Strategic Goal 3

Observe, protect, and manage the Earth’s resources to promote environmental stewardship

STRATEGIC GOAL 3 TOTAL RESOURCES
(Dollars in Millions)

	FY 1999	FY 2000	FY 2001	FY 2002	FY 2003	FY 2004	FY 2005	FY 2006
Fiscal Dollars	$2,314.1	$2,455.4	$3,254.8	$3,398.4	$3,458.6	$3,802.0	$4,064.0	$4,507.3
FTE – Full-Time Equivalent	12,058	10,329	11,473	11,585	11,898	11,868	11,918	12,896

STRATEGIC GOAL 3 PERFORMANCE RESULTS

Rating	Number of Reported Results
	FY 1999	FY 2000	FY 2001	FY 2002	FY 2003	FY 2004	FY 2005	FY 2006
Exceeded Target	0	0	0	4	2	4	1	3
Met Target	20	9	18	18	20	20	23	20
Slightly Below Target	3	1	2	2	0	0	0	7
Did Not Meet Target	6	11	3	6	6	6	5	0
See Appendix A: Performance and Resource Tables for individual reported results.

The Department is a future-minded environmental science agency whose mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment and manage coastal and marine resources to meet the nation’s economic, social, and environmental needs. The Department has responsibilities for the environment, ecosystems, safety, and commerce of this nation that span oceanic, coastal, and atmospheric domains. Understanding the oceans and atmosphere is essential to sustaining U.S. environmental and economic health. The Department provides products and services that are a critical component of the daily decisions made across the United States. From satellite imagery to tornado warnings, navigational charts to fish stock assessments, hurricane tracking to El Niño and harmful algal bloom predictions, severe weather forecasts to coastal zone management—the Department’s science, service, and stewardship touch the life of every citizen in the United States and in much of the world every day.

Together the Department and its partners provide weather and climate services; manage and protect fisheries and sensitive marine ecosystems; conduct atmospheric, climate, and ecosystems research; promote efficient and environmentally safe commerce and transportation; and provide emergency response and vital information in support of homeland security. The breadth and scope of these services require the Department to be responsive to both short-term and long-term societal needs.

In FY 2006 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) accomplished some major bureau-wide successes:

National Weather Service (NWS) Response to Hurricane Katrina

The devastation left in Katrina’s wake over southeast Louisiana and coastal Mississippi was immense. The storm surge ravaged coastal Mississippi, and several levee breaches occurred in and around New Orleans. The levee breaches and overtopping resulted in floodwaters of 15 to 20 feet covering about 80 percent of the city. The catastrophic damage and loss of life inflicted by this hurricane is staggering, with an estimated 1,353 direct fatalities and 275,000 homes damaged or destroyed. Total economic losses could be greater than $100 billion. These impacts make Katrina the costliest hurricane in U.S. history and one of the five deadliest hurricanes to ever strike the United States.

A follow-up Service Assessment Team, composed of experts in and outside NWS, found that NWS performed admirably before, during, and after Katrina. The products and services provided by NWS offices were particularly accurate and timely, and they contributed significantly to critical customer decision-making. The hurricane forecast track error was considerably better than average through the five-day forecast period. Lead times on hurricane watches and warnings for Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida panhandle were eight hours above average. A noteworthy moment for NWS came when the Weather Forecast Office (WFO) in New Orleans/Baton Rouge issued a statement one day prior to Katrina’s landfall that emphasized the likely impacts of the hurricane on southeast Louisiana and coastal Mississippi. Due to the unprecedented detail and foreboding nature of the language used, the statement helped reinforce the actions of emergency management officials as they coordinated one of the largest evacuations in U.S. history. The NWS actions leading up to Katrina’s landfall and the efforts of the NWS tropical cyclone outreach program over the last two decades contributed to these high evacuation rates and undoubtedly saved many lives.

During extremely difficult working conditions, the ingenuity, dedication, and sheer will of NWS employees enabled the provision of products and services even as infrastructure and back-up systems failed. Incident meteorologists served a vital role in the aftermath of Katrina by establishing portable communications systems and weather observing systems to mitigate critical outages. Most importantly, service backup operations were transparent to most users and partners as high quality products and services were provided by alternate offices.

