The Coastal Response Research Center (CRRC) was established as a partnership between the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), through the Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R), and the University of New Hampshire (UNH), through the Environmental Research Group (ERG) in 2004. The Center for Spills in the Environment (CSE) is a University center that expands the scope of interaction and cooperation with the private sector, other government agencies and universities. The Centers are administered by, and located at, the UNH campus in Durham, NH.
The CRRC partnership stimulates innovation in spill preparedness, response, assessment, and implementation of optimum spill recovery strategies. The primary purpose of the Center is to bring together the resources of a research-oriented university and the field expertise of OR&R to conduct and oversee basic and applied research, conduct outreach, and encourage strategic partnerships in spill response, assessment and restoration.
The CSE involves individuals and institutions, public and private, at local, regional, national and international levels in identifying needs, evaluating and demonstrating promising technologies, and fostering their use as part of new, integrative approaches to response and restoration.