Overview

1
(No Transcript)
2
Overview

• Introduce the National Estuarine Research Reserve
  System (NERRS) framework and national components
• Describe NERRS monitoring and research efforts
• Estuarine informational needs and priority issues
• Data collection and technologies used
• Describe how science information is applied to
  coastal issues and delivered to coastal decision
  makers and the public for improved stewardship
  of our nations estuaries.
• Outline future steps for the NERRS and partners

3
(No Transcript)
4
Protected for

• Long-term research and monitoring
• Education
• Resource stewardship

5
National Programs

• System-wide Monitoring Program
• Coastal Training Program
• Graduate Research Fellowship Program

6
NERRS Monitoring and Research Priorities
7
System-wide Monitoring Program

• Abiotic Monitoring
• Water quality
• Weather parameters
• Ecological Monitoring
• Habitat Change
• Eutrophication
• Biodiversity
• Land Use Changes

8
SWMP Abiotic Monitoring
9
SWMP Continuous Fixed Station Water Quality and
Meteorological Monitoring Program

• Water Deployed across a gradient
• Salinity
• Land-use
• Habitat
• Vertical
• Utilizes YSI 6600 (EDS) technology
• Campbell CR1000 weather stations
• 15-30 minute sampling intervals

10
NERRS contributions to the Integrated Ocean
Observing System (IOOS) Real-time data is
currently available at 8 pilot reserves (remaining
reserves coming online spring 2006)
Padilla Bay NERR, WA
Hudson NERR, NY
Nesdis ID sdfsdf NWS ID dfsfds
Jacques Cousteau NERR, NJ
South Slough NERR, OR
Delaware NERR, DE
Chesapeake Bay NERR, MD
Chesapeake Bay NERR, VA
Kachemak Bay NERR, AK
Check back often more reserves to be
telemetered soon
11
Telemetry
Domestic Satellite
Wallops Island
GOES Satellite
NERRS Centralized Data Management Office
NERRS data sondes
12
Nutrient Monitoring

• Monthly grab samples at water quality stations
• Monthly tidal cycle protocol using ISCO
  auto-sampler
• Samples analyzed for nitrates nitrites,
  ammonia, ortho-phosphate, and chlorophyll a
  concentrations (Tier 1)
• Tier 2 analyses include Si, TN, TP, TDN, TDP,
  TOC, DOC, TSS

13
Centralized Data Management Office (CDMO)
http//cdmo.baruch.sc.edu/

• Mission
• To oversee the management, documentation, and
  publication of the NERRS monitoring data on the
  Internet.
• Provides
• QA/QC
• Establish data management strategies and
  protocols
• Provide Internet Access to SWMP Data
• Data Visualization tools

14
SWMP Biological Monitoring
What are the patterns of short-term variability
in community composition, species abundance and
distributions, and what are the patterns of
long-term change?

• First focus Submerged aquatic vegetation
  (SAV) and emergent marsh

• Invasive Species
• Nekton/Plankton
• Marsh Birds

15
SWMP Land Use/Cover Habitat Change

• Measure long-term changes in estuarine ecosystems
  by conducting change analyses of upland and
  subtidal communities
• Develop baseline land cover (upland and subtidal)
  maps
• Establish protocols for collecting those data
• Provide tools for using this information in the
  reserve system

16
NERRS SWMP Data Applications Abiotic, Biological
Monitoring, Habitat Mapping and Change

• Water Quality Analysis
• Estuarine Research
• Estuarine Restoration

• Storm Analysis
• State and Federal Regulatory Activities
• Land change/use studies
• K-12 Education, Public Education, and Training
  Programs

17
Water Quality Analysis Tracking Chloride
Concentrations in Hudson River tributaries, NY
18
Restoration Science SWMP Data Provides the Basis
for Successful Restoration Design at Wells NERR,
ME

• Restoration Design
• SWMP data provides hydrological records
• Part of NOAA s National Water Level Observation
  Network

19
Storm Analysis and Fisheries Research SWMP Data
used to Determine the Effects of Storm Events on
Oyster Reefs in the Apalachicola Bay NERR, FL
salinity (July August 1994)
TS Beryl 51 cm rain
TS Alberto 66 cm rain
Dry Bar
Cat Point
10 oyster mortality
80 oyster mortality
salinity (ppt)
date
20
K-12 Education, Public Education, and Training
Programs Designing Seagrass Restoration Projects
Weeks Bay, AL high school students use water
salinity and temperature data from the field to
optimize growth of seagrass plugs
(pre-transplant) in the lab
21
Estuarine Research Data Applications to SAV
Water Quality Criteria and Restoration in
Chesapeake Bay NERR, VA
May 12, 2003
August 25, 2003
1 m MLW Contour
Water Clarity Non-attainment
Water Clarity Attainment
22
As a part of the Elkhorn NERRs (CA)
biomonitoring pilot, they are now linking
emergent vegetation cover with elevation data to
support wetland restoration efforts.
23
Remote Sensing in the NERRS

• IKONOS
• Landsat
• QuickBird
• AISA
• ADS-40

The Cooperative Institute for Coastal and
Estuarine Environmental Technology (CICEET)
24
Delivering science results to coastal decision
makers and the public to improve stewardship

• Elkhorn Slough CTP and CICEET hosted 2 workshops
  on nitrogen monitoring for managers and
  researchers engaged in nutrient management in the
  region.
• Included GIS linked biogeochemical model to
  guide nutrient management decisions.
• Introduced a decision-support tool
• and detailed training on installing and
• using tool to assess management
• alternatives.

25
Future steps

• NERR SWMP stations collecting weather and
  continuous water quality data over the long-term
  (more than 33,600 measurements reported daily,
  ca. 42 million/year)looking to expand parameters
  and spatially.
• Biological monitoring and habitat mapping and
  change efforts will continue to develop, new
  technology will assist with the operational
  aspects, and partners will be critical to help
  meet scientific needs.
• On-going syntheses of data to capture trends at
  the regional and national levels is critical.
• Products must be translated and delivered to a
  variety of users to support improved stewardship
  of estuarine areas.

26
(No Transcript)
27
YSI 6600 EDS
pH
Chla
NTU
Temp/ Cond.
DO
28
Abiotic Monitoring Syntheses

• Characterize water quality conditions at sites
• Determine frequency, duration, and periodicity of
  water quality variables such as hypoxia 
• Compare water quality variables among reserves at
  the national and regional levels
• Determine impacts of tropical storm events on
  reserve estuaries
•  

29
Frequency of occurrence and duration of hypoxia
(lt 28 saturation) at NERR sites, 1995-2000
30
2.0
35
30
1.5
1.0
0.5
temperature (mean and range)
salinity (mean and range)
depth (mean)
0.0
08/15/1999
08/18/1999
08/21/1999
08/24/1999
08/27/1999
08/30/1999
09/02/1999
09/05/1999
09/08/1999
09/11/1999
09/14/1999
09/17/1999
09/20/1999
09/23/1999
09/26/1999
09/29/1999
10/02/1999
10/05/1999
10/08/1999
10/11/1999
10/14/1999