The Department of Commerce and NOAA announced the availability of $100 million to support climate resilience projects through US Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Regional Associations as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.

This funding is from the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest climate investment in history, and comes one day after the first-ever White House Summit on Building Climate Resilient Communities.

These funds will be available to 11 US IOOS Regional Associations to strengthen operations through investments that enable them to recapitalize and modernize infrastructure and sustain services that address climate resilience needs and priorities, particularly in frontline and underserved communities. Funding will enhance national and regional coastal ocean observing systems while prioritizing climate resilience services and equitable service delivery. Projects will also advance the role of IOOS in the New Blue Economy by recapitalizing and modernizing technologies and advancing the IOOS ocean information technology network.

“Understanding our ocean is critical to the prosperity and well-being of the entire nation,” said US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “This funding made possible by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, a key pillar of Bidenomics, will empower communities and businesses along our coasts with actionable ocean data to make critical decisions in response to the climate crisis.”

“US IOOS is an indispensable partner in building climate-ready coasts and communities,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “Better understanding of ocean features and functions is fundamental to our ability to forecast, respond to and adapt to the impacts of climate change. This investment from the Biden-Harris Administration extends the reach of IOOS by increasing its role in community resilience and the New Blue Economy.”

Funds will be made available under two topic areas for up to five years.

• $55 million will fund activities at the regional scale including recapitalization, infrastructure investments and modernization of the system to support delivery of data and information services to address coastal and climate resilience needs.
• $45 million will fund activities that benefit users at the national and/or pan-regional scale with an emphasis on modernization, infrastructure and recapitalization projects to support coastal resilience and equitable service delivery.

US IOOS is a NOAA-led nationwide network providing data, tools and models to improve safety, support the economy and protect the environment. The IOOS Regional Associations are non-federal partners within US IOOS that provide observations for the US coastal zone to the limits of the Exclusive Economic Zone, whose data management is certified by NOAA to adhere to national standards and best management practices. They operate regional observing networks throughout the nation, including the Pacific Islands and the Caribbean, through their long-established relationships with communities, businesses, academia, and other external partners. The regional associations operate and maintain infrastructure to collect and share the data coastal communities need to improve local and regional resilience.