MBNMS RAP Meeting Summary May 13th, 2011

Research Activity Panel:
Meeting Summary
Chris Harrold, RAP Chair

Location:

Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
Pacific Forum
7700 Sandholdt Road
Moss Landing, CA

Date: Friday, May 13th, 2011; 9:00 am to 12:00 pm

* Sanctuary Advisory Council Member: Research (Primary)

† Sanctuary Advisory Council Member: Research (Alternate) - Vacant

CONSENT ITEMS

Introductions/Modifications to the Agenda (Harrold)

• Curt Storlazzi shared video data models of tsunami effects in Monterey Bay, and Santa Cruz Harbor

HOST PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION

MBARI Research Activities in the Sanctuary (Haddock)

• Haddock provided overview of MBARI as an institution
  • 220 employees
  • $40 million/year (80% from Packard Foundation annual grant)
• Haddock provided overview of MBARI assets (ships, ROVs, AUVs); moorings; MARS; instruments; select research projects; gelatinous organism research (including temporal trends, taxonomy, bioluminescence)

RAP RESEARCH PRIORITIES: Ocean Acidification

Monterey Bay Climate Change Adaptation Workshop (Abeles)

• Abeles is working with MBNMS staff (Karen Grimmer) to reach out to local municipalities (Santa Cruz to Carmel) to ask about their plans for climate change
• Workshop December 7th to start discussion on climate change, and how to prepare for adaptation; e.g., salt water intrusion
• Will start to develop vision for central coast; 50 year plan
• Will synthesize info we have on climate change research (Brock Woodson will lead)
• Action: asked RAP to participate in upcoming meeting
• Action: asked RAP what papers/info can help with synthesis
• Action: MBNMS staff will provide list of local ocean acidification research to Abeles (and vice versa)

RAP RESEARCH PRIORITIES: Beach COMBERS

Program Update, Outcomes, Promotion, Funding (Hannah Nevins/Beach COMBERS)

• Nevins provided overview of program (objectives, methods, outcomes, funding need)
• Need 30-40k per year to fund Beach COMBERS
  • Mostly to fund graduate students for data entry
  • MBNMS handles volunteer aspects
  • CDFG covers Nevin’s time
• RAP provided ideas on potential funding/grants:
  • NOAA funding: NOAA education or NOAA fisheries management
  • NSF Biology division grant, time-series monitoring; need 5-years data
  • Science-engineering outreach technology grants (e.g., smartphone app)
  • University of New Hampshire (CICEET)
  • SJSU
• Provided RAP with 2-page Program Summary (PDF)

ECOSYSTEM-BASED MANAGEMENT INITIATIVE (EMBI)

Unique and Rare Features Workshop (John Hunt/MBNMS)

• John provided brief overview of EBMI and upcoming workshop
• EBMI Broad Objectives
  • Maintain/restore marine ecosystem health and function
  • Ensure protection of unique and rare features of the sanctuary
  • Facilitate research to differentiate between natural variation and human impacts
  • Facilitate ecologically and economically sustainable uses, including fisheries
• Workshop May 24th at NMFS Santa Cruz to identify unique and rare features in MBNMS
• Unique and Rare Features (URF) Workshop Goals
  • Gather information on biological, oceanographic, and geological features (and submerged cultural resources) that are unique and/or rare in MBNMS
  • Identify supporting data sources and information gaps
• Unique and Rare Features Workshop Objectives
  • Refine draft list of features
  • Characterize threats to features
  • Identify relevant data sources
  • Get input on process
• Potential workshop products
  • Vetted list of unique/rare features
  • Vetted list of attributes
  • Vetted list of data sources
  • List of data gaps
  • Feedback on process used by MBNMS
  • Preliminary information on threats to features
• After the Workshop
  • Identify best available data
  • Submit URF list for review
  • Assess threats to URF
  • Assess effectiveness of existing management actions
  • Prioritize URF list
  • Gain feedback from experts, agency partners and stakeholders
  • Generate potential strategies
• For more info on EBMI see http://montereybay.noaa.gov/ebmi/welcome.html