President Sets Aside Largest Marine Conservation Area on Earth
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) Marine National Monument Encompasses Nearly 140,000 Square Miles

The Administration created the world’s largest marine conservation area off the coast of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in order to permanently protect the area’s pristine coral reefs and unique marine species. The NWHI Marine National Monument encompasses nearly 140,000 square miles of U.S. waters, including 4,500 square miles of relatively undisturbed coral reef habitat that is home to more than 7,000 species. The monument will be managed by the Department of Interior’s (DOI) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA, in close coordination with the State of Hawaii.

"This is a landmark achievement for conservation, protection and enhancement of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands,” said Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez. “Approximately one quarter of the species here are found nowhere else in the world and a marine national monument will provide comprehensive, permanent protection to this region.”

New NOAA Environmental Satellite Launched, Reaches Orbit

NOAA and NASA officials confirmed that a new geostationary operational environmental satellite, designed to track hurricanes and other severe weather impacting the nation, successfully reached orbit. The first signal acquisition occurred six hours and 30 minutes after the launch, at the Air Force Tracking Station, Diego Garcia, located in the Indian Ocean.

The NOAA satellite, GOES-13, will assume its place in the NOAA GOES satellite constellation that provides continuous critical data for severe weather forecasts and warnings, and supplies data critical for fast, accurate forecasts and warnings for severe weather, including tornadoes, winter storms and hurricanes. Additionally, after a period of on-orbit storage, it will detect solar storm activity, relay distress signals from emergency beacons, monitor the oceans, and scan the landscape for the latest drought and flood conditions.

This satellite will serve the nation by monitoring conditions that trigger dangerous weather, and it will serve the world by contributing vast amounts of observational data, as part of the U.S. contribution to the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS).

NOAA Accepts Delivery of New Fisheries Survey Vessel (FSV)
Advanced Capabilities Provide Unique Fisheries Research Platform

NOAA took delivery of HENRY B. BIGELOW, one of a new class of FSVs being built under contract with VT Halter Marine Inc., in Pascagoula, MS. The vessel will support NOAA research efforts in conservation and management of fisheries and marine ecosystems primarily in northeastern U.S. waters, replacing the 45-year-old ALBATROSS IV. The ship will be home ported in New England, although a permanent base has not been named. The ship will be based temporarily at Naval Station Newport, in Newport, RI.

Like its sister ship OSCAR DYSON, BIGELOW‘s high-tech capabilities make it one of the most advanced fisheries research ships in the world. The advanced capabilities of HENRY B. BIGELOW will enable NOAA to conduct its fisheries research and assessment mission in New England with greater accuracy and cost efficiency.

Senator Gregg stated, “The HENRY B. BIGELOW is going to have a tremendous impact on the way scientists and researchers study the health of our marine environment, especially in the Gulf of Maine and the northeast. And it is a fitting tribute to the kids from Winnacunnet that this vessel, bearing the name they chose to honor one of the most respected oceanographers in the northeast, is now going to be used off our shores.”

HENRY B. BIGELOW is the second of four 208-foot FSVs to be delivered by VT Halter Marine, with the third ship, PISCES, and the as-yet unnamed fourth ship in various stages of construction. Together, these ships will expand the capabilities of the NOAA fleet greatly by meeting data collection requirements of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), as well as providing a cutting-edge, low acoustic signature. The FSV will have the ability to perform hydro-acoustic surveys of fish, and also will be able to conduct bottom and mid-water trawls while running physical and biological-oceanographic sampling during a single deployment—a combined capability unavailable in the private sector.

SUMMARY OF STRATEGIC GOAL 3 PERFORMANCE GOALS

PERFORMANCE GOAL	STATUS*
Serve society’s needs for weather and water information (NOAA)
Understand climate variability and change to enhance society’s ability to plan and respond (NOAA)
Protect, restore, and manage the use of coastal and ocean resources through an ecosystem approach to management (NOAA)
Support the nation’s commerce with information for safe, efficient, and environmentally sound transportation (NOAA)
* = MET (100%) = SIGNIFICANTLY MET (75% - 99%) = NOT MET (<75%) = NOT APPLICABLE (back)