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Learn about the West Coast Ocean Alliance
Explore the West Coast Ocean Data Portal
West Coast Ocean Alliance
Established in 2017, the West Coast Ocean Allicance is a partnership between federal government agencies, and the states of Washington, Oregon and California, and tribes, focused on enhanced coordination and communication around planning and management of current and emerging ocean uses, as well as information and data-sharing on the West Coast of the U.S.
The group began discussion between federal, state and tribal governments in 2013, formed as a Regional Planning Body through establishment of a charter in early 2016, and then transitioned to regional ocean partnership as an Alliance in 2017.
The Alliance provides a regular forum for government co-managers to communicate and collaborate around existing and emerging uses of the ocean along the West Coast.
West Coast Ocean Data Portal
The West Coast Ocean Data Portal (WCODP) originally formed as a project of the West Coast Governors Alliance on Ocean Health (WCGA) in 2012 to increase discovery and connectivity of ocean and coastal data and people to better inform regional resource management, policy development, and ocean planning.
The Portal now supports the work of the WCOA and is working inform priority issues associated with understanding West Coast Ocean Health issues, and to support ocean planning efforts, like the Oregon and BOEM Intergovernmental Task Force on Marine Renewable Energy.
The Portal links existing data systems together to provide an easy to use gateway to discover ocean and coastal data. Coastal decision-makers, researchers, and stakeholders use the Portal to access data and decision-support tools they need to understand and address high-priority regional issues. The Portal includes visualization tools to help coastal managers understand natural resources and human uses of the ocean within the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem.