| |
September
1993 (Updated Mar. 12, 1995 for Posting on the Internet)
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration
U.S. Department of Commerce
Table of
Contents
- I.
Introduction
II.
Potential Environmental Impacts
- III.
Long-term Framework
-
- A. Existing
Knowledge
-
- B. Monitoring
-
- C. Experimental
Studies
-
- D. Modeling
-
- E. Information
Management
-
- IV.
Short-term Priorities
-
- A. Existing
Knowledge
-
- B. Monitoring
-
- C. Experimental
Studies
-
- D. Modeling
- E. Information
Management
-
V.
Summary
Appendix
A: Research Institutions in the MBNMS Area
Appendix
B: MBNMS Research Activity Panel
Appendix
C: Disciplinary Priorities
Appendix
D: Water Quality Memorandum of Agreement
Appendix
E: Monterey Bay Modeling Group
The purpose
of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) is to enhance
resource protection and preserve the natural beauty and bounty of the
marine ecosystems within its boundaries. This can be accomplished by
improving our understanding of the Sanctuary environment, resources
and qualities, resolving specific management problems, and coordinating
and facilitating information flow between the various research institutions,
agencies and organizations in the area. Research results will be used
for making management decisions about resource protection and to develop
and improve education programs for visitors and others interested in
the Sanctuary.
The opportunities
for marine research within the Sanctuary are abundant, as seen by past
research studies that have provided important baseline information about
the area. The diversity of habitat types and communities provides a
wealth of opportunities for conducting a variety of research programs.
For example, the Monterey Canyon provides a unique opportunity to engage
in deep- water marine research without extensive voyages offshore. Studies
on the natural processes at the land-sea interface are also feasible
due to the accessibility of extensive coastline. In addition, having
the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in the Sanctuary
and adjacent to the Monterey Canyon makes it ideal for integrating the
research program within the Slough with the deep sea and coastal research
efforts underway to increase our understanding of the role of estuaries
in coastal productivity. Finally, the marine research institutions within
the area ( Appendix A) provide an exceptional resource to draw upon
in furthering our understanding, and thus the management of, the Sanctuary's
marine resources.
Effective
management of the MBNMS requires the inauguration of a research
program that coordinates the existing research programs and addresses
management issues. The Sanctuay
Research Activity Panel provides a forum for discussion of research
programs, addresses management issues, and disseminates research information
as widely as possible. NOAA's
Sanctuaries and Reserves Division also can provide limited, yet
long-term logistical and financial support for research studies consistent
with the goals of the Sanctuary program. Strategies for the research
program to promote more informed management aim to:
- Compile
existing data to describe the resources and provide baseline information;
- Encourage
continual information exchange among the organizations and agencies
undertaking research and making decisions that affect the Sanctuary;
- Establish
a framework and procedures for administering a research
program to ensure that projects are responsive to management concerns
and that research results contribute to improved management of the
Sanctuary;
- Encourage
multidisciplinary studies that integrate research efforts in the coastal,
estuarine, nearshore, open ocean, and deep sea ecosystems;
- Coordinate
data collection on the physical, chemical, geological and biological
resources and processes of the Sanctuary, to target specific information
needs and avoid duplication;
- Initiate
a monitoring program to assess environmental changes due to natural
and human processes;
- Identify
the range of effects on the environment that would result from proposed
or predicted changes in human activity or natural phenomena;
- Incorporate
research results into an Interpretive
Education Program in a format useful for the general public; and
- Evaluate
the effectiveness and efficiency of the research program and its integration
with resource protection and education objectives.
Overall,
the Sanctuary research program is intended to focus on broadening our
scientific understanding of the Sanctuary and developing research programs
that enhance understanding and provide management with the scientific
information necessary to make informed decisions. The research program
consists of five major project categories: (1) existing knowledge, (2)
monitoring, (3) experimental studies, (4) modeling, and (5) information
management. Each of these categories is described in more detail in
Section III: Long-term Framework.
