's a good thing to spend their time on regardless of cost," Begich said, "When in reality, they have not worked with the stakeholders and they haven't done their homework."
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