Reps. Charles Albert Ruppersberger (D-Maryland) and Don Young (R-Alaska) have introduced a bill that seeks to assist local and state governments in efforts to increase the resiliency of the country’s 95,000-mile shoreline.
Ruppersberger’s office said said Tuesday the Digital Coast Act would establish a coastal mapping system at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and make collected data available on NOAA’s public website.
The bill also calls for NOAA to train agency leaders at the local and state levels to address coastal threat queries with the use of datasets, as well as help coastal communities implement development strategies for the country’s coasts, harbors, ports and shoreline areas.
“America’s fragile shorelines are home to more than half of our country’s population and millions of businesses that supply most of our gross domestic product,” said Ruppersberger.