§6471 Coral Reef Conservation and Restoration Assistance

Summary

The Secretary of the Interior can give scientific help, technical support, and, if money is available, financial aid to protect and restore coral reefs. Any help must follow federal, State, and Tribal resource rules and must fit the National Coral Reef Resilience Strategy and any coral reef action plans that apply. The Secretary can set up a Coral Reef Initiative Program to give grants to local managers in covered States and Freely Associated States, help National Park and Wildlife Refuge units do reef work, add to other reef programs, and offer other technical and financial help. The Secretary must work with the Secretary of Commerce when planning reef work in certain federal waters and when awarding the Susan L. Williams Coral Reef Management Fellowship. With funding, the Secretary can make agreements with covered reef managers to fund projects that follow the national strategy and action plans. Definitions: conservation—actions to protect reefs; coral—reef-building marine animals; coral reef—the reef ecosystem; covered reef manager—entity that manages reefs; covered State—States covered by the law; National Coral Reef Resilience Strategy—the federal plan for reef resilience; restoration—actions to rebuild reefs; State—state government; Tribe/Tribal—Indian Tribes as defined in title 25.