Abstract:
NOAA manages the coastal zone in the United States under the Coastal Zone
Management Act (CZMA). One of the goals of the act is to provide opportunities for the public
to participate in the coastal zone management (CZM) process. I have developed a set of
indicators of public participation by reviewing how government agencies solicit and implement
public views in the states of California and North Carolina. Indicators – measures of success –
are used by government agencies to show their progress towards policy goals, to simplify
information, and to improve communication between government officials and the public. A
public participation indicator will help states determine how well they are implementing the
CZMA, enable states to compare participation levels over time, and allow comparisons between
states. Indicators of public participation, however, should include a measure of the effectiveness
of the participation, of how representative the views of those who participate are of the entire
public, and of the influence that the public has on final policy outcomes. If NOAA develops a
national system of indicators and performance measures, they should include an indicator of
public participation in coastal zone management decisions.
