In accordance with notice to members of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council’s Ocean Special Area Management Plan (SAMP) Subcommittee, a meeting of the subcommittee was held on Tuesday, April 15, 2014 at 9:30 a.m. at the Offices of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council, Stedman Government Center, 4808 Tower Hill Road, Wakefield, R.I.

MEMBERS PRESENT
Anne Maxwell Livingston, Chair Don Gomez Tony Affigne Paul Lemont

STAFF PRESENT
Grover Fugate, CRMC Executive Director Brian Goldman, CRMC Legal Counsel David Beutel, CRMC Aquaculture Coordinator

Call to order. A. Livingston called the meeting to order. The Subcommittee approved the minutes of the previous meeting.

Item 1. Review and approve research agenda changes suggested by RI Department of Environmental Management and approve for inclusion in the appendices of Ocean SAMP – G. Fugate provided an overview of the agenda item for the Subcommittee members, telling them that it’s a series of research areas for further study. When members questioned the purpose of adding the changes, D. Beutel explained that the research agenda provides value to the SAMP document for DEM, and provides the department with leverage for funding for additional research. P. Lemont asked if the Subcommittee was to approve the agenda, and D. Beutel said yes. T. Affigne commented that the document would provide a lot of insight for the general public, and a detailed assessment of the issues. G. Fugate commented that the two agencies have identified EMF as one of the areas that needs more research. G. Fugate said the CRMC let the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) know and put together a proposal. BOEM has a period of accepting requests for research and now it’s an open competition, he said. A. Maxwell Livingston said that this research agenda would now allow the DEM to put together a proposal and submit it, and said she had no problem with it.

P. Lemont moves approval of the research agenda changes; D. Gomez seconds. The motion passes unanimously.

The Subcommittee adjourned at 9:50 a.m.

Respectfully Submitted,
Laura Dwyer

 

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