Staff from the Connecticut Congressional delegation requested a visit from NOAA researchers from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) to discuss recent seafloor mapping efforts and how they can be used in marine spatial planning, as well as general resource management, in Long Island Sound. They provided the delegation with details about NCCOS's efforts in mapping physical and biological attributes of the sound and their relevance to resource management.

In 2011, Connecticut approached NOAA to coordinate state, federal, private sector and academic partners to look for the cause of a large die off of lobsters over the past few years. Habitat maps already generated by NCCOS will help identify historical and current lobster distributions and will be part of a greater effort to answer this question.

NCCOS also worked with the Office of Coast Survey last year to map the sound for the benefit of both New York and Connecticut, whoseauthorities manage the trade-offs between protecting, conserving, and enjoying their marine resources while accommodating the needs of transportation and economic growth.