RAP MEMBERSHIP

Vacancies Recruitment (DeVogelaere)

• 3 RAP disciplines are vacant
  • Water Quality
  • Shelf and Slope Ecology
  • Estuarine Ecology
• RAP provided suggestions
• Action: member selection committee will consider RAP’s suggestions

SANCTUARY CURRENTS SYMPOSIUM

Symposium Debrief - Ripple Effects: The Far-Reaching Impacts of Local Ocean Research (Burton/MBNMS)

• Burton provided information on the Currents Symposium held April 9th at CSUMB
• Well-attended, >300 participants
• Sponsored by: CSUMB, MBNMS, Monterey Bay Aquarium, NOAA Fisheries, Save the Earth Foundation
• Five presentations: white sharks, MBARI technology, Humboldt squid, Davidson Seamount, California ocean management
• Ricketts Memorial Award and Lecture: Dr. Mike Foster
• Research poster session
  • 54 submissions
  • 6 student awards in three categories: Graduate, Undergraduate, High School
• See program at http://montereybay.noaa.gov/research/currsymp2011/welcome.html

SANCTUARY RESEARCH UPDATE

None

SANCTUARY ADVISORY COUNCIL UPDATE

None

SUGGESTED FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

• Desalination update (per Abeles); things have changed since Brad Damitz talked to the RAP; speaker: Carol Reeb (Hopkins)
• Priority topic from running list below: Climate Change
  • Speakers: Largier and Higgason; Dan Cayan or Dettinger/USGS; Lisa Slone (UCSC); TNC
  • NOAA Coastal Services Center putting together climate adaptation visualization tool (per Hunt)
  • State of the Science of climate change; adaptation plans (per Storlazzi)
  • Rather than MBNMS tackle all topics, perhaps let GFNMS/CBNMS continue as lead on climate change issues, and RAP ask Largier and Higgason to present their findings (per DeVogelaere)
  • Perhaps tackle what GFNMS/CBNMS not working on (e.g., low oxygen; per Kudela)
  • Storlazzi is willing to help organize a general meeting on climate change science

Future Agenda Items (running list):

• Communication Partnership for Science and the Sea (COMPASS)
• Data integration across monitoring programs (e.g., water quality, PISCO, MARINe, IOOS), and availability to the public
• Recent event: Supreme Court allows Navy Sonar (per John Hunt)
• Predicting sea level rise for the state of California (Larry Breaker, JPL, OPC)
• High-res models of CA (Cayan or Dettinger/USGS)
• National Weather Service Forecast Office (Tom Evans, Warning Coordination Meteorologist)
• EBMI/IEA presentations
  • IEAs, including those that have been implemented (e.g., Phil Levin, Frank Schwing, John Stein; per Yoklavich)
• MPAs
  • State MPA monitoring projects (Jason Vasques)
• Ken Johnson work in Elkhorn Slough (per McPhee-Shaw)
• Marine Policy issues (Sacramento; D.C.) that may need science input (per Ramp; Aimee David volunteered; or Adina Abeles)
• Climate Change (dedicated meeting; per McPhee-Shaw)
  • Global view
  • CA coast (Lisa Sloan, UCSC; sea level rise, Breaker)
  • GFNMS/CBNMS Ocean Climate Initiative (e.g., GFNMS staff: Kelley Higgason or Maria Brown)
  • GFNMS/CBNMS Climate Change Impacts Report (e.g., Largier)
  • What differences MBNMS might observe (per Starr)
  • Local/MBNMS (who? Curt?)
  • Perhaps MBCORC hosts a 1 or 2 day science meeting (per Storlazzi)
• Beach COMBERS Program
  • How Beach COMBERS program linked to oil spill response (GFNMS) and how Beach COMBERS data fits into response (per Hunt)
• How is MBNMS and region involved and/or linked to NOAA's Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning effort (per Lindholm)