What is the National Estuary Program Condition Report?
EPA issued the National Estuary Program Coastal Condition Report (NEPCCR) in June, 2007. It is the third in a series of coastal environmental assessments. The first two reports covered all U.S. coastal waters. This Report includes assessments of the twenty-eight National Estuary Programs(NEPs) in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Estuaries are bodies of water where fresh water from rivers meets the saltwaters of the ocean. This interaction provides a unique, highly productive environment that supports a great diversity of wildlife and fisheries and contributes tremendous value to the nation´s economy. The NEPCCR presents two major types of data for each NEP estuary:(1) estuarine monitoring data collected as part of EPA´s National Coastal Assessment surveys, and (2) estuarine monitoring data collected by the individual NEPs or by the NEPs in partnership with interested stakeholders, including state environmental agencies, universities, or volunteer monitoring groups.
