Partnerships: Great Lakes Restorations Initiative (GLRI) Blog Series – Part 2, Rebecca Held

NOAA Ocean Science Blog sat down with Rebecca Held to learn more about NOAA’s GLERL and the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). 

Rebecca Held. Image credit: GLERL

Guest Blogger Biography: Rebecca Held is NOAA’s Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Program Coordinator, located at the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) in Ann Arbor, MI.  She helps administer and coordinate NOAA’s 19 GLRI projects, and serve as NOAA’s point of contact for EPA and other agencies involved with the GLRI.

How does your work relate to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI)?
The GLRI is the largest investment in the Great Lakes region in two decades, with multiple federal agencies working in coordination with states, tribes, municipalities, public interest organizations, businesses, academia and other interested stakeholders to focus projects in five primary areas:

• Cleaning up toxics and Areas of Concern
• Combating invasive species
• Protecting watersheds from polluted runoff
• Restoring wetlands and other habitats
• Education, tracking progress and working with partners

What are some of the activities GLERL oversees for NOAA’s GLRI work?
NOAA’s diverse GLRI portfolio includes projects in NMFS, NOS, and OAR.  GLERL is the only OAR lab located in the Great Lakes region, and due to its central location within the Great Lakes, is a great place from which NOAA can execute much of its GLRI work.  Additionally, the Great Lakes Habitat Restoration Program is co-located at GLERL and plans, implements and funds GLRI habitat restoration projects throughout the Great Lakes Region.

NOAA also has several GLRI projects taking place at other locations across the country, enabling us to take advantage of the agency’s wide-ranging expertise on science and service to support Great Lakes Restoration.

Great Lakes Restoration. Image credit: GLERL

Can you briefly list the projects taking place across NOAA under GLRI?
NOAA has projects in each of the five GLRI Focus Areas:

Toxics 

• Expansion of NOAA’s Mussel Watch Program (NOS/NCCOS)
• Lake Sturgeon Health Assessment (NOS/ORR)
• Modeling Atmospheric Mercury Deposition to the Great Lakes (OAR/ARL)
• Great Lakes Watershed Environmental Contamination Database Expansion (NOS/ORR)
• Debris Removal FS and Design and Mussel Bioaccumulation Study at the Manistique Area of Concern (NMFS/Habitat/RC)

Invasive Species

• Great Lakes Aquatic Nonindigenous Species Information System (GLANSIS) Enhancements (OAR/GLERL)
• Regional Ecosystem Prediction for Aquatic Invasive Species in the Great Lakes (NOS/NCCOS/CSCOR)
• Sea Grant Outreach and Education (OAR)
• Assessing Risk of Asian Carp Invasion and Impacts on Great Lakes Food Webs and Fisheries (OAR/GLERL)

Nearshore and Nonpoint Source Pollution

• Decision Support Tools for Nearshore Water Quality Prediction (OAR/GLERL)
• Identification of Tipping Points for Agriculture and Land Use Indicators (OAR/GLERL/Sea Grant)

Habitat

• Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program (CELCP) for Great Lakes sites (NOS/OCRM)
• Area of Concern Land Acquisition (NMFS/Habitat/RC)
• Area of Concern Project Design and Implementation (NMFS/Habitat/RC)
• Habitat Restoration Partnerships in Areas of Concern (NMFS/Habitat/RC)
• Jobs Challenge (NMFS/Habitat/RC)

Accountability, Evaluation, Communication, Monitoring and Partnerships

• Community Outreach and Technical Assistance for Assessing Climate Change Risks and Vulnerabilities with the Great Lakes Region (NOS/CSC and OAR/GLERL)
• Great Lakes Bay Watershed and Education Training (B-WET) Program (MOS/NMS)
• Implementation of the Great Lakes Observation and Response System (NOS/IOOS)
• Support for Lakewide Management Plan (LaMP) activities (OAR/GLERL)
• Assessment of Lake Ontario Benthic Macroinvertebrates (OAR/GLERL)

What NOAA programs and partners collaborateand carry out GLRI projects?
Besides the numerous NOAA program offices involved in GLRI projects listed above, other partners that collaborate with NOAA’s GLRI projects include Great Lakes Sea Grant, universities, state and local governments, and NGOs such as The Nature Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited, and National Wildlife Federation.  Other federal partners involved in the GLRI include EPA, USFWS, USGS, BIA, DOT, ATSDR, APHIS, HUD, USPS, State Department, US Coast Guard, and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. Image credit: GLERL

Where can readers find more information about these projects and the researchers carrying out the work (e.g., websites, products, data portals)?
Readers can go to the following sources to learn more about NOAA’s contribution to the GLRI:

NOAA’s GLRI Website
EPA GLRI Website
Great Lakes Habitat Restoration Program
GLOS
GLANSIS

When and where will results of the GLRI  projects be available to the public?
GLRI projects can be tracked on EPA’s Great Lakes Accountability System (GLAS).  Additionally, the EPA GLRI website lists success stories.  NOAA will be working on compiling results and success stories of our projects this summer – check our GLRI website for upcoming updated info.

Where can readers go to get more information about GLERL?
The GLERL website is: http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/

Partnerships: Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Blog Series – Part 1, Julie Sims

Julie Sims

Guest blogger Biography: Julie Sims is the Regional Coordinator for NOAA Restoration Center and is located in Ann Arbor, MI, at the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory. In the Great Lakes Region, the Restoration Center has responsibilities for the protection and restoration of Great Lakes coastal habitats through recovery of damages from natural resource damage claims and through community-based restoration efforts. Prior to joining NOAA’s Restoration Center, Julie had considerable experience working on Great Lakes issues, initially as an intern with the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Great Lakes National Program Office developing Great Lakes ecosystem indicators, after which she joined the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality as a Great Lakes Areas of Concern and Lakewide Management Plan coordinator.  Julie has a B.S. in Environmental Biology/Zoology and a M.S. in Natural Resource and Environmental Management from Michigan State University.

What are “Areas of Concern?”
If you Google “Great Lakes” and “environment” one of the first terms you’ll come across is “Area of Concern” (AOC).  Many of these areas were so severely degraded and/or contaminated that at one point, they barely (if at all) supported aquatic life.

Since 2010, President Obama’s budget has set aside funds for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, designed to attack the biggest environmental problems facing the Great Lakes including contamination, aquatic debris, and invasive species.

Sleeping Bear Dunes, a site that was restored through a partnership between the Restoration Center and Sustain Our Great Lakes. Credit: Julie Sims

With a portion of these funds, NOAA has embarked on a systematic plan to restore AOCs to the vibrant, productive places they once were.  We’re in the process of removing over 200,000 metric tons of waste and demolition material, restoring 1300 acres of habitat for fish and wildlife, and opening 300 miles of river habitat for fish.

So what, exactly, do these funds pay for?  In order to get any of these projects off the ground, we need three things:

1. Baseline data and monitoring.
   Where are the most contaminated areas?  What are they contaminated with?  In order to transform AOCs back into healthy habitat, we’ve got to know what we’re dealing with.  This is where science and monitoring come in.  By testing water quality, sediment levels, etc., we can evaluate where we need to focus our attention, how best to restore the habitat, and how well our efforts are working.

2. Access to the affected area.
   One of the challenges we’ve faced in trying to restore the AOCs to health is getting permission to work in some areas.  In many cases, landowners are happy to work with us to restore their property.  Some are more reticent.  In those cases, we can sometimes create a “win” for all parties by negotiating to acquire the land or put it under easement.

3.  Engineering and design.
   Restoring wetlands or other aquatic habitat is a feat of hydrological engineering.  You’ve got to figure out how the water will behave in relationship to the land, how different plants and animals will respond to different water levels, etc.  Twenty years ago, there weren’t nearly as many engineering firms who could handle the work.  But over the decades, federal investment in restoration has spurred the development of the field.  NOAA now works with many NGOs and private sector companies who help us accomplish more and do so better, faster, and cheaper.

NOAA is dedicated to working towards the restoration of Areas of Concern in the Great Lakes.  For more information on specific projects in this area and across the country, go to www.restoration.noaa.gov and click on the link to our “Restoration Atlas.”

