[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 107 (Monday, June 7, 2021)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 30143-30144]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-11979]




                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 107 / Monday, June 7, 2021 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 30143]]


                Proclamation 10226 of June 1, 2021

                
National Ocean Month, 2021

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                The world's ocean basins are critical to the success of 
                our Nation and, indeed, to life on Earth. The ocean 
                powers our economy, provides food for billions of 
                people, supplies 50 percent of the world's oxygen, 
                offers recreational opportunities for us to enjoy, and 
                regulates weather patterns and our global climate 
                system. During National Ocean Month, we celebrate our 
                stewardship of the ocean and coasts, and reaffirm our 
                commitment to protecting and sustaining them for 
                current and future generations.

                My Administration is dedicated to improving our 
                Nation's public health by supporting resilient ocean 
                habitats, wildlife, and resources in which all 
                Americans rely on. Through our ``America the 
                Beautiful'' initiative, we are working with State, 
                Tribal, and local partners to conserve at least 30 
                percent of United States lands and waters by 2030--so 
                that our natural world can continue to supply the food, 
                clean air, and clean water that every one of us depends 
                on to survive. We are also committed to supporting 
                safe, plentiful, and sustainable seafood harvesting for 
                domestic consumption and export, and reducing public 
                health risks such as harmful algal blooms that have 
                proliferated as a result of climate change and the 
                acidification of our waters.

                The ocean has always been essential to our economy, and 
                that will remain true as we build back better and 
                develop the clean industries and good jobs of the 
                future. My plan to dramatically expand offshore wind 
                energy over the next 10 years will provide good-paying 
                union jobs and a sustainable source of clean energy. 
                Investing in resilient, reliable coastal 
                infrastructure--including modern ports and waterways--
                that can withstand the impacts of rising seas and 
                powerful storms will keep our economy competitive in 
                the global marketplace while making our families safer. 
                Conserving and restoring coastal wetlands and habitats 
                will also strengthen our efforts to tackle climate 
                change, improve the resilience of coastal communities, 
                and help restore nursery areas that are important to 
                our fisheries. Investing in our fishing communities and 
                supporting local seafood supply options will also be 
                critical to helping us build a climate-resilient, 
                sustainable ocean economy.

                Climate change is a global challenge that is integrally 
                linked to the ocean. By protecting our ocean and 
                coastal ecosystems and resources, we are also 
                protecting the worldwide economies and people that 
                depend on them. To address these challenges, we are 
                building on our Nation's long legacy of ocean 
                exploration and research to gain new insights into 
                ocean ecosystems and biodiversity and ways the ocean 
                can sequester and store carbon. Marine life, changing 
                ocean conditions, and plastic and other pollution pay 
                no attention to national boundaries. That is why we 
                must focus on a worldwide approach to conservation and 
                sustainability. In collaboration with our international 
                partners, my Administration will continue America's 
                global leadership in ocean science, stewardship, and 
                conservation. Our engagement in international efforts, 
                such as the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science

[[Page 30144]]

                for Sustainable Development, reflects the priorities 
                and values of my Administration to ensure that ocean 
                science delivers greater benefits for the American 
                people, the people of the world, and international 
                ocean ecosystems.

                My Administration is also committed to delivering 
                climate justice, including ensuring equitable access to 
                our ocean and coasts for all Americans--and working to 
                ensure that Indigenous Americans, Black Americans, and 
                other people of color are no longer forced to shoulder 
                disproportionate climate and environmental burdens, as 
                they historically have. My Administration will work 
                hard to further break down the barriers many 
                communities of color face by creating new opportunities 
                to diversify ocean-related access and workforces. We 
                will also equip educators with tools to teach our 
                Nation's youth how to become a powerful generation of 
                ocean stewards.

                It is imperative that we take proper action now to 
                ensure that the ocean continues to thrive. During 
                National Ocean Month, we recognize the central role of 
                a healthy ocean in sustaining all of our lives, and 
                pledge to find innovative ways to conserve, protect, 
                and restore our ocean.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2021 as 
                National Ocean Month. I call upon Americans to take 
                action to protect, conserve, and restore our ocean and 
                coasts.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                first day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand 
                twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.
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                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2021-11979
Filed 6-4-21; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P