Vital Signs Program Coastal and Barrier Network

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Vital Signs ProgramCoastal and Barrier Network
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Coastal and Barrier Network8 Parks Covering
141,000 Acres Across 5 StatesAnnual Visitation
18 Million

• Cape Cod National Seashore, MA prototype park
• Assateague Island National Seashore, MD
• Fire Island National Seashore, NY
• Gateway National Recreation Area, NY/NJ
• Sagamore Hill National Historic Site, NY
• Colonial National Historical Park, VA
• George Washington Birthplace NM, VA
• Thomas Stone National Historic Site, MD

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Recommended Approach forDeveloping a Monitoring
Strategy

• 1. Form a Board of Directors and Technical
  Steering Committee
• 2. Summarize existing data and understanding
• 3. Hold Network scoping workshop
• 4. Write workshop report and have it widely
  reviewed
• 5. Decide on priorities and implementation
  approaches
• 6. Draft the monitoring strategy
• 7. Review and approval of monitoring strategy

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Recommended Approach forDeveloping a Monitoring
Strategy

• 1. Form a Board of Directors and Technical
  Steering Committee
• Feb. 2000
• Establishment of a Coastal and Barrier Network
  Technical Steering Committee
• Includes
• April 2001
• Board of Directors meet to sign Network charter

USGS-BRD, EPA, Park Resource Managers and Coastal
CESU Cooperators
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Recommended Approach forDeveloping a Monitoring
Strategy

• 2. Summarize existing data and understanding
• Nov 99-Feb 2000
• Parks submit info on existing monitoring
  programs, management issues, and monitoring
  needs
• Feb 2000
• Steering Committee sets
• up straw dog

Ecosystem Models
Monitoring Issues
Vital signs
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Network Ecosystems Based on Cape Cod Prototype

• 1. Estuaries and near shore environments
• 2. Freshwater wetlands, ponds and streams
• 3. Uplands (forests, grasslands and thickets)
• 4. Beaches, dunes, spits and shoreline systems

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High Priority Management Issues

• 1. Shoreline change
• 2. Water quality
• 3. Species and habitats of concern
• 4. Resource extraction
• 5. Recreation and visitor use

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Recommended Approach forDeveloping a Monitoring
Strategy

• 3. Hold Network scoping workshop
• April 13-14, 2000
• Coastal and Barrier Network scoping workshop,
  held at Gateway NRA
• 50 people attend from
• parks, region, WASO
• state and federal agencies,
• universities
• private sector

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Coastal and Barrier Network Scoping Workshop

• Materials provided to participants
• Workshop agenda and format
• Park/Network management issues, resources and
  settings.
• Patuxent Wildlife Research Center coastal issues
  workshop summary.
• Framework for the development of long-term
  monitoring protocols at Cape Cod National
  Seashore.
• Available GIS layers for each park.
• Draft list of monitoring questions and vital
  signs.

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Scoping Workgroups

• Based on Network management issues
• Shoreline change, water quality, species and
  habitats of concern, resource extraction and
  recreation and visitor use
• Tasks
• Evaluate background materials
• Review example monitoring questions
• Develop monitoring questions
• Identify and prioritize vital signs
• Submit workgroup reports

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Scoping Workshop

• Successful in
• Network parks meeting and learning about similar
  issues.
• Outsiders learning about the IM Program and park
  issues.
• Brainstorming about the issues identified
• Unsuccessful in
• Large workgroups defining Network monitoring
  questions and needs

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Recommended Approach forDeveloping a Monitoring
Strategy

• 4. Write workshop report and have it widely
  reviewed
• Nov 2000
• Scoping workshop report completed and sent out
  for review

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Scoping Workshop Report

• Successful as a
• Written record of workshop events and planning
• Written description of Network and monitoring
  issues
• Unsuccessful
• Sent out for Review- received comments from one
  person

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Recommended Approach forDeveloping a Monitoring
Strategy

• 5. Decide on priorities and implementation
  approaches
• Sept. 2000
• Technical Steering Committee meeting
• Discussed

Scoping Workshop Report
Hiring a Network Coordinator
Small workgroups to review issues and identify
cooperators
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Small Workgroups Meet

