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Lawmakers fight Trump administration's dismantling of $386 million ocean observatory project
🇺🇸 United States /Environment & Climate

Lawmakers fight Trump administration's dismantling of $386 million ocean observatory project

From PBS NewsHour · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News From a news agency New plan
  • Lawmakers are fighting the National Science Foundation's plan to dismantle the Ocean Observatories Initiative, a $386 million ocean monitoring network.
  • The initiative, which has tracked ocean data for a decade and informed over 500 scientific publications, is set to have most instruments removed by 2027.
  • Critics accuse the agency of acting illegally and call the decision

A coalition of Democratic lawmakers, joined by one Republican senator and two House committees, is challenging the National Science Foundation's decision to dismantle the Ocean Observatories Initiative, a vital ocean monitoring network. The project, costing $386 million over the last decade, has provided public data on ocean circulation, marine ecosystems, climate change, and extreme weather, contributing to over 500 scientific publications.

It just seems like this is supreme stupidity and a violation of the fundamental distribution of powers in our Constitution.

— Jeff MerkleyDemocratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon told The Associated Press, criticizing the NSF's plan.

The National Science Foundation plans to remove most of the system's instruments by 2027, framing the move as a "descoping" to prioritize "evolving scientific priorities and emerging technologies." However, scientists argue the decision was made without warning or scientific review.

This program is authorized, it's funded, and for the administration to shut it down without direction from Congress violates that vision in which the people's representatives decide what's done and funded, and the executive branch executes that vision.

— Jeff MerkleyDemocratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon explained his reasoning for opposing the NSF's decision.

Democratic senators, led by Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, sent a letter urging the NSF to halt the dismantling and conduct a thorough review. They criticized the move as "supreme stupidity" and a violation of congressional authority, emphasizing the threat to coastal communities and national monitoring capabilities.

Eliminating most of this complex ocean monitoring system threatens the safety of our coastal communities while undermining our nation's ability to monitor coastal environments, marine currents, and extreme weather events.

— SenatorsThe senators wrote in their letter to the National Science Foundation.

House Democrats from the Science, Space and Technology and Natural Resources committees issued a sharper rebuke, calling the action "expensive, destructive, and, crucially, illegal." They demanded the agency cease the dismantling immediately. The Trump administration's proposed 2026 budget had included significant cuts to the agency.

cease this expensive, destructive, and, crucially, illegal action at once.

— House DemocratsDemocrats from the House Science, Space and Technology Committee and the House Natural Resources Committee demanded in their joint letter.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by PBS NewsHour in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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