10 Questions on the National Sea Grant Law Center

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Sea Briefs is a report on the results of the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium.

Editor: Laura Bowie

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MASGC supports applied, interdisciplinary marine science research, education and outreach efforts to foster the sustainable development and management of the Mississippi and Alabama coasts and nearshore ecosystems of the Gulf of Mexico

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10 Questions on the National Sea Grant Law Center

Housed at The University of Mississippi in Oxford, the National Sea Grant Law Center (NSGLC) was established in February 2002 to disseminate information about marine laws and policies to the Sea Grant College Program, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other federal agencies, state legislatures and agencies and individuals working in the field of ocean and coastal management and policy. The Law Center provides critical analysis of marine laws and policies. It currently has three full-time members: two attorneys and a Web designer/publications editor. Terra Bowling is the editor of the National Sea Grant Law Center’s quarterly newsletter, “The SandBar,” and coordinates the center’s communication efforts. Chris Woolaway is the state coordinator for the International Coastal Cleanup in Hawaii and recently used legal expertise granted by the National Sea Grant Law Center to guide her in determining the liabilities organizations have during volunteer events.

TERRA BOWLING is the editor of the National Sea Grant Law Center’s quarterly newsletter, “The SandBar,” and coordinates the center’s effort to communicate changes in law, statutes and regulations, judicial decisions and interpretations, and governmental policies that affect coastal areas. Bowling also prepares the “Sea Grant Law and Policy Digest,” a bi-annual review of relevant ocean and coastal law articles and supervises the Law Center’s law student research associates. Since 2007, she has served as research counsel at the National Sea Grant Law Center at The University of Mississippi Law School. She conducts research on ocean, coastal, natural resource and environmental legal issues. She also assists governmental agencies in interpretation of statues, regulations and case law. Prior to her career at the National Sea Grant Law Center, she received her bachelor’s degree in journalism and Spanish from Ole Miss and served as an assistant editor of “American City and County” magazine.

1. What services does the Law Center provide?

We have an advisory request service, which is a legal research service provided free of charge to the Sea Grant College Program and its constituents. Our quarterly legal newsletter, “The SandBar,” provides in-depth summaries of cases. Additionally, we provide “Ocean and Coastal Case” alert, a monthly e-mail publication containing brief summaries of recent cases concerning ocean and coastal law issues.

2. What topics have you been researching on behalf of Law Center constituents?

Recently, I’ve been researching liability issues regarding beach recreation and coastal clean-ups. In July, I published an article in the “Environmental Law Reporter” titled "From Rip Currents to Flying Umbrellas: Beach Liability Basics and Recent Cases,” which provides an overview of liability issues resulting from accidents at the beach. I’ve also done research on liability issues facing volunteers and volunteer organizers and prepared a final document, “Volunteer Liability,” which gives an overview of the federal and state volunteer liability laws, as well as additional issues and doctrines that may apply to volunteers and volunteer organizers.

3. Describe ways that your research has had an impact on groups or individuals.

I believe that the primary impact of my work has been to help groups and individuals to understand the law and it how it might apply to their activities. I hope that some of the memos and publications that I have prepared may have reduced concerns about the potential liability of volunteers, organizations and hotels.

4. What are the big issues in ocean, natural resource and environmental law?

In the coming year, one of our focus areas will be on issues involving offshore energy. We will perform research to help our constituents understand the permitting and regulation process for all sources of offshore energy, including wind and wave energy.

5. How is assistance requested from the Law Center?

To submit an advisory request or request additional information, please contact the National Sea Grant Law Center at:

National Sea Grant Law Center
University of Mississippi
Kinard Hall, Wing E – Room 256
University, MS 38677
Phone: (662) 915-7775
Fax: (662) 915-5267
sealaw@olemiss.edu

Guidelines for advisory requests:
http://nsglc.olemiss.edu/Advisory.pdf .

CHRISTINE WOOLAWAY was an extension agent with the Hawaii Sea Grant for 23 years and has worked in the fields of marine pollution, transportation and tourism. For the last two years, as the owner of Chris Woolaway & Assoc., LLC, she has been coordinating the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Derelict Fishing Gear Cleanup project. This project brings federal, state, county, industry and non-governmental organizations together in collaboration to remove, document and mitigate abandoned and lost fishing gear that collects in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Woolaway is also the state coordinator of the “Get the Drift & Bag It!” and the “Keep Honolulu Beautiful” campaigns. She has recently completed work on the Ocean Conservancy’s National Marine Debris Monitoring Program, funded by Environmental Protection Agency. As a member of the non-profi t Hawaii Ocean Safety Team Advisory Board, Woolaway helps to ensure maritime safety and protection of the marine environment. One of her current projects is a science-based marine debris coastal monitoring program for Midway Atoll.

6. What services did the National Sea Grant Law Center provide to you?

Because I coordinate many volunteer efforts, I contacted the NSGLC to see if they could research the federal and individual state legal language regarding volunteer liability. Besides myself, I knew that other state Sea Grant extension agents and volunteer coordinators would really benefit from having a regulatory summary of volunteer liability in a succinct and concise manner. I knew that by understanding the liability laws, organizers could be more proactive in their preparation to protect volunteers and that organizers could protect their program from undo exposure to risk by being educated on the federal and state volunteer liability legalities.

7. How did you use the information provided?

Last year, when one of our local banks wanted to have their employees join the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC), I was asked for the volunteer liability documentation. However, when I attempted to gather the federal and state information, it became clear that it was not readily available. I work on many projects involving volunteers and the issue of volunteer liability has been a real concern for many years, especially on the marine debris and water quality projects. I have utilized the volunteer liability information for state and local projects like International Coastal Cleanup, Keep Honolulu Beautiful and the Derelict Fishing Gear project in the northwestern Hawaiian Islands.

8. Where did you distribute the information?

Because it’s an important part of volunteer programs, I talk about the regulatory summary provided by NSGLC to anyone who will listen. When presenting at the International Coastal Cleanup conference in Jamaica this summer, I distributed the information to the ICC state coordinators and representatives from BoatU.S., among others. I have also passed the information on to my local and national networks.

9. What impact has the information had?

Having the volunteer liability regulatory summary has added opportunities to further discuss liability issues among volunteer program coordinators. I have found folks most appreciative of having it all in one place, and I know that BoatU.S. found the information useful in its planning for the national boater fishing line recycling program. Also, most corporations are very keen on ensuring volunteer safety for their employees and having the summary of regulatory requirements readily available has encouraged corporations to participate in volunteer events.

10. How do you think other organizations could benefit from NSGLC services?

Once local and national organizations and agencies understand how responsive and user-friendly the NSGLC is, more local and national programming will benefit because the law affects and influences so much of what we do in our communities.