Marine Ecological Gap Analysis for the National Park Service

By Dan Dorfman, Marine Conservation Planner
Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment,
National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science

Mr. Dan Dorfman

NCCOS/CCMA Blogger Biography: Dan Dorfman is a Marine Conservation Planner with the NCCOS’ Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment, Biogeography Branch.  His work focuses on coral reef ecosystem conservation, including both deep sea and shallow water corals.  Prior to joining NOAA, he was with the The Nature Conservancy (TNC), serving initially as its Western Regional GIS Manager for the Conservation Science Division and as the GIS Coordinator for the Hawaii Chapter, and later as TNC’s Senior Marine Conservation Planner for the Global Marine Initiative. He holds a Master’s degree from Boston University and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of California at San Diego.

National Park Services Approaches CCMA to Identify Coral Resources Across the US Virgin Islands
Over the past three years, the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS), Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment has been assisting the National Park Service’s (NPS) Ocean and Coastal Resources Branch by conducting an ecological gap analysis for eight national parks across the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) and the Pacific, which have marine designations including coral reef ecosystems.  The project consisted of collecting available geospatial information for each park and to provide mapping products that would assist natural resource management efforts within the study area. The project also included the identification of information gaps which should be addressed to support effective management of marine and coastal resources managed under each park’s jurisdiction.

Study Area
NPS manages and protects more than 250,000 acres of coral reef in eight National Parks including USVI – Virgin Islands National Park (VIIS), Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument (VICR), Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve (SARI) and Buck Island Reef National Monument (BUIS); Guam – War-in-the Pacific National Historical Park (WAPA); American Samoa – National Park of American Samoa (NPSA); and Main Hawaiian Islands – Kalaupapa National Historical Park (KALA) and Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park (KAHO). While these are not the only parks with marine designations and coral reef ecosystems, this project focused on the above parks.

Identifying Gaps and Goals
One of the crucial foundations of this effort was meeting with staff at each of the individual national parks to collect information which could support the management of coral reef ecosystems and the identification of information gaps.  We also met with Park Service partners who had information relevant to the study area and the overall project itself. These partners included local (state and territorial) natural resource management agencies, federal agencies such as the USGS and Department of Defense, and non-profit organizations such as the Nature Conservancy. NCCOS has previously worked with each of these parks and their partners in establishing benthic habitat maps for the marine portion of each park.

Buck Island Reef National Monument is one of the parks included in this project. NCCOS has been working with park managers to map benthic habitats and track coral reef and reef fish populations over the past decade.  To learn more about that study, check out Bryan Costa’s blog.

Data Analysis and Data Portal Development
The marine ecological gap analysis relied extensively on the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to collect and integrate information on the status and distribution of species and ecosystems within each park.

The first step was to meet with the Park Service’s Inventory and Monitoring Branch to determine what information was already in the Park Service’s hands.  This was followed by meetings with staff from individual parks and then meeting with partners to collect additional data where it was available. After gathering available spatial information we conducted a gap analysis to determine which parks were missing important information resources, such as water quality measurements and surveys of reef fish.  These gaps were prioritized for future information collection efforts.

For each park we created an integrated information resource in the form of an ArcGIS geodatabase.  Each database contains information about park boundary designations, coastal zone management areas, bathymetry, remotely sensed imagery, water quality, socioeconomic uses, biological monitoring activities, shoreline characterization, ecosystem monitoring, hydrology, benthic habitat mapping, and more.  These information resources will enable park managers to view future decisions within an ecological, biological and physical context.

Data Portal Provides Managers Access to Critical Information for Management Decision making
The project also developed a geospatial web portal  which enables Park Service staff, researchers and the public to view all of the available information related to marine resources and their management.  This will allow scientists to make better use of existing information in study designs and allows for priority setting in future information collection and management decision making.

The data portal which was designed to support discovery and distribution of the geographic information collected to support the Marine Ecological Gap Analysis project. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA/Biogeography Branch.

Project Outcomes Assist NPS Decision making
This project will assist local park managers in making decisions regarding marine and coastal resource management.  It will also assist the Park Service more generally, by enabling summaries and comparisons across park units. Additionally, this project will assist the Park Service in managing spatial information for the marine environment and will support researchers who conduct work within park boundaries by making information broadly available for their use.  This additional application should result in more effective research conducted by Park Service partners and in turn result in additional utility for park managers.

One of the most exciting parts of the project was getting the chance to visit so many of the National Parks in exotic locations such as American Samoa and Hawaii.  It was great to learn how each of these parks is working to protect marine environments.

