APA & NOAA Cooperate to Keep Charts Current

NOAA and American Pilots’ Association (APA) sign Memorandum of Agreement to advance safe navigation in coastal waters.

Dr. Kathryn Sullivan , NOAA Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation & Prediction, signs an agreement that recognizes the longstanding working relationship between marine pilots and NOAA’s navigational services.

Coast Survey has a long-term working relationship with the American Pilots’ Association , whose members include virtually all of the 1,200 state-licensed marine pilots working in the 24 coastal states and the Great Lakes. This agreement updates an earlier collaborative agreement between APA and NOAA.

Dr. Sullivan and Capt. Michael Watson, APA president, signed the MOA this morning, during the APA annual meeting.

The MOA lays out specific cooperative activities to promote safe navigation. Among a wide range of provisions, it encourages the 57 APA-member pilot groups to provide information to update NOAA’s nautical charts and the U.S. Coast Pilot. The MOA will also facilitate timely investigations of apparent discrepancies between actual and charted features, which could pose dangers to navigation or adversely affect shipping efficiencies.