Summary/Abstract
This bill would establish an NOAA-led Interagency Working Group on Coastal Blue Carbon to develop a national map of coastal blue carbon ecosystems. The working group would conduct research to establish national restoration goals and priorities for coastal blue carbon ecosystems; assess the biophysical, social, and economic barriers to restoration of coastal blue carbon ecosystems; study the effects of environmental and human stressors on sequestration rates; and preserve continuity of coastal blue carbon data. The bill directs the working group to collaborate with the National Academy of Sciences to assess long-term effects of geologic carbon stores in deep-sea environments, including their effects on marine species and ecosystems.