A FY04 NOS Partnership Proposal
Real-time Assessment and Adaptive Management of South Florida Coastal
Ecosystems
NOS Principal Investigators:
Larry Pugh
Richard Stumpf
NOS/COP
NOS/CCMA
301-713-3338x160
301-713-3028x173
larry.pugh@noaa.gov
richard.stumpf@noaa.gov
Scientific Partners
Elizabeth Johns
AOML
Libby.Johns@noaa.gov
Brian Keller
NOS/ORM/FKNMS
305-743-2437 x25
brian.keller@noaa.gov
Chuanmin Hu
Frank Muller-Karger
Univ. South Florida/IMaRS Univ. South Florida/IMaRS
hu@marine.usf.edu
carib@marine.usf.edu
Pilot Project Description: Coastal waters of central and south Florida, including the
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, are frequently impacted by large patches of
water of questionable quality. Some of this water is derived from central Florida rivers
but Mississippi water has also been observed to reach the FKNMS every year for the past
seven years. The Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) will further
change freshwater inputs to the south Florida coastal ecosystem, with impacts on coastal
ecosystems that remain unknown. The NOAA South Florida Program (SFP) of research,
monitoring, and modeling has focused on observations and analysis of Florida Bay and
the surrounding coastal waters since 1994. The proposed effort develops applications for
managers of resources of this ecosystem that integrate in-situ observations, satellitederived products, and modeling outputs in near-real time and delivers information.
This pilot project has the following objectives:
 Provide timely guidance to resource managers as to the spatial and temporal
extent of large-scale episodic events like Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs),
blackwater and other river plume water, Mississippi River, and tropical storms.
 Determine the predictability of the ecological impacts of these events.
 Develop management strategies to mitigate the impacts from these episodes.
Episodic events of degraded water quality impact critical habitats (beaches, seagrass
beds, coral reefs and other coastal and shelf ecosystems) in the region. Coastal resource
managers need to establish a working relationship with upstream managers to minimize
these episodic impacts. This might require alternative water release schedules, release
points, or controls on water quality. Imputs and connectivity affect possible siting of
Marine Protected Areas and regulation of consumptive or recreational use by the public.
Elevator Ride Description: This project monitors river plumes and harmful algal
blooms off south Florida and assesses their potential impact on sea grasses and corals of
the Florida Keys. The project is a partnership between NOAA and academic institutions
to merge data collected with ships, buoys, and satellites to define new products needed
for adaptive ecosystem-based management strategies for south Florida.
Project Application: Ecosystem and resource management tools that integrate 1) in-situ
oceanographic observations and models and 2) satellite/remote sensing for .
Oceanographic observations/Numerical Model Activities (AOML and UM/RSMAS)
NOTE: These activities build upon ongoing NOS supported observations and modeling.
 Expand present moored real-time observing system with one critical site and
incorporate key optical water quality observations.
 Run HYCOM model to evaluate specific upstream management scenarios, project
possible impacts for adaptive downstream management scenarios, to guide field
studies and interpret satellite products (see below).
 Deploy applications via the South Florida Program site
(www.aoml.noaa.gov/sfp/).
Satellite/Remote Sensing Activities: (CCMA and USF)
CCMA will establish the requirements of managers (state, local, tribal, and federal) for
specific products, delivery mechanisms, etc. CCMA, in partnership with USF, will
characterize historic patterns and trends observed in satellite imagery. Jointly with the
AOML and USF, CCMA will a validation strategy for the following products:
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Time series of satellite imagery, climatologies (monthly, seasonal, annual) and
anomalies for turbidity and estimated light attenuation (1985–present).
Identify areas on the reef that were most frequently impacted by turbidity events.
Examine the potential interaction between sea surface temperature (SST) and
other water quality problems as stressors to corals. The effort would be done to
complement the CREWS program, in a partnership aimed to examine possible
improvements in the NESDIS global Hot Spot bleaching forecast program.
Address real-time requirements of ecosystem managers preparing for hurricanes.
USF will work with CCMA to demonstrate new water quality assessment products
derived from MODIS high resolution and fluorescence bands. These will help identify
blackwater and river plume events and chlorophyll and turbidity anomalies. Specifically:
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Daily water turbidity and clarity images to support seagrass and hardbottom
(coral) monitoring programs.
Improve SST products using multiple sensors to minimize cloud cover problems.
Produce benthic cover maps based on Landsat images for use in GIS applications.
Target User Groups: Resource managers of south Florida, including but not limited to:
tribal governments, local county governments, Florida FWCC; Florida DEP, South
Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), NOS/FKNMS and BNP, ENP, and
DTNP and their advisory panels; Army Corps of Engineers.
Applications (Internal and External Collaborators)
 Web-based tools for data interpretation and synthesis, and to generate information
required for management of resources.
 Satisfy requirements of users of the NOAA HAB Forecast System.
 Assess CERP water management scenarios and their downstream impacts.
 Provide guidance as to Marine Protected Area (and control region) siting.
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Provide guidance as to changes in consumptive or recreational public use.
Provide real-time guidance to the research community.
Strategic Alignment: This partnership aligns with NOAA’s 2007 Guidance to 1) use
advanced data assimilation techniques, and 2) use in-situ and remotely sensed data for
routine environmental prediction and forecasting of the extent and impact of critical
ecosystem events as well as the effects of human activities. The project also addresses
partnerships with educational institutions and it develops cohesive programs that promote
environmental literacy. It supports NOAA Strategic Plan Goal Numbers 2.1, 3.1 and 3.2.
NOS Partners: NOS/COP will provide overall program development, oversight, and PI
coordination (at no cost). NOS/CCMA will work with USF to develop remote sensing
products. NOS/FKNMS will assist in product identification, evaluation and optimization
and in the development of science-based adaptive management strategies.
External Partners: AOML and UM/RSMAS will improve moored real-time and
shipboard observations to validate remote sensing products and oceanographic models.
USF will develop MODIS-based high resolution water quality remote sensing products.
NOS Integration: This project joins NOS/COP supported South Florida efforts, NOS
remote sensing, and FKNMS coral reef resource management expertise to address
management requirements, and to develop products for transition to operations.
Implementation Details:
Timeline and deliverables:
Year 1: Enhance moored platforms and add one station; develop prototype of MODIS
products; derive turbidity and attenuation monthly mean time series (1985-1995), GIS
seagrass imagery (1998-2005), and statistical analysis of satellite and in-situ SST.
Year 2: Derive turbidity, attenuation and algal pigment means and anomalies through
1996, seagrass GIS products for 2006; derive products that identify reef areas threatened
by turbidity; assess potential interaction between water quality and SST as stressors.
Year 3: Develop seagrass GIS products for 2007; ensure a system is in place to satisfy
ongoing requirements for scientific information by managers in the region including
FKNMS; train region managers in use of applications.
Costs by FY and by budget class: (in $K)
Year 1
AOML
salaries
200
Equipt
65
CCMA
equipt
10
Travel
2
Contracts
70
USF
salaries
80
Year 2
165
5
Year 3
165
5
2
70
150
2
60
150