East Coast Climate Coordination Group

East Coast Climate Coordination Group

The Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council hosts the East Coast Climate Coordination Group (E3CG) homepage. The New England Fishery Management Council developed this webpage to highlight the group’s activities, which will complement the Climate and Ecosystem Steering Committee’s work.

The East Coast Climate Coordination Group was formed in 2023 to oversee implementation of climate-related actions associated with the East Coast Climate Change Scenario Planning Initiative. The East Coast Climate Coordination Group will:

• Ensure actions are prioritized, jointly and by individual management organizations;
• Assess and allocate resources available from participating groups to address issues (including monetary and staff resources);
• Ensure joint/cooperative actions are executed in a coordinated manner, including identifying and tasking the appropriate group(s) to address each action;
• Review and consider information provided by the Climate Core Team on trends in the fisheries and suggested actions;
• In cooperation with the Climate Core Team, identify opportunities for external support and partnerships to address actions, as appropriate; and
• Populate and provide guidance to the staff-level Climate Core Team, including tasking and directing on information needs and projects as needed beyond routine Innovation Group tasks.

The East Coast Climate Coordination Group includes one member from each participating organization: New England Fishery Management Council (NEFMC), Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council (MAFMC), South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC), Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office (GARFO), Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC), Southeast Regional Office (SERO), and Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC). The chair will rotate annually among member organizations. The E3CG meets at least twice per year.

Actions and Work Priorities

The Potential Action Menu is a working document of the East Coast Climate Coordination Group. The projects, initiatives, and ideas in the menu were developed through the Climate Change Scenario Planning Initiative. Many items from the menu have been worked into the Councils’ IRA projects.

East Coast Climate Core Team

The East Coast Climate Core Team was formed to support the East Coast Climate Coordination Group. Specific core team responsibilities include tracking important ecosystem and fishery changes, identifying potential associated management and governance challenges, and identifying possible actions for consideration by the coordination group. The chair of the core team will rotate annually. The list of core team members can be found here.