Biden Harris Administration recommends funding of $5 million for projects in Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Freely Associated States to strengthen Climate-Ready Coasts as part of Investing in America agenda

Today, Vice President Harris announced that the Department of Commerce has recommended $5 million for projects in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Freely Associated States to make communities more resilient to climate changes, as part of the Investing in America agenda. Across the Commonwealth, two projects will create jobs and enhance economic and environmental outcomes for coastal communities. The awards are made under the Biden Administration’s Climate-Ready Coasts initiative funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) with additional funds leveraged from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). 

“The Biden-Harris Administration is proud to assist our partners in local government on removing marine debris,” said Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Thanks to the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, we are making significant investments in protecting America’s waterways and coastal habitats.”

Administered by the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Climate-Ready Coasts initiative is focused on investing in high-impact projects that create climate solutions by storing carbon; build resilience to coastal hazards such as extreme weather events, pollution and marine debris; restore coastal habitats that help wildlife and humans thrive; build the capacity of underserved communities and support community-driven restoration; and provide employment opportunities.

“Partnerships are critical in the important work of developing nature-based solutions to habitat degradation, and assessing and removing marine debris,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “This historic investment will put the community at the forefront of important decisions as they work to design restoration plans and tackle the problem of abandoned and derelict vessels.”

“Congress and the Biden-Harris Administration worked hard to enact the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act, making historic investments in our nation’s infrastructure while also putting us on a path to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and battle the climate crisis,” said Congressman Gregorio Sablan (CNMI). “These laws also help coastal communities like the Marianas build coastal resilience, restore habitat, and create jobs. The Marianas is the beneficiary of two NOAA grant projects – one to restore watershed habitats on the island of Saipan, and another to assess and remove abandoned and derelict vessels. These projects can demonstrate how habitat restoration and nature-based solutions can build community resilience. I look forward to seeing more Climate Ready Coasts initiative projects in the Marianas.”

This project is part of NOAA’s nearly $6 billion total investment under BIL and IRA. Recommended projects and funding amounts in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Freely Associated States include:

• Abandoned and Derelict Vessel and Large Marine Debris Removal Partnership between the U.S. Territories and Freely Associated States 
  Pacific Coastal Research & Planning: $4 million 
  Funding Source: Marine Debris Removal Competition
  This project will remove abandoned and derelict vessels in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and large marine debris in the Freely Associated State of Palau. The project will seek to establish and build marine debris removal partnerships in the territories and Freely Associated States.
• Project Site Prioritization, Design, and Implementation of Achugao and Laolao Bay on Saipan, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands
  Pacific Coastal Research & Planning: $1 million
  Funding Source: Coastal Habitat Restoration and Resilience Grants for Underserved Communities
  Pacific Coastal Research & Planning will collaborate with partners and communities to restore habitat in the Achugao and Laolao Bay watersheds on the island of Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The project will serve as a demonstration of how habitat restoration and nature-based solutions can address community resilience. Local resource managers and stakeholders will play a key role, so they can apply these practices to projects in other CNMI communities.