Whitehouse, Cassidy Introduce Resolution Designating September 20–27 National Estuaries Week

Washington, D.C.-U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ranking Member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) introduced a bipartisan resolution to designate September 20 through September 27, 2025, as National Estuaries Week. Whitehouse and Cassidy led 31 Senators in calling for the protection and restoration of America's estuaries, which drive economic activity and are facing mounting threats from rising sea levels, pollution, and extreme weather.

"Estuaries, like the Ocean State's Narragansett Bay, are at the center of daily life in communities across the country and are essential to the health of coastal environments and economies," said Ranking Member Whitehouse, who serves as co-chair of the bipartisan Senate Oceans Caucus. "As climate change increasingly threatens coastal communities and our national economy, I'm pleased to join my Senate colleagues in reaffirming our commitment to ensuring our country's estuarine environments can continue to thrive."

"When Louisiana's coastlines are protected, so is our way of life. Our estuaries are a lifeline. We must keep them healthy," said Dr. Cassidy.

An estuary is a partially enclosed, coastal body of water where freshwater from rivers and streams meets an open body of water, typically the sea or Great Lakes. Nearly 40 percent of Americans live in estuarine regions, which support nearly 47 percent of U.S. economic output. Estuaries provide key ecosystem services that protect human health and safety, including water filtration, flood control, shoreline stabilization, and erosion prevention. They also protect coastal communities during increasingly frequent hurricanes and other extreme weather events.

In 2021, Senator Whitehouse's bill to reauthorize the National Estuary Program at nearly double its previous annual funding levels was signed into law. The late Rhode Island Senator John Chafee established the National Estuary Program in 1987 to protect and restore estuarine habitats threatened by pollution, overdevelopment, and other harms. National Estuaries Day began in 1988 and has since become an annual week-long celebration aimed at encouraging more people to become involved in the protection and restoration of these essential ecosystems.

"National Estuaries Week highlights the ways that estuaries like Narragansett Bay drive our regional economy, provide habitat for wildlife, and protect Rhode Island and Massachusetts communities from flooding and storms," said Darcy Young, Executive Director of the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program. "We're grateful to Senators Whitehouse, Cassidy, and their colleagues for supporting this bipartisan resolution, which underscores the importance of sustaining the partnerships and resources that help our estuaries and watershed communities thrive through restoration and protection."

"National Estuaries Week reminds us of the vital role estuaries, bays, sounds, and coastal regions play in our nation's future," said Daniel Hayden, President of Restore America's Estuaries. "Nearly 40% of Americans live in a coastal region and many more rely on them for food, recreation, and trade but more can be done to ensure these ecosystems continue to thrive. We depend on our estuaries, and our estuaries depend on us. Restore America's Estuaries thanks Senator Cassidy, Senator Whitehouse, and all of their colleagues who signed on to this bipartisan resolution - demonstrating continued support of our estuaries from our nation's capital."

"Setting aside this week to appreciate estuaries is an important reminder of how we all benefit when they are healthy and productive," said Caitlin Chaffee, Manager of Rhode Island's Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. "Estuaries are the living heart of coastal communities. In addition to being beautiful places to recreate, they fuel our economy and protect our health and well-being.

"National Estuaries Week is a chance to celebrate the places that sustain our way of life in Louisiana and across the country," said Bren Haase, Director of the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program. "Estuaries are working landscapes-they buffer us from storms, fuel our fisheries, and anchor the communities and traditions that define coastal life. Here in the Barataria-Terrebonne region, we see every day how important it is to invest in restoring and protecting these waters and wetlands. We're grateful for the bipartisan leadership in the Senate that recognizes the value of our nation's estuaries and the role they play in building a more resilient future."

Estuarine regions of the United States contribute disproportionately to the national economy. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, estuary regions cover only 13 percent of the land area of the United States, but they contain nearly 40 percent of the population and make up almost half of the country's economic output.

Threats to estuaries are increasing, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimated that the continental United States has lost more than half of its wetlands since the 1780s. Additionally, bays across the country that once served as important fisheries are now considered "dead zones" filled with algal blooms, chemical waste, nutrient pollution, and marine debris.

Read the full resolution here.