Gulf of Maine Autonomous Sensor Paves Way for Better HAB Warnings

By Marc Suddleson, Manager, Monitoring and Event Response for Harmful Algal Bloom (MERHAB) Program, Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research (CSCOR), National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)

This article is one in a periodic series regarding CSCOR activities and sponsored research.

ESPChris being deployed off Portsmouth, New Hampshire in May 2012. (Credit: B. Keafer, WHOI)

A NOAA funded research team recently reported that an autonomous sensor, deployed on a special mooring in the Atlantic about five nautical miles off Portsmouth, New Hampshire has successfully detected the presence of toxic Alexandrium fundyense cells and relayed its data to scientists in a lab onshore. The sensor, an Environmental Sample Processor (ESP) nicknamed “Chris” after its inventor Chris Scholin of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, is off to a strong start in what will be a challenging, 45 day test of its ability to provide an automated, early warning of toxic blooms of Alexandrium fundyense or New England ‘red tides.’

Early warnings help state managers and the shellfish industry protect human health and minimize economic impacts from the toxic ‘red tides’ which threaten New England’s shellfish industry every spring and summer.  Total costs of the severe 2005 Alexandrium bloom were estimated at nearly $50 million for Massachusetts and $23 million for Maine.

An image from ESPChris’ onboard camera shows a positive signal for Alexandrium fundyense cells in a water sample taken on 03 May, 2012. The signal represents about 100-200 Alexandrium fundyense cells per liter of sea water (Credit: B. Keafer, WHOI).

Onboard ESPChris, Alexandrium detection is accomplished via a miniaturized and fully automated molecular probe assay.  After collecting a water sample, the ESP can test it for the presence of five different harmful algal species. A tiny set of species-specific probes that react to nucleic acids are bound to a HAB filter array, or small disk, at pre-determined positions prior to deployment. Positive assay results yield spots of varying size and intensity in the pre-determined positions indicate each species that is present. An onboard camera that digitally images the results and a transmitter sends it to the scientists onshore. Raw data from an ESPChris sample taken in early May (image left) shows three large intense control spots that verify that the assay is functioning properly.  The small spots with weak intensity represents a positive signal from the binding of Alexandrium fundyese nucleic acids in the sample to a complementary set of specific molecular probes. The spot intensity in this case represented about 100-200 cells per liter of sea water. ESPChris had successfully provided an early signal of what may become a ‘red tide’ leading to shellfish toxicity along the New England coastline.

But ESPChris must continue to operate over the next two months, withstanding heavy seas, storms, and other open ocean hazards because researchers are counting on the sensor to continue returning results from its daily sampling. Prior to the start of the 2012 ‘red tide’ season, NOAA funded scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and North Carolina State University issued an outlook for a “Moderate” New England ‘Red Tide.’  Information from ESPChris will be provided to managers in weekly updates.

Armed with these weekly updates, state managers will know in advance where and when shellfish may become toxic. Currently, they can only measure toxins in shellfish nearshore, and have no way to know the number of toxic cells that are “upstream” in coastal waters, waiting to be carried to shore by favorable winds.  Information from in situ sensors, like ESPChris, can help them determine when increased biotoxin testing is warranted for decisions to close shellfish beds and determining when harvesting can safely resume. Advance warnings help states marshal limited resources available for operating mandatory shellfish monitoring programs which enable public health protection and the safeguarding of important economic resources.

This mission is the first of several planned ESP deployments during a five year NOAA NCCOS MERHAB funded project led by Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) scientist Dr. Donald Anderson to demonstrate the feasibility and value of the ESP to routine HAB monitoring and forecasting. Future ESP deployments will test an added capability for sensing algal toxins in water samples. NOAA, state agencies, and the shellfish industry are eager to see multiple ESPs incorporated into an operational ocean observing capability to remotely detect and transmit to shore a stream of continuous, near-real time data on toxic Alexandrium populations. Real-time data on toxic cell abundance and eventually toxicity will be used to improve the accuracy of red tide forecasts, much like meteorological observations are used to improve weather forecasts. This deployment represents a significant step toward realizing this vision.

Learn more about the recent Gulf of Maine ESP deployment from a recent Boston Globe article.

