SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Committee was established by the NOAA Administrator as directed by Section 12304 of the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act, part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Pub. L. 111-11), and reauthorized under the Coordinated Ocean Observations and Research Act of 2020 (Pub. L. No: 116-271). The Committee advises the NOAA Administrator and the Interagency Ocean Observation Committee (IOOC) on matters related to the responsibilities and authorities set forth in section 12302 of the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act of 2009 and other appropriate matters as the Under Secretary refers to the Committee for review and advice.

The Committee will provide advice on:

(a) Administration, operation, management, and maintenance of the Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System (the System);

(b) expansion and periodic modernization and upgrade of technology components of the System;

(c) identification of end-user communities, their needs for information provided by the System, and the System's effectiveness in disseminating information to end-user communities and to the general public; and

(d) additional priorities, including—

(1) a national surface current mapping network designed to improve fine scale sea surface mapping using high frequency radar technology and other emerging technologies to address national priorities, including Coast Guard search and rescue operation planning and harmful algal bloom forecasting and detection that—

(i) is comprised of existing high frequency radar and other sea surface current mapping infrastructure operated by national programs and regional coastal observing systems;

(ii) incorporates new high frequency radar assets or other fine scale sea surface mapping technology assets, and other assets needed to fill gaps in coverage on United States coastlines; and

(iii) follows a deployment plan that prioritizes closing gaps in high frequency radar infrastructure in the United States, starting with areas demonstrating significant sea surface current data needs, especially in areas where additional data will improve Coast Guard search and rescue models;

(2) fleet acquisition for unmanned maritime systems for deployment and ( printed page 58891) data integration to fulfill the purposes of this subtitle;

(3) an integrative survey program for application of unmanned maritime systems to the real-time or near real-time collection and transmission of sea floor, water column, and sea surface data on biology, chemistry, geology, physics, and hydrography;

(4) remote sensing and data assimilation to develop new analytical methodologies to assimilate data from the System into hydrodynamic models;

(5) integrated, multi-State monitoring to assess sources, movement, and fate of sediments in coastal regions;

(6) a multi-region marine sound monitoring system to be—

(i) planned in consultation with the Interagency Ocean Observation Committee, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Department of the Navy, and academic research institutions; and

(ii) developed, installed, and operated in coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Department of the Navy, and academic research institutions; and

(e) any other purpose identified by the Administrator or the Council.

Matters to be considered:

The meeting will focus on (1) providing the Committee with programmatic updates from the U.S. IOOS program and the IOOC and (2) presentations and discussion to determine the work plan for the Committee over the next three years. The latest version of the agenda will be posted at http://ioos.noaa.gov/​community/​u-s-ioos-advisory-committee/​.

86 FR 58890