§ 46-23.1-1. Findings and purpose. Coastal and estuarine habitat such as coastal wetlands, anadromous fish runs, and eelgrass beds are threatened, damaged, or have been destroyed by historic pollution, oil spills, incompatible development, and other factors. The coastal and estuarine habitats of Rhode Island's waters provide great benefits to the citizens of this state including, but not limited to, protection from coastal storms and erosion. Coastal and estuarine habitat resources also serve as nurseries and breeding grounds for important recreational and commercial finfish and shellfish populations, capture and filter run-off pollution, and significantly contribute to the state's economic, community and ecological health. Restoration of tidally restricted coastal wetlands can also ensure protection of human health and safety by controlling populations of certain salt marsh mosquitoes known to carry the Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus. The state's economy is directly dependent on the health and productivity of Rhode Island's coastal waters, including Narragansett Bay and the coastal ponds. Destruction of coastal and estuarine habitats has been identified as one of the leading causes of decline in economically important fish, shellfish, and other natural resources. Restoring degraded coastal and estuarine habitats is essential for reversing declines in fishery resources and protecting human health and safety. Since healthy and diverse coastal and estuarine habitats are better able to support fish and wildlife resources that have been impacted, and are likely to be impacted in the future, by pollution events such as oil spills, an investment by the state of Rhode Island to provide restoration planning and technical expertise and to implement measures to restore coastal and estuary habitats is vital to the economic prosperity and quality of life of the citizens of the state.

History of Section. (P.L. 2002, ch. 62, § 1.)