Sept. 9, 2002 -- The U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, of which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is a member, will be meeting Oct. 2-3, 2002, in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
This will be the 8th meeting of the Task Force, which was established by Executive Order 13089 in 1998 to lead the U.S. response to the growing, global environmental crisis affecting coral reef ecosystems.
The Task Force is responsible for overseeing implementation of the Executive Order, and developing and implementing coordinated efforts to: map and monitor U.S. coral reefs; research the causes and solutions to coral reef degradation; reduce and mitigate coral reef degradation from pollution, over fishing and other causes; and implement strategies to promote conservation and sustainable use of coral reefs internationally.
Much of the agenda for the October meeting will focus on ways to improve the Task Force's ability to implement coordinated actions to protect coral reefs and evaluate the effectiveness of those actions.
For more information on the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, please contact Macara Lousberg at 202-566-1308, or visit the Task Force web site at:
http://coralreef.gov
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If you have any suggestions, issues, or actions that should be addressed by the Task Force, please contact Macara Lousberg at [email protected].
