Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management

To carry out NOAA's responsibilities under the Coastal Zone Management Act, the OCRM works directly with coastal states and territories to support the development of new Coastal Management Programs and National Estuarine Research Reserves, provide technical and financial assistance to coastal program and reserve operations, undertake projects with program-wide or system-wide benefits, integrate information from all of the Coastal Management Programs and National Estuarine Research Reserves to support activities at the national level, and promote coastal stewardship on a variety of critical coastal issues. Such issues include: coastal habitat protection and restoration; coastal hazards; public access to the shore for recreation; sustainable development of coastal communities, including urban waterfronts; and polluted runoff (also known as nonpoint source pollution or runoff pollution).