Bush Unlikely To Back Ocean Reform

November 20, 2004

Release from: Joan Lowy
Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Despite warnings that the nation's ocean territories are facing an ecological crisis, President Bush is unlikely to endorse major reforms in federal oceans management recommended by a landmark commission.

James Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, has been spearheading an interagency effort to respond to more than 200 recommendations made by the congressionally mandated U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy, whose members were appointed by Bush.

That response is tentatively scheduled to be unveiled on Dec. 20, but commission members and oceans experts who have been closely following the interagency effort said it appears the White House will not propose the key reforms or seek the significant increases in funding recommended by the commission.

Instead, the White House appears to be leaning toward "giving us a menu of all the wonderful things they are doing right now and saying they believe they can handle it within the current (government) structure and so forth," said retired Adm. James Watkins, a former secretary of energy who was chairman of the oceans commission.

"We would be very upset to see the status quo being delivered publicly as an adequate response," Watkins said.

The council has listed on its Web site dozens of government programs and policies that address various aspects of ocean management, implying that the administration is well on its way to addressing the commission's recommendations.

However, ocean reform advocates described the lists as window dressing on the current governmental structure, which spreads ocean-related responsibilities across 15 federal departments and agencies.

The commission called for an "ecosystem-based management approach" that crosses jurisdictional boundaries to address problems as varied as air and water pollution, overfishing and coastal land development. Existing programs to manage oceans and coasts are badly fragmented, the commission said.

"The commission is handing the president the opportunity to be the Teddy Roosevelt of the oceans. They deserve more than a drive-by shooting as a response," said Warner Chabot, vice president of the Ocean Conservancy.

Connaughton said the criticism is premature since the administration is still working on its response to the commission.

The administration is making "some really tangible progress" on the commission's recommendations, which is "a great step forward, especially given where we started," Connaughton said. "Before we took office there was no action."

The commission's report was released in draft form last year; finalized and publicly presented this spring; and formally sent to the White House with comments from the nation's governors this fall. Yet, Bush has said almost nothing publicly about the report, even while he was campaigning for re-election in coastal states most directly affected by over fishing, pollution and general degradation plaguing the oceans.

One of the commission's top recommendations was the creation of a presidential assistant dedicated exclusively to oceans. The commission said it was critical to have an advocate in the White House for the nation's 4.4 million square miles of ocean territory, an area 20 percent larger than the land area of the United States. U.S. jurisdiction extends 200 miles from coasts.

The commission also recommended the creation of a National Ocean Council within the office of the president and composed of Cabinet department and federal agency heads to provide high-level attention to ocean issues.

Connaughton, an attorney who represented major manufacturers and oil and mining companies before he was tapped by Bush to head the environmental council, said he is functioning as the White House's ocean adviser and may continue to serve in that role.