Legal research and outreach leads to regional policy consensus on recreational watercraft pathway

April 21, 2022

One of the primary pathways for the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) is the movement of trailered watercraft. Inconsistency, overlaps, and gaps between neighboring states’ legal regimes can hinder prevention and enforcement efforts. The National Sea Grant Law Center (NSGLC) began providing legal research and other technical assistance to the Western Regional Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species (WRP) “Building Consensus” Committee in 2012.

In July 2016, the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies passed a resolution recommending its member states adopt standardized regulations requiring watercraft operators to take certain action regarding drain plugs and visible plant material on watercraft and trailers.

In December 2016, the NSGLC and AFWA finalized the “Model Regulation for State Watercraft Inspection and Decontamination Programs.” Over a dozen western states amended agency regulations and policies to conform to the model provisions.

Arctic seascape with scattered icebergs, rocky shoreline, and distant snow-capped mountains under a partly cloudy sky, as the ice begins to melt in the warming sun.

Alaska

Expanding and Connecting Tribal-Led Climate Change Capacity To Serve Indigenous Community Needs In Alaska

As winter ice melts along the Alaska shoreline, revealing mud and water, snowmelt floods threaten property and lives. The rising waters from thawing snow can

Sea Grant announces new projects to address community needs regarding contaminants of emerging concern

Gavin Dehnert, an Emerging Contaminants Scientist at Wisconsin Sea Grant, investigates the impact of emerging contaminants on aquatic ecosystems. (Photo Credit: Wisconsin Sea Grant.) Coastal

Sea Grant’s American Lobster Initiative awards $5.4 million to further innovative research and outreach in support of the lobster industry and fishing communities

Since 2019, Sea Grant’s American Lobster Initiative has addressed critical knowledge gaps about the American lobster and its fishery facing a dynamic and changing environment. The Initiative supports a regional extension program in the Northeast and a national research competition. Fifteen emerging research projects were selected in 2023 and 2024 for $4.6 million in federal funding by the NOAA National Sea Grant College Program. Coordinated by Maine Sea Grant since 2019, the Northeast lobster extension program was recently renewed with an $840,000 federal award that supports work through 2026.