OR&R Vision: The nation’s ocean, coasts, and communities are resilient—protected and restored from environmental threats for future generations.
OR&R Mission: To protect and restore ocean and coastal resources from the impacts of threats such as oil, chemicals, marine debris, and disasters to benefit the environment, public, and economy.
Core Values: Integrity, Service, and Respect
Operating Principles: Safety, Collaboration, National Leadership, Stewardship, Always Ready

Message from the Director

Our nation’s coasts and the global ocean are abundant providers—a primary source for the oxygen we breathe, a buffer for our climate, a habitat for biodiversity, a provider of sustenance, a channel for commerce, and a source of beauty and recreation. Our ocean, coasts, and Great Lakes are also bearing early and profound effects from climate change and under increasing demands from multiple uses, with resulting episodic shocks and chronic stressors often placing disproportionate burdens on underserved and vulnerable communities. Anticipating and adapting to these changes is a key strategic need across society, including the work of the Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R).

OR&R delivers critical services to address rising demands, focused on responding to challenges from disasters and pollution by oil, chemicals, and marine debris. Our pollution and disaster mandates provide the backbone for our mission — even as we evolve our services and the customers we support — to the changing nature of coastal threats and hazards. Episodic weather and climate disasters demand more from our disaster planning, coordination, and continuous improvement portfolio as well as impact the nature of pollution demands across OR&R’s mission set. OR&R’s recovery portfolio fosters stronger connections between the work of incident response and recovery, as well as promotes integration of longer-time horizon resilience needs into recovery. Together these services support coasts that are more resilient to episodic events such as natural disasters, spills, and other coastal hazards.

This plan sets forth four goals for OR&R over the next five years to: meet the changing demands on our mission, deliver services in an equitable manner for the diverse populations we serve, approach our communications with cohesion that integrates our mandates to address these demands, and develop our skilled, diverse, and inclusive workforce to deliver our mission and sustain our core capabilities.

Our office has evolved in its breadth and focus over our 25 years with this name and nearly 50 years from our origins. The next five years demand continued adaptation to apply our expertise and mandates to emerging challenges.

Scott Lundgren, Director, Office of Response and Restoration

OR&R Strategic Plan Goals and Objectives

Goal 1: Meet demands of pollution and weather-related threats and impacts in the face of coastal change

• Objective 1: Execute and sustain core mission capabilities to protect and restore ocean and coastal resources
• Objective 2: Advance OR&R scientific understanding of emerging threats and needs
• Objective 3: Enhance capabilities and expertise to meet demands of new threats and extended, large scale, and more frequent events to support more resilient coastal communities

Goal 2: Make equity intentional in the delivery of our services

• Objective 1: Identify barriers to community awareness of and ability to access OR&R products, resources, and services
• Objective 2: Employ secure, new technologies and methods to further expand access to OR&R products and services
• Objective 3: Better engage underserved communities to inform decision making and service delivery
• Objective 4: Provide greater support (e.g., products, services, grants) to underserved communities

Goal 3: Strengthen engagement with constituents to effectively communicate and advance the OR&R mission to better meet the needs of coastal communities

• Objective 1: Develop and implement an integrated communications strategy that unites all mission focus areas
• Objective 2: Strengthen and develop effective and strategic partnerships and outreach that are mutually beneficial and advance the OR&R mission
• Objective 3: Deploy a consistent engagement strategy with leadership at all levels of the government
• Objective 4: Strengthen community engagement and improve communication to identify national and regional needs and connect the public to OR&R resources and expertise

Goal 4: Develop a more skilled, diverse, and inclusive workforce to support and implement the OR&R mission

• Objective 1: Expand professional development opportunities for staff
• Objective 2: Build a more diverse workforce that mirrors the communities we serve
• Objective 3: Promote workforce sustainability, safety, and wellness
• Objective 4: Enhance cross-divisional collaboration