§6411 Coral Reef Research

Summary

The Administrator must set up two reef research coordination institutes: one for the Atlantic and one for the Pacific. Each institute must be placed inside a single coral reef research center that the Administrator names. The institutes must carry out government-directed research to fill national and regional reef science gaps and help respond to threats, support monitoring to see how conservation and restoration work, work with states, Native entities, reef managers, nonprofits, and other centers, help put the National Coral Reef Resilience Strategy and coral reef action plans into practice, help non-federal agencies use research for management and restoration, and run education and awareness programs for policymakers, managers, and the public about reefs, best practices, their value, and threats. The Administrator must regularly ask for applications and name qualifying institutions in covered States as coral reef research centers. Qualifying institutions are: run by a college or nonprofit marine research group; already running management-focused national or regional reef research or restoration programs; able to coordinate with federal and state agencies and other organizations; and active in local community outreach about coral reef ecosystems.