2012 NOAA Bring Your Kid to Work Day: NCCOS Scientists Reach Out to Show Kids Examples of Ocean Research

By Tracy Gill, Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science

Ms. Tracy Gill

NCCOS Blogger Biography: Tracy Gill has worked as a physical scientist for NOAA for over 30 years. Her main research focus is on the development of maps and marine biological resource products, however she has also been actively involved in outreach and education. In addition to her primary tasks, Ms. Gill has spent time doing fieldwork, trace metal analysis, GIS application development, contracts, grants and web content development. Ms. Gill earned a Masters Certification in Project Management from George Washington University, and a B.S. in Conservation and Resource Management from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Once a year, around the Nation, kids get to take the day off of school and see what it is like where their parents work. At NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, we try and make National Bring Your Child to Work Day (aka Kids Day) an educational experience for all, using it as an opportunity to show the next generation of scientists a bit about the critters we study as well as some hands-on examples of how we do, what we do, whether its investigating animals or mapping corals. Along with other NOAA offices, NCCOS led two educational sessions for the kids to learn about the animals in the ocean.   This year, we did a squid dissection and a “draw your own coral map” session.

After picking up a goody bag packed with educational material, kids’ day involves 2-3 “classes” in the morning, lunch with their parent/sponsor, ice cream after lunch, and a movie.

INSIDE A SQUID

NOAA staff spent the morning helping kids dissect and learn about squid. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

One of the sessions that NCCOS’ Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA) runs every year is an interactive squid dissection.  As the group of 10 to 12 year olds pile into the classroom, exclamations included:

“Ewww, what’s that smell?!?”
“Can we start now?”
“I’m not touching that thing!”
“Do we get to do more than one?”
“Are those fish?”

But, before they began their dissections, the kids were given a 15-minute presentation, “All About Squid.”  Some of the things the kids learn about include:

a) squid are amazing predators with terrific eyesight and tricks of illusion for protection and escape;
b) they battle with the great whales in deep ocean waters;
c) they have a pen and ink;
d) they are not fish, but rather invertebrates;  e) they come in all colors and sizes;
f) are an important part of the marine ecosystem; and
g) are also a well-known delicacy in many countries.

NOAA staff get ready for the squid dissection before the day begins. Left to Right: Tracy Gill, Marilyn King, Laurie Bennett, Terry McTigue and Deb Lambert. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

Once they learned about the ecology of the squid, it was time for anatomy.  An ancient ancestor of clams and mussels, squid actually have their shell on the inside, called a pen.  And, if you remove the pen and ink sac you can even write your name with it.  After the brief anatomy lesson, each kid dissected their squid and learned about the different body parts and how they work. The kids learned by seeing, smelling and touching, that Squid have three hearts, eight arms, two tentacles, terrific eyes, and a beak-like jaw for eating.  Students were also able to examine (but not dissect) relatives to the squid: an octopus and a cuttlefish.

CORAL REEF EDUCATION:
NCCOS’ CCMA also ran a session about coral reef ecosystems. Kids enter a room that has been transformed into an underwater ecosystem, with fish hanging from the ceiling and the walls covered in images of the ocean floor and ocean animals.

CCMA scientist Chris Jeffery helps students learn about the coral reef ecosystem during the one hour "class" on Kids Day. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA/Cordelia Neff

After a brief presentation from our staff on coral reefs and how we use technology to map the reef and surrounding sea floor, the students walk around the room to explore the ‘reef.’ The kids spent some time drawing and coloring the animals they saw around the room. They can ask any question they want about the animals, and the CCMA researchers are there to answer and help the kids understand the marine environment.

NOAA Kids Day is great way to expose students to all sorts of topics of marine science. All over the NOAA Silver Spring campus, approximately 500 kids from ages 5-18 years spent the day learning about some aspect of NOAA – weather, navigation, fishery management, whales, geodesy, mapping, tides, currents, and so much more!  Staff from all of the NOAA line offices pitched in to make an excited learning day at NOAA! Many thanks to all who participated and all the staff who took the day to help out!

NOAA-Sponsored Researchers Headline United Nations Panel on Coastal Hypoxia

By David Kidwell, Program Manager for Sea Level Rise and Hypoxia Programs, Center for Sponsored Coastal Ocean Research (CSCOR), National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)

This article is one in a periodic series regarding CSCOR activities and sponsored research.

