M7.7: Blog about the agency's role

I chose to look at the National Ocean Service (NOS) of the US Department of Commerce. This agency’s role is to provide data, tools, and services that support coastal economies and their contribution to the national economy. The mission of NOS is to provide science-based solutions through collaborative partnerships to address evolving economic, environmental, and social pressures on our ocean and coasts. The priorities of the NOS protect environmental health in many ways. NOS has a priority of safe and efficient transportation and commerce by providing navigation charts and water level information to the ships that bring products in and out of the U.S. ports. Another important role of the NOS is preparedness and risk reduction for coastal communities. Potential life-threatening natural disasters such as hurricanes and high tide flooding are closely monitored by NOS through the network of coastal tide and water level sensors, which provide real-time data. In addition, NOS responds to more than 150 oil and chemical spills in the US by providing responders with the information they need to understand the severity of a spill where it will travel. Another important role of NOS is there efforts to protect coral reefs. Below are a few infograhics provided from there website.