Protection of natural resources is especially urgent to the coastal areas. Due to extensive industrial and human activities, the recreational potential and coastal ecosystems were damaged to some extent. In the US, The Coastal Zone Management Act issued in 1972 is an official document that coordinates preservation, protection, and development of national coastal areas. The act prescribed that coastal economy greatly depends on clean water and a healthy ecosystem. Coastal counties are reported to produce more than 40 percent of the American GDP. Tourism and recreation industry of these counties makes up more than 30 percent of the national GDP which is also a significant figure.
The National Coastal Zone Management Program created within the act mentioned above took into account benefits of marine ecosystems to the US economy and encourages coastal states to cooperate with the federal government in creating programs for protection and development of the areas. With the help of the Coastal Zone Management Act, coastal areas are better equipped to address constantly arising issues. According to the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, Pacific and Atlantic coastal line is frequently endangered by external factors.
Drilling industry poses a high risk of oil spillages into the oceans – the damage of spills is vast and very expensive. But not all coastal threats result from the human activity. Natural hazards bring even bigger damage, and half of the nation that lives on the Atlantic coast is well aware of this fact. Coastal zone management plans pay a lot of attention to predicting storms and tsunamis and preventing coastal areas from damage. Constantly rising sea level is definitely no good news to the coastal population, which means that NOAA still has a lot of projects to implement.