Results of NOAA NCCOS-sponsored research into the causes and impacts of the Gulf of Mexico hypoxic, or “dead” zone, will be featured during a panel discussion on Ocean Hypoxia held in conjunction with the 39^th session of the Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP).  This United Nations Develop Programme event features Dr. Nancy Rabalais of the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, whose decades-long research into the causes of the Gulf hypoxic zone has formed the foundation for actions of the Gulf Hypoxia Task Force.  Also participating is Dr. Peter Thomas (University of Texas Marine Science Institute) whose ground-breaking research into the sub-lethal endocrine and reproductive impacts from hypoxia has initiated a new paradigm in assessing hypoxia impacts.   Both researchers are funded under the NCCOS Northern Gulf of Mexico Ecosystems and Hypoxia Assessment, or NGOMEX Program.  The special session on Ocean Hypoxia is being held on April 18 at the United Nations in New York, NY. 

Ocean Exploration: 2012 Nancy Foster Mapping Mission: Field Notes/Day 18 – Education and Outreach aboard the NOAA Ship Nancy Foster!

by Alicia Clarke and Tracy Gill, Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science

We are sad to announce that the 2012 NOAA ship Nancy Foster mapping mission has come to an end. But, before we left the mission for good, we had one more set of activities. Today aboard the ship, docked at the U.S. Coast Guard Station in San Juan, we had a morning Reef Smart education program for students, and in the afternoon we had a meeting with resource managers from Puerto Rico to discuss coastal mapping needs.

NOAA’s Reef Smart
The three-hour NOAA Reef Smart education program is a fun opportunity for the students to meet mission scientists and ship crew, learn more about the 2012 Caribbean mission, discover high-tech tools used to collect underwater data, gain a better understanding of Puerto Rico’s marine resources, and explore the variety of careers in marine science.

Two students surveying a mock coral reef during Reef Smart Kid’s Day. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

Thirty-four students (grades 6-10), five teachers and a few parents from two schools in Puerto Rico participated: Escuela Intermedia Teresita Nazario de Guanica and Colegio Sagrado Corazon. They boarded the ship and the program began with ship safety, a brief description of the 2012 seafloor mapping mission and a short National Geographic video about the 2011 NCCOS/Coral Reef Conservation Program seafloor mapping mission in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The students and teachers split into three groups to take three interactive classes covering coral reef ecosystems, the research tools scientists use to study them, and a ship tour. In the coral reef class they learned about the basics of coral reef ecosystems, and the importance and benefits of these unique resources at risk. They found a buddy and surveyed a coral reef (in the mess hall!), identifying and counting reef species and habitats using a field guide and a survey sheet.

Students check out the ROV with Glenn Taylor on the main deck. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

Next, the students learned about the tools used to map the seafloor bottom type and study fish aggregations. They learned how cameras mounted on remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) are used to help explain the data that the ship sonar system collects on the seafloor. They also got to tour the ship, including a chance to wiggle into “Gumby” survival suits! The program ended with a quick quiz and they all received a NOAA bag with educational materials. The kids and teachers piled off the ship for some group pictures and (hopefully) left with some new ideas about the amazing coral reefs nearby and some careers to consider in marine science.

Reef Smart Kid’s Day participants stop for a group photo in front of the NOAA Ship Nancy Foster. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

Bringing Data to Coral Reef Ecosystem Managers
Following the activities for the students, we quickly set up for a Reef Smart event intended to connect scientists with the people who use our data the most: local managers, academic researchers, and specialists from local nongovernmental agencies, the University of Puerto Rico, the Environmental Protection Agency and other organizations came from across the island to participate in the event. Chief scientist Tim Battista and fishery acoustic scientist Erik Ebert shared some of their findings from the mission in the Northeast Great Reserve and explored ways NOAA technology and expertise can be leveraged to support the needs of local managers and coral reef priority areas.

Participants in the Reef Smart open house for managers and academics meet in the mess hall for presentations and discussion. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

After a quick tour of the dry and wet labs, the group heard directly from representatives of the local management community. Dr. Miguel Canals and Humberto Figueroa — managers of Guanica Bay and the Northeast Reserve and Culebra, respectively — presented highlights of their management areas and focused on the most pressing needs for both regions. The event ended with a lively discussion on how to keep lines of communication open between managers and scientists.

Guanica manager Miguel Canals (Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources) describes how only a generation ago fishermen routinely caught larger fish in Puerto Rico than today’s fishermen do. Credit: NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA

Special thanks to all the presenters, partners and participants for making both events a success!