The Monterey
Bay National Marine Sanctuary Research Activity Panel has prioritized
research topics for the Sanctuary. The panel appointed a number of its
members as chairs of disciplinary subgroups. These chairs collected
suggestions from experts in their fields to begin the prioritization
process, the results of which are summarized in Appendix C. The remainder
of this document explains the long-term research framework and short-term
priorities of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The Sanctuary
research programs will emphasize a multidisciplinary, multi-institutional,
integrative approach that engenders regional cooperation on basic and
applied scientific issues. The large number of research institutions
in the area provide an ideal framework for cooperative work among State,
Federal, private agencies, and researchers. The educational institutions
in the area will be useful in disseminating research results and training
new researchers. The geographic location of the Sanctuary provides an
excellent opportunity to pursue research that investigates the effects
of human activities on the resources and the marine environment. The
data collected from these studies will document the Sanctuary's value
as a productive ecosystem and focus for public recreation, and provide
the basis for estimating the effect of present and future land- and
water-use practices on the Sanctuary's resources.
| II.
Potential Environmental Impacts |
|
The primary
objective of the National Marine Sanctuary Program is resource
protection. The resources and qualities of the Sanctuary area are
exposed to many potential impacts from natural and anthropogenic sources.
Research and monitoring needs are evaluated relative to the perceived
magnitude of these impacts. Any of these priorities will change as the
perceived impacts and associated management issues change. The natural
and anthropogenic impacts to the Sanctuary resources that will direct
research and monitoring priorities (in no particular order) include
:
-
- Non-point
Source Pollution
-
Non-point
source pollution includes all contaminants entering the Sanctuary
that have no defined or identifiable source. Examples include
soil erosion; agricultural, silvacultural, and livestock runoff
(e.g., pesticides, soil, fecal matter); runoff from bridges and
streets (e.g., petroleum products); atmospheric deposition of
volatilized pollutants (e.g., acid rain); and coastal development,
construction, and maintenance runoff (e.g., petroleum products,
fertilizers, solvents, cleaners, paint residue).
-
- Point
Source Pollution
-
Point
source pollution includes all contaminants entering the Sanctuary
from defined, identifiable sources. Examples include sewage outfalls
(e.g., fecal matter, heavy metals); storm sewer outfalls (e.g.,
pollutants from streets and industrial areas); National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitted municipal/industrial
outfalls (e.g., sewage treatment plants, desalination plant);
dredge spoil disposal; and ocean dumping.
-
- Commercial
Activities
-
Some
commercial activities conducted in the Sanctuary may affect Sanctuary
resources. Examples include dredging, aquaculture, kelp harvesting,
commercial fisheries and ecotourism.
-
- Recreational
Activities
-
Recreational
activities conducted in the Sanctuary for personal enjoyment and
relaxation may affect Sanctuary resources. Examples include tidepooling,
fishing and boating (e.g., powerboats, personal motorized water
craft, kayaks, anchoring).
-
- Unpredictable
Anthropogenic Events
-
This
category includes all infrequent and unpredictable events that
affect the Sanctuary and its resources. Examples include hazardous
material or petroleum spills, ship groundings, and the introduction
of new species.
-
- Natural
Perturbations
-
Although
effects of natural perturbations may not be manageable, they still
need to be studied. Understanding natural threats, and the changes
they may cause, is useful for distinguishing and interpreting
between natural and anthropogenic effects. Natural perturbations
include severe weather conditions (e.g., severe storms, flooding),
climatic change (e.g., sea level rise, El Nino-southern oscillation
(ENSO), geophysical events (earthquakes, tsunamis, undersea landslides),
and natural biological phenomena (harmful algal blooms, other
biotoxins).
| III.
Long-term Framework. |
|
The long-term
objectives of the Sanctuary research program are not expected to change
in the near future. This is a sequential framework with each of five
categories of research relying on information from the previous categories.
.
A. Existing
Knowledge.
Gathering
existing information on environmental conditions, communities, habitats,
cultural resources and management practices in the Sanctuary provides
a basis comparison so that monitoring efforts can be designed to detect
changes. From the studies we can profile the features and processes
of the natural environment; determine abundance, distribution, and interaction
of the living resources; determine distribution and status of historical
resources; and describe the pattern of human activity in the Sanctuary
from prehistoric times to the present. Examples of this type of study
include: (1) descriptions of the environmental conditions, including
existing geologic and physical oceanographic (e.g., ocean currents)
information, including seasonal variations; (2) descriptions of the
ecological communities, including lists of species and habitats; (3)
descriptions of human interactions and their impacts on the ecosystem;
(4) descriptions of the historical and cultural context and resources;
and (5) collection and production of base maps of the MBNMS area. These
studies gather the existing knowledge on a factor or set of factors
at a given point in time. It is expected that new studies will be initiated
as gaps in information are identified and new factors become important
to study. .
B. Monitoring.
Effective
Sanctuary management requires an understanding of long- term changes
in the status of the resources and their environment. Long-term monitoring
is a way to detect and document these changes in environmental quality,
ecology, and human activity and determine if changes in management strategies
are needed. The primary purpose of the monitoring program will be to
detect change, determine its causes, whether natural or anthropogenic,
and develop and evaluate management strategies. Overall, the monitoring
program will assist in our understanding of the general health of the
Sanctuary. This program should include pollution monitoring studies
and studies monitoring the population dynamics of species in all habitats
within the Sanctuary's boundaries. Indicator species and critical habitats
should be identified and monitored to detect possible changes. Changes
in the relative distribution of these species could indicate natural
or anthropogenic threats to Sanctuary resources. Monitoring the natural
functions of the land and sea interface, as well as human interrutions
of those functions, will contribute to increasing understanding of the
relationships between ocean and terrestrial ecosystems. Results of the
monitoring program will be applicable to basic scientific research as
well as academic, education and applied management goals. NOAA's Sanctuaries
and Reserves Division may provide funding to support monitoring efforts,
including augmenting funding of existing monitoring programs. .
Examples
of environmental factors to be monitored include: (1) status and trends
of contaminants in Monterey Bay such as those studies presently underway
with the NOAA and State Water Resources Control Board Mussel Watch Programs;
(2) environmental factors, such as wind, sea level, and temperature,
collected by coastal stations, offshore data buoys, and satellites;
(3) changes in the abundance over various life stages of invertebrates
and fish; (4) fluctuations in the abundance of whale, pinniped and seabird
species in the Sanctuary; (5) biological input of organics and fecal
coliforms from pinnipeds; and (6) fate of enteric pathogenic bacteria
in Monterey Bay and West Coast waters in general. .
Certain
activities and their effects, both individually and cumulatively, should
be monitored. These include: (l) commercial vessel traffic; (2) recreational
activities; (3) sport fishing, commercial fishing and nature observation
activity; (4) natural and anthropogenic (e.g., sand mining) erosion
and sedimentation; (5) fishery/mammal interactions, such as the coincidental
catch of sea otters and birds in gill nets, and the competition between
sport divers and otters for abalone; (6) pesticide usage; (7) sewage
discharge; (8) dredge spoil disposal; and (9) reoccurring road repair
debris side-casting along the coast. Another important component of
the monitoring program is the assessment of the effectiveness of management
strategies. Once new management strategies have been put in place, usually
in response to a detected change in the environment or use of the Sanctuary,
monitoring must continue to determine whether the management strategy
is having the desired effect. In fact, in most cases, each new management
strategy will require the design and implementation of specific monitoring
activities to augment the long-term monitoring program envisioned by
this plan. .
C. Experimental
Studies.
Experimental
studies will be encouraged to test hypotheses and understand natural
processes. Additional experimental research should be conducted to fill
in the data gaps identified during the compilation of existing knowledge.
Because the Sanctuary is an ideal system for understanding natural processes,
this research should result in a better understanding of the oceanography,
ecology, and environmental quality of the Sanctuary. This research will
also address specific management concerns, such as appropriate uses
of the Sanctuary and known impacts to natural resources. Examples of
experimental studies include: (1) manipulation of farming techniques
to see how they influence water quality and abundance of organisms in
the Sanctuary; (2) creation of harvest refugia to evaluate the effects
on fishery resources; (3) effects of sea otters as major predators on
kelp bed communities; (4) studying recovery rates of algae, invertebrates,
marine mammals and sea birds associated with different cleanup methods
after oil spills; (5) use of different types of armoring to mitigate
coastal erosion; (6) possible effects if desalination plants; (7) wetland
restoration options and performance standards to ensure success from
an ecosystem perspective; and (8) dependence of anadromous and migratory
species, throughout their life cycles, on Sanctuary resources. Results
of these types of studies should be communicated to the Sanctuary Manger
to be used to evaluate management strategies. .
D. Modeling.
Three
types of modeling activities; numerical simulations, ecosystem models,
and statistical models; will be used to interpret data, guide field
programs, test hypotheses, and to predict potential outcomes from proposed
uses and thereby influence management decisions. Modeling efforts will
be based on the information gathered from the baseline, monitoring and
experimental studies. As more information is gathered in these endeavors
the models will be continuously modified and refined. Modeling efforts
can be used to analyze the causes and consequences of ecosystem changes
and predict the effects of new and more intense human activity in the
area. Unlike the monitoring program, some of these studies may be predictive,
short- term and directly targeted to an immediate management issue.
Examples of modeling studies include: (1) determining and predicting
the effects on marine mammals from boating activity; (2) predicting
the flow of an inadvertent discharge (such as a fuel spill) into the
Sanctuary; (3) modeling the transport of sediment in the Sanctuary;
and (4) estimating the impact of the loss of kelp habitats on higher
trophic levels. These types of models are useful for determining effective
management strategies. Once strategies are in place, monitoring information
will determine their effectiveness and be used to refine the model.
.
E. Information
Management.
Information
management is important to provide area researchers, educators and appropriate
decision makers with the most up-to-date research results. Exchange
of information will foster cooperative efforts among researchers, and
will promote more effective Sanctuary management. Information exchange
with other National Marine Sanctuaries will be encouraged so that various
approaches to similar management problems can be shared. The Sanctuary
research program may serve as a focal point to disseminate existing
information and new research results. Examples of information management
include: (1) developing a database system to catalog and distribute
information; (2) creating an electronic information network to facilitate
more timely and efficient information exchange; (3) establishing a geographical
information system (GIS) to incorporate scientific and historical/cultural
information gathered within the Sanctuary; and (4) incorporating the
results of research projects and subsequent management decisions into
the education and public outreach programs developed for the Sanctuary.
| IV.
Short-term Priorities. |
|
These
priorities are based on the most important issues addressed by the disciplinary
subcommittees and are designed to address the most vital Sanctuary management
issues. Priorities will be reexamined on a biennial basis. Environmental
perturbations that currently impact the Sanctuary resources (see section
II), will help determine the most pressing management issues to be addressed.
In addition to the current priorities there may be unexpected events,
both natural and anthropogenic, that induce immediate research priorities.
These may be to mitigate immediate threats to Sanctuary resources or
to take advantage of and study unusual environmental conditions. Current
research priorities are listed below. Compilation of existing information
and monitoring studies were given higher priority as these efforts are
the basis for the other research categories. .
A. Existing
Knowledge.
- Site
Characterization Document.
The
top priority under this category is to complete the site characterization
document. The project should be funded in Fiscal Year 1994 and is
expected be completed and published within two years. The project
will entail a comprehensive search of all published and unpublished
literature associated with the Sanctuary, including, but not be
limited to: government reports, thesis, dissertations and other
student reports, final reports of grants and other competitive awards,
scientific literature, and books. The collected information will
be synthesized into a comprehensive site characterization document
describing the Sanctuary. This document will include: .
- Descriptions
of the environmental conditions that shape the Sanctuary. This
includes existing geologic and physical oceanographic (e.g., ocean
currents) information.
- Descriptions
of the ecological communities. This should include lists of all
species and habitats, including habitat descriptions and uses,
as well as depictions of the geographical location of features
and the known range of identified species.
- Descriptions
of ecosystem functions. This should include a conceptual model
of the ecosystems, specifically a graphic representation of interactions
and energy flow between species groups and their habitats.
- Descriptions
of human interactions and their known impacts on the ecosystem.
- Descriptions
of the historical and cultural context and resources.
- Identification
and descriptions of existing research and monitoring programs.
- Descriptions
of management strategies for the Sanctuary. This will include
activities such as an analysis of research, education, monitoring,
water quality management, contingency planning, damage assessment
and restoration needs. This section will focus on identifying
the data gaps to determine the baseline information necessary
to fully characterize the existing state of the Sanctuary.
- Organism
Distribution Studies.
Existing
information describing species-habitat relationships should becollected
to provide a framework for understanding the distribution of organisms
in the Sanctuary. A comprehensive knowledge of the biodiversity,
distribution, and movement of organisms and their dependence on
environmental factors is needed for resource interpretation and
protection. Species distribution should be correlated with physical,
chemical, and seasonal factors, and biological interactions should
be correlated with habitats and physiographic features. These biological-physical-chemical
relationships should be described for resident and migratory species.
Data of this type have been collected by the numerous research institutions
surrounding the Sanctuary, but there are still many gaps in our
knowledge of Sanctuary ecology, particularly land-sea interactions.
- Historical
Context Study
-
A
historical context study, including a general literature search
building on existing work, should be conducted to identify probable
historical sites (including cultural, archeological and paleontological
sites) within the Sanctuary. This research may be followed by a
field survey and archeological assessment to locate and evaluate
the extent to which historical resources are based in the Sanctuary.
These studies of historical resources will provide the fundamental
information necessary for developing a strategy for historical resource
management, education, and interpretation for the Sanctuary.
B. Monitoring
- Circulation
and Transport Studies
Because
the Monterey Bay area is subject to a variety of natural and anthropogenic
perturbations, the Sanctuary manager needs sound information on
water circulation and material transport. This information can be
used to improve our understanding of the dispersion patterns of
possible oil spills and current land-source and ocean-source discharges
into the Sanctuary and for contingency planning efforts. Circulation
is important because it controls the fate of many substances in
the Sanctuary. It affects larval recruitment, nutrient transport,
and the fate of any pollutants, sediment or hazardous materials
that enter the Sanctuary. Surface current measurements, from CODAR
(radar based) and drifters, should be validated and used to fill
gaps in existing circulation models of the Sanctuary area. Circulation
and other water quality factors should be examined on varying spatial
and temporal scales (tidal, seasonal and climatic) to determine
the natural variation.
Basic
physical oceanographic studies should focus on the interchange of
water masses between Monterey Bay and the open ocean, local circulation
within the Bay and Elkhorn Slough, and circulation at depth. To
understand regional circulation, the Sanctuary program will encourage
and support ongoing measurements, augment these programs with additional
sites and measurements, and assist with the development and dissemination
of information from existing monitoring stations such as NOAA tide
gauges, current meters, thermistor chains and satellites.
Closely
linked to circulation is the study of the transport of discharges
and materials from sources to sinks throughout the Sanctuary. Sources,
sinks and transport rates of sediments should be determined. The
sediment entering Sanctuary waters comes from the coastline, rivers,
and streams flowing into the ocean, as well as, laterally through
Sanctuary boundaries and submarine canyons. This transport of sediment
contributes to coastal buildup, beach replenishment, and erosion.
The fate of sediments, which provide recreational areas, buffer
the shoreline, and carry pollutants, is vital information needed
for the management of the Sanctuary. It is hoped that ultimately
this research will establish a firm scientific basis from which
to apply management and possible regulatory measures that will reduce
the impacts of activities that modify sediment flow in the marine
environment.
It
is important to understand how transport and retention mechanisms,
which are affected by oceanographic and atmospheric processes and
influenced by seafloor topography, influence the distribution of
nutrients, primary producers, and young pelagic stages of marine
organisms. Transport mechanisms affect the nearshore and coastal
ecology of the Sanctuary, habitat use, and recruitment processes.
An interdisciplinary approach to studying transport processes in
the Sanctuary includes the efforts of physical, chemical, and biological
oceanographers, geologists, and fishery scientists. Results from
transport studies will be useful in identifying significant species
and areas of high productivity and diversity, are critical in ongoing
recruitment modeling efforts, and are necessary in understanding
predator-prey foraging dynamics.