• Dec 13, 2000 Vegetation Mapping (Chris Lea, ASIS,
  lead)
• Jan 9, 2001 Shoreline Change (Brendan Cain, CACO,
  lead)
• Jan 25, 2001 Freshwater Quality (nutrients) (John
  Portnoy, CACO, lead)
• Feb 7-8, 2001 Data Management (Charles Roman,
  USGS, lead
• Feb 12, 2001 Estuarine Eutrophication (Hillary
  Neckles, USGS, lead)
• Water Quality (contaminants) (John Tanacredi,
  GATE, Nancy Finley CACO, leads)
• Visitor Use and Recreation (Jeff Marion, lead)
• Species and Habitats of Special Concern (lead not
  determined)
• Aerial Photography (Carl Zimmerman, ASIS, lead)

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Workgroup Tasks

• Review existing CACO protocols
• Review Gateway workgroup reports
• Prioritize monitoring questions
• Review candidate indicators
• Evaluate existing monitoring programs
• Develop scope of work to fill data gaps
• List potential cooperators
• Estimate costs for 2001-2002
• Report to Network

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Where does the Program Stand Now?
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Shoreline Change Monitoring

• Coordinator-Mark Duffy (ASIS)
• Program development in conjunction with USGS,
  NASA, VIMS, Rutgers, NC State
• Work will include
• Network Parks needs assessment
• Data mining
• Existing data development and analysis (USGS)
• Development of a Network strategy

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Species and Habitats of Concern

• URI Research Assistant
• Data Mining
• Species and habitats of concern and their threats
  
• Existing monitoring programs (inside and outside)
• Keystone species
• Similar issues between parks
• Potential cooperators

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Contaminants Assessment Rutgers University

• Review existing data from all sources
• Evaluate sources and threats at each park
• Develop a park specific baseline inventory and
  monitoring plan (spill response vs. long-term
  monitoring)
• Establish need/guidelines for doing a NRDA

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Water Quality USGS/URI

• Identification of wetland types and area
  statistics for each park
• Description and discussion of threats
• Description of existing inventory and monitoring
  programs
• Review of state 305(b) reports and USEPA 303(d)
  lists
• Recommendations on restoration, monitoring,
  management and research

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Vegetation Mapping

• HOW ASIS, CACO, NCR and NER Staff, NCState,
  VA/NY Natural Heritage, ABI, CACO staff, UMASS,
  URI
• Coastal Network, Veg Mapping Program, Fee
  Demo, Regional Science, Park Staff
• COLO, GEWA, THST 2001
• ASIS, GATE, SAHI 2002
• CACO 2001
• FIIS accuracy assessment 2001

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Estuarine Nutrients

• Phase I
• Identify candidate monitoring variables by
  analyzing information from various sources
• Find common threads and synthesize relevant
  components in a regional context.
• Write a report identifying and justifying
  potential monitoring variables and a work plan
  and budget for testing the variables on a
  regional scale.
• Phase II
• Test variables to determine their suitability for
  regional application and the appropriate sampling
  designs.
• Develop an operational monitoring plan.

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Visitor Use Impacts

• Cooperators-VA Tech and NC State
• Designing and testing of sampling protocol for
  monitoring visitor use and resource impacts at
  CACO
• Apply to Network?

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2001 Funding706,500

• Workgroups
• Shoreline Chg. 99.5K
• Water quality 46K
• Contaminants 105.5K
• Species 23K
• Travel 30.5K

• Veg Map 97K
• Coord/Data 180K
• NET Meeting 5K
• Equipment 30K
• Miscellaneous 90K

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CACO Protocol Development
Proposal to draft Protocol

• Estuaries and Salt Marshes
• Estuarine Nekton Feb 1998 Jan 2001
• Nutrient Enrichment July 1998 July 2001
• Salt Marsh Vegetation May 1999 May 2001
• Waterbirds Aug 1999 Sept 2001
• Barrier Island, Spits, Dunes
• Shoreline Change April 1997 May 2001
• Ponds, Freshwater Wetlands, Groundwater
• Amphibians Sept 2000 Feb 2002
• Freshwater Fish July 1998 Aug 2001
• Coastal Uplands
• MAPS (birds) June 1999 Apr 2001
• Landbirds July 2000 July 2003
• Small Mammals July 2000 July 2003
• Heathland Veg. May 1999 Dec 2002