Using the Northeast Ocean Plan

Have you heard about the Northeast Ocean Plan or wondered what's included in it? Would you like to learn how it works, or how it can be relevant to your community? The plan itself is lengthy and focuses on how government agencies will work with each other, use data, and communicate with stakeholders. To help explain the plan to people who live and work in coastal communities but haven’t been closely following the process, the Island Institute put together this animated video.

This video is an introduction to the plan and provides some ideas on how you, as a community member, might use the plan. Our goal is to inform you about the kinds of activities or situations where referencing the plan would be helpful.

The full plan is available at Northeast Regional Ocean Plan and through the Northeast Ocean Data Portal. 

For more information on how to use the Northeast Regional Ocean Plan, see the following resources:

• Digging into the data about our marine economy — column about the Northeast Ocean Data Portal in The Working Waterfront
• Lobster and Ocean Planning report — highlights important information about the lobster fishery for those using the ocean plan
• Engaging Communities in Offshore Wind: — report detailing case studies and lessons learned from New England islands
• Will communities “open-up” to offshore wind? Lessons learned from New England islands in the United States — an academic journal article based on these studies
• Incorporating Community into Regional Ocean Planning — a 2015 white paper about how to incorporate community into the ocean plan