NOAA Gives $2.7 in Grants to Address Marine Debris

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is providing $2.7 million in grants to support 14 projects addressing the harmful effects of marine debris on wildlife, navigation safety, economic activity and ecosystem health. With the addition of non-federal matching contributions, the total investment in these marine debris projects is more than $5.2 million.

The grants, selected competitively from 82 community-based marine debris removal and research proposals, are spread across 10 U.S. states and territories and two federally recognized tribes.

Approximately $1.5 million in grants will support 10 community-driven removal projects in Alaska, the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island (Alaska), California, Guam, Louisiana, New York, North Carolina, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community (Washington) and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The grantees will implement locally based, cost-effective activities to remove marine debris, including derelict fishing gear and abandoned and derelict vessels. Approximately $1.2 million will support four marine debris research projects in California, Delaware, New Jersey and Virginia. These projects address ecological risk assessment and the fate and transport of marine debris.

The NOAA Marine Debris Program is dedicated to investigating and preventing the adverse impacts of marine debris in the nation’s marine environment and Great Lakes. Congress authorized the NOAA Marine Debris Program in 2006 as the lead federal program for addressing marine debris. This program was reauthorized in 2018 through the Save Our Seas Act.

For more information on the funded projects, please visit the NOAA Marine Debris Program’s website.