Creating and Protecting Healthy Coastlines

The United States has 95,500 miles of shoreline around its borders attracting both residents and visitors. Nearly 40% of the United States population lives in coastal counties. Additionally, Americans make more than 400 million visits to the beach every year. For our coastal habitats to thrive and for our beaches to be appealing to visitors, it is vital that our coasts are healthy and free from debris.

NOAA, as the caretaker of our ocean, is the federal leader in keeping our beaches and coastlines clean and working to restore and protect our critical coastal and in-shore habitats.

• NOAA’s Sea Grant Program, which supports local residents, universities and nonprofits in protecting and restoring habitat, fueled the restoration of more than 1.12 million acres of coastal habitat in 2021.
• In 2022, local and regional programs removed 3,000 metric tons of debris from our oceans, beaches and waterways, thanks to funding from the NOAA Marine Debris Program.
• NOAA’s National Estuarine Research Reserve System cares for more than 1.4 million acres of estuary in the U.S., providing cutting-edge research, training for local and state officials, and educational opportunities for thousands of school children each year.
• NOAA is responsible for the protection, conservation, and recovery of more than 160 endangered and threatened marine and anadromous species under the Endangered Species Act.
• NOAA integrates its work with indigenous communities to gather traditional ecological knowledge, restore habitats, protect marine species, and preserve our coastal cultures.

Real stories of how NOAA supports healthy coastlines: