MBNMS RAP Meeting Summary January 11th, 2008

Research Activity Panel: Meeting Summary
Chris Harrold, Monterey Bay Aquarium, RAP Chair

Host: Chris Harrold - Marine Conservation Biology (Monterey Bay Aquarium)

Location: Ocean View Conference Room, Monterey Bay Aquarium

Date: Friday, January 11th, 2008; 8:45 am to 12:00 pm

In Attendance:

* Sanctuary Advisory Council Member: Research (Primary)

† Sanctuary Advisory Council Member: Research (Alternate)

CONSENT ITEMS

Introductions/modifications to the agenda (Chris Harrold)

• Cancellation - Linking SIMoN to Management (Amber Szoboszlai/Sea Grant Fellow)
• Addition - Pat Coulston - Scientific Collecting Permits update

PRESENTATIONS

Captive feeding and growth of a juvenile white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, at the Monterey Bay Aquarium (Manny Ezcurra)

• Feeding (<1kg/d)
• Growth rates (large portion of calories went to growth); similar to tuna
• Criteria for release: avoid secondary infection, no eating other animals on display, size they can handle for safe release
• MBA feels that they can educate the public best if they have a shark on display

Central & Northern California Ocean Observing System (CeNCOOS; Steve Ramp)

• Office at MBARI, Building G (above Philís Fish Market)
  • Steve Ramp-Executive Director
  • Heather Kerkering-Coordinator
  • Tom Wadsworth-Programmer (website and Ocean Obs sector)
• Will have open house soon, will invite RAP
• 1 of 11 regional associations of IOOS
• CeNCOOS
  • Observing systems for ocean health
  • We provide the facts
  • The National Weather service for the ocean
  • Data clearinghouse for the entire region
  • Observe, integrate, model, predict, serve
  • Days to Decades
• Local Activities
  • Proposal submitted for 2008-10 (~3.5 million/yr)
  • Protected Marine Area Focus
    • National Marine Sanctuaries
    • California State MPAs
  • Two Elements for Implementation
    • Pan-Regional Backbone (PRB); entire region
    • Regions of Special Interest (ROSI); denser observations to answer ecosystem based questions (e.g. Point Reyes, Monterey Bay, Morro Bay)
  • Observations, Modeling, DMAC, Products
• Impacts
  • Establish climatologies and trends for ocean variables such as temperature, sea level, currents, ocean color, pH, PCO2, chlorophyll, nutrients, dissolved oxygen
• Which potentially impact
  • Global warming
  • Coastal inundation
  • Weather
  • Harmful Algal Blooms
  • Ecosystem based management
  • Carbon budget
  • Maritime safety
  • Pollution/water quality
  • Homeland security
• www.cencoos.org

CDFG Scientific Collecting Permits Update (Pat Coulston)

• Applicants hesitate to fill-in application completely; "What are you going to collect?" section not getting filled-in
• Applicants are being asked to answer as best they can; please try
• CDFG will not renew permit without report; agency trying to clean-up process, make more efficient

STAFF/SAC REQUESTS TO RAP

Creation of Historical Source Database for the MBNMS and Central California Region (Hugo Selbie/Sea Grant Fellow)

• To build a picture of the natural history or historical ecology of the marine environment within the MBNMS and the surrounding area ranging 1500s - 1950s
• Phase I
  • Database identifying historical data sources
  • Examine efficacy and limitations of data sources
• Phase II
  • Data will be used to reconstruct ecological history of region
• Data Sources (1500s - 1950s)
  • Native American Midden Sites
  • Explorer Journals
  • Maps and Charts
  • Naturalist Accounts
  • Whaling Fisheries Landings
  • Newspapers
  • Oceanographic Records
  • Finfish Fisheries Landings
  • Maritime Industry Interviews
• Uses of database
  • Facilitate future historical analyses
  • Creation of timeline of events
  • Glean critical historical info
  • Characterization of environmental time periods
• Any sources of data the RAP may know about let Hugo know
• Hugo.Selbie@noaa.gov; 647-4228
• RAP suggested numerous sources to explore

DISCUSSION ITEMS

December SAC Meeting (Chris Harrold)

• 2-day SAC meeting in December 2007
  • Day 1: Should MBNMS move forward with evaluating use of new MPAs in federal waters? Presentations by:
    • Research - Chris Harrold
    • Fisheries - Steve Scheiblauer & Richard Parrish
    • Conservation - Kaitilin Gaffney
  • Day 1 (evening) - public comment (~45; 32 favored, 7 against, 4 neutral)
  • Day 2 - SAC discussion
    • A majority of SAC in favor of moving forward with MPAs.
    • MBNMS response will be presented at February SAC meeting
    • Chris will provide comments to Paul Michel (Chris will make available to RAP); encourage other RAP members to comment
• Harrold emailed two draft manuscripts to RAP from Steve Scheiblauer (SAC Member representing Harbors)
  • Ray Hilborn and Carl Walters, "Ecosystem consequences of MPAs for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuaryî"
  • Richard Parrish, "MPA Needs Assessment Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary"
• Additional Manuscripts will be packaged by Alliance of Communities for Sustainable Fisheries (post-meeting: emailed to RAP by Pomeroy)
  • Doyle Hannon, "MPAs and Research Needs within the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary"
  • Barbara Walker, "Alternative Analysis of the Need for Additional MPAs within the MBNMS"
  • Bud Walsh, "Consideration of Marine Protected Areas by the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary: Can Fishing Activity be Regulated by the Sanctuary And, If So, How?"
• Harrold summarized his SAC presentation
  • How can science inform this decision
    • What are the ecosystem protection goals of the NMSA, as related to MBNMS, in measurable terms
    • Evidence in literature
• Deadline for comment; written SAC comments by January 14th, SAC meeting on Feb 15th

Sanctuary Currents Symposium planning update (Chris Harrold)

• Oceans of Change: Our Climate, Our Sanctuary, Our Future
  • Lisa Sloan (UCSC) - Overview of global climate change
  • Doug Smith (CSUMB) - Sea level change and implications
  • Nick Welschmeyer (MLML) - CO2 in the ocean
  • Bill Sydeman (Farallon Institute for Advanced Ecosystem Research) - Climate change and ecosystem change in central CA
  • Kenneth Coale (MLML) - Open ocean iron fertilization: carbon sequestration
  • Will Travis (San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission) - Developing a Regional Climate Change Strategy
  • Laura Strohm (Sustainability Academy) - Mitigation

• Curt Storlazzi mentioned new publication
  • Kleypas, J.A., R.A. Feely, V.J. Fabry, C. Langdon, C.L. Sabine, and L.L. Robbins. 2006. Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Coral Reefs and Other Marine Calcifiers: A Guide for Future Research, report of a workshop held 18-20 April 2005, St. Petersburg, FL, sponsored by NSF, NOAA, and the U.S. Geological Survey, 88 pp.
  • Curt will send to RAP via listserv

Voting Results: Ed Ricketts Memorial Award/Lecture & Sanctuary Currents Reflection Science Award (Erica Burton/MBNMS)

• Due to low number of votes received, voting deadline extended to Monday January 14th
• Post-meeting results (January 15, 2008)
  • Ricketts Award - Jim Barry (MBARI)
  • Reflection Science Award - Jeff Paduan (NPS)

SUGGESTED FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

Future Agenda Items (running list):

• Water Quality
  • Findings on tracking pathogens in sea otters and connection to FW flows (CDFG, UC Davis?)
  • Critical coastal areas presentation (ASBS, areas water quality impaired, areas in good state; Ross Clark)
• Food Safety Measures and Affected Wildlife (requested by Mary Yoklavich)
• SIMoN: future monitoring (JMPR or beyond)
• SIMoN Special Status Species Project (Jennifer Brown)
• Coastal armoring and coastal erosion (Ed Thornton)
• Linking SIMoN to management (Amber Szoboszlai; March 2008)
• Communication Partnership for Science and the Sea (COMPASS)
• Wave Model Development and Implementation (Paul Wittmann/Fleet Numerical)
• CINMS MPA evaluation (Mark Carr/NCEAS)
• Coastal Long-range Development Plan (CLDP) for Long Marine Lab (Gary Griggs)
• Center for Ocean Solutions (Meg Caldwell)
• MPA Social Science (Carrie Pomeroy)
• Western Groundfish Conference debrief (Mary Yoklavich)
• MPA science synthesis - MLPA (Mark Carr)
• MPA monitoring projects (Jason Vasquez)
• MLML expansion, Sustainable Seafood Process Plant (Kenneth Coale)