CRMC deputy director appointed co-chair of NROC

December 18, 2013, WAKEFIELD –The deputy director of the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC), Jeff Willis, has been appointed as the state co-chair of the National Ocean Policy’s Northeast Regional Planning Council.

Under the NROC policies, one state representative and one federal representative co-chair the Council for an agreed period (12-18 months). The co-chairs organize agendas, run meetings, track progress on the biannual work plan, and act as principal points of contact and spokesmen for the Council. They may also present an annual report to the New England Governors’ Conference.

State chairs rotate in the following order based on geography from North to South: Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. Federal chairs will rotate by federal line department, according to NROC.

CRMC Executive Director Grover Fugate was appointed to serve as the state lead for the National Ocean Policy’s Northeast Regional Planning Council in fall of 2012, and has been charged with coordinating the efforts of all six states serving on the council.

Willis will serve along with Mel Cote of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and began terms effective in November. They replace Bruce Carlisle, director of the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management, and Robert LaBelle of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM).

NROC was formed in 2005 by the New England Governors and works to identify and address local, state, and regional ecosystem-based environmental issues; seek new and encourage existing ocean and coastal initiatives and partnerships; facilitate information exchanges, including reports, discussions, initiatives and plans which may be developed or considered; and to foster regional communication, interaction and cooperation on marine and oceans-related research and development, education, exploration and observation.