- Water
Quality Monitoring
The
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) regarding water quality and discharges
(Appendix D) outlines a Sanctuary water quality protection program
that, among other issues, calls for the establishment of a comprehensive
water quality monitoring program. This program should: (1) review
the full array of existing water quality monitoring efforts in the
area, looking for opportunities to synthesize data, avoid unnecessary
monitoring efforts in the area, and better integrate monitoring
efforts in the region; (2) determine the sources of pollution causing
or contributing to existing or anticipated pollution problems in
the Sanctuary; (3) determine the fate and effect of these pollutants;
(4) evaluate the effectiveness of efforts to reduce or eliminate
those sources of pollution; and (5) evaluate progress regarding
maintenance of water quality standards and protection and restoration
of degraded areas and living marine resources of the Sanctuary.
- Significant
Species
Selected
species should be identified as potential indicators of environmental
change and used in long-term monitoring programs. It is important
to understand the population dynamics and habitat requirements of
species that are significant members of the Sanctuary's ecosystems.
As an example, this would include common and abundant prey of top-level
predators (e.g., Euphausia pacifica , Loligo opalescens,
and juvenile rockfishes, Sebastes spp., and Engraulis
mordax). Other potential candidates for a monitoring program
include organisms that are particularly responsive to environmental
perturbations or prey abundance. For example, anomalous warm water
can be associated with rare occurrences of pelagic red crabs, leatherback
sea turtles can indicate abundance of jellyfish (their preferred
prey), and blue whales can indicate concentrations of euphausids.
In addition, some benthic organisms, such as the polychaete, Capitella
capitata, and the white croaker, Genyonemus lineatus,
are particularly abundant in areas of disturbance, such as outfalls.
- Critical
Habitats
Selected
habitats should be identified as potentially important sites for
the Sanctuary's living resources and used in long-term monitoring
programs. This includes a diverse array, such as: (1) significant
upwelling areas, which provide essential nutrients for primary production;
(2) shelter or home sites, such as rock or kelp substrata; (3) reproductive
sites, such as subtidal shale specifically used by Loligo opalescens
for egg mass deposition; (4) nursery grounds, such as shallow,
nearshore areas used by young-of-the-year flatfishes; (5) areas
of harvest refugia from fishing activities, such as deep rocky outcrops
in submarine canyons; (6) protected shorelines used by harbor seals,
Phoca vitulina, and Stellar sea lions, Eumetopias jubatus,
for pupping; and (7) undisturbed islands used by nesting seabirds
and breeding principles.
- Biodiversity
The
development of a national and international biodiversity program
has become a priority for the Administration. President Clinton
has made the U.S. a signatory to the Biodiversity Convention. As
a result, the U.S. is actively engaged in developing a U.S. component
of an international biodiversity program. The President has also
announced the creation of a National Biological Survey (NBS) that
will identify and aid in the protection of endangered species, and
addresses biodiversity. NOAA's Marine and Estuarine Biodiversity
Initiative serves as the marine complement to the NBS.
The
planet is experiencing an unprecedented loss and impoverishment
of its biological wealth as measured by species extinctions and
degradation of its ecological systems. By implementing the strategies
in the Biodiversity Initiative, NOAA, by the year 2005, will be
recognized as the national and international leader in marine and
estuarine biodiversity research, conservation and management. Given
the overwhelming evidence that anthropogenic activities are contributing
to a loss of species diversity and the resulting negative economic
and ecological consequences of this, it is imperative for NOAA to
take the lead and implement a comprehensive and coordinated program
to enable a sustainable economic future for our Nation and a healthy
environment for future generations. This Biodiversity initiative
advances The Department of Commerce's ability to achieve sound environmental
assessment, prediction and stewardship and maintain a diverse living
marine resource base for future generations' economic opportunities.
The Biodiversity Initiative brings together many of the research
and stewardship goals embodied in other NOAA program initiatives,
specifically recovering protected resources, rebuilding fisheries,
assessing global change, and promoting healthy coastal ecosystems.
The
Biodiversity Initiative calls for: 1) a five year demonstration
project; 2) a comprehensive survey, research and monitoring plan;
3) a conservation and management strategy; 4) a sound infrastructure
to support research and conservation; and 5) a data and information
network.
The major
benefits of the Biodiversity Initiative include:
- Advancing
NOAA's ability to manage and conserve marine species and ecosystems
before they become endangered and thus avoiding the crisis management
mentality that often clouds the current listing process;
- Moving
from species by species to ecosystem management, allowing for more
comprehensive resources management;
- Ensuring
for future generations the opportunity to enjoy, explore, and use
the ocean's vast potential;
- Regulating
the factors that may threaten biodiversity and ecosystem functions;
- Helping
NOAA carry out its legislative mandates for species and ecosystem
protection and recovery;
- Enabling
NOAA to meet international obligations resulting from the Biodiversity
Convention and Agenda 21 (from the convention); and
- Maintaining
the potential for significant advancement in basic and applied sciences,
including food and nutrition, biotechnology, medicines, raw materials,
and understanding global climate.
When possible,
monitoring in the MBNMS should coordinate with NOAA's Marine and Estuarine
Biodiversity Initiative.
C. Experimental
Studies
Once the
site characterization is complete some of the hypotheses regarding the
environment can be tested using experimental studies. Studies can be
designed to evaluate changes in the resources and environmental qualities
of the Sanctuary area. Changes may be caused by biological impacts,
such as inter- or intra-specific competition or predation, or from abiotic
factors such as sea temperature rise from ENSO events, or from human
activities such as fishing activities or degradation of water quality
by pollutants.
D. Modeling
Predictive
studies include the development of adequate circulation models that
would be used for pollutant tracking, emergency response procedures,
stock management, etc. Work should progress toward the development of
a 4D, data assimilation, quasi-operational model. Development of such
realistic computer models, when updated with direct environmental measurements,
could be of assistance with the management issues mentioned above. The
Monterey Bay Modeling Group (Appendix E) has already developed ecological
models, which should be built upon. Such models would be based on information
collected under the first three components of the research program.
Models will be continually improved as more information is gathered.
E. Information
Management
A high
priority for information management is the hiring of a research coordinator.
That person should develop a computer bulletin board dedicated to receiving
and disseminating information about research in the Sanctuary. This
would foster cooperative work among institutions and disciplines, a
primary goal of the Sanctuary research program.
The ultimate
purpose of the MBNMS research program is to further the goal of resource
protection. This will be accomplished by compiling existing information
and developing a focused research and monitoring program to address
management concerns. The challenge lies in identifying the primary threats
and perturbations to the Sanctuary resources and monitoring the appropriate
indicators of those perturbations. When changes are detected, research
projects will be initiated to determine the causes of changes, and models
will be developed to predict future changes. Management strategies will
be based on the results of monitoring, experiments, and models. From
continued monitoring we can determine the effectiveness of any management
strategies. Throughout this process, information will be provided to
scientists and policy makers to improve our understanding of the environment
and foster cooperative research. This process will provide Sanctuary
management with the information needed to make sound, scientific decisions
to ensure the continued health of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.
| Appendix
A: Research Institutions in the MBNMS Area |
|
California
Department of Fish and Game (CDF&G;)
-
- 20
Lower Ragsdale Dr., #100
Monterey, CA 93940
408-649-2870
-
- or
-
- 2201
Garden Road
Monterey, CA 93940
408-649-2881
-
Marine
Pollution Studies Lab
Granite Canyon Marine Lab
20 Lower Ragsdale Dr., #100
Monterey, CA 93940
408-649-0947
-
Moss
Landing Marine Labs
P.O. Box 450
Moss Landing, CA 95039
408-755-8670
-
-
California
State University Consortium
- Moss
Landing Marine Laboratories
P.O. Box 450
Moss Landing, CA 95039
408-755-8650
-
Cooperative
Institute for Research in the Integrated Ocean Sciences
- (CIRIOS)
2560 Garden Road, Suite 101
Monterey, CA 93940
408-647-4215
-
Elkhorn
Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve
- 1700
Elkhorn Road
Watsonville, CA 95076
408-728-2822
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