At the Agencies
NOAA Fisheries has issued regulations and a letter of authorization (LOA) to the U.S. Navy that require protective measures to minimize impacts to marine mammals while conducting training and testing activities in the Mariana Islands Training and Testing Study Area in the South Pacific.
On July 23, NOAA announced that it is committing $88,000 in grant and event response funding for Washington state to monitor and analyze an unusually large bloom of toxic algae off its coast.
During large blooms such as this, the algae,Pseudo-nitzschia, can produce a potent toxin that can be harmful to people, fish, and marine mammals.
Scientists have found this year's Gulf of Mexico dead zone - an area of low to no oxygen that can kill fish and marine life - is, at 6,474 square miles, above average in size and larger than forecast by NOAA in June. The larger than expected forecast was caused by heavy June rains throughout the Mississippi River watershed.
EPA has developed a handout summarizing the tools developed by the agency for state, tribal, and local governments and others to adapt their clean water and drinking water programs to a changing climate. Tools include, among others, a Storm Surge Inundation and Hurricane Strike Frequency Map; a Workbook for Developing Risk-Based Adaptation Plans; a Flood Resilience Guide for Water and Wastewater Utilities; and a National Stormwater Calculator with Climate Scenarios.
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In the News
New research confirms that the land under the Chesapeake Bay is sinking rapidly and projects that Washington, D.C., could drop by six or more inches in the next century-adding to the problems of sea-level rise. This falling land will exacerbate the flooding that the nation's capital faces from rising ocean waters due to a warming climate and melting ice sheets-accelerating the threat to the region's monuments, roads, wildlife refuges, and military installations.
Ontario is proposing measures over the next 15 years to halt the net loss of wetlands, considered among the most biologically diverse and productive habitats on the planet. "The Ontario government is considering approaches to achieve no net loss of wetlands," says Wetland Conservation in Ontario, a just-released discussion paper. The paper calls for initial attempts to avoid or minimize wetland loss. When loss of wetlands can't be avoided or minimized, measures would be required to rehabilitate degraded ecosystems or to restore cleared ecosystems. And when even those measures are ineffective, developers would be required to provide compensation "for any residual significant, adverse impacts."
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In the States and Regions
East Coast
The awarding of a major environmental contract, the advertising of another and the anticipated recovery of large sections of a Confederate ship means the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project is gaining momentum and dredging may start three months early, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced.
The state has announced a $1 million grant to advance the Herring River estuary restoration.
The grant, awarded by the Department of Fish and Game's Division of Ecological Restoration and funded by the Environmental Bond Bill, was announced at an event yesterday at the Herring River Bridge.
A project to restore habitats and a barrier beach to Braddock Bay in Greece is getting $9.5 million in funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, a proponent of the plan, will visit the Braddock Bay Marina at 10 a.m. Monday to announce the funding. He previously secured $575,000 to pay for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to design the restoration project.
Gulf Coast
Coastal environments are the key to a treasure that scientists, conservationists and entrepreneurs are eager to explore: the untapped potential of Florida's "blue economy'' -- its natural aquatic resources. The Gulf Coast Community Foundation (GCCF) identifies marine sciences, eco-conservation, education, sustainable food production and eco-tourism as areas rich in opportunity to strengthen the blue economy, thus moving the region away from its current dependence on a seasonal, service-based economy and toward an innovative, entrepreneurial local economy that celebrates the natural resources abundant to Florida's Gulf Coast.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has scrapped a plan to deepen the main channel at the Port of Gulfport from a study on future expansion at the
Mississippi state port.
The port had sought authorization to deepen the channel and, as a result, attract more container business from ocean carriers operating larger, newer-generation vessels.
West Coast and Pacific Islands
The Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) has released new coastal flood hazard studies for Clatsop, Tillamook, Lincoln and Curry counties. These studies include detailed hazard zones developed for the open coast using new coastal engineering analyses, decades of ocean wave and water level data, refined modeling approaches, and technology - including use of high-resolution lidar data.
Redondo Beach needs up to $108 million in infrastructure work on its waterfront, where concrete chunks continue to fall from parking structures and pier beams teeter and splinter away, the city said this week.
While the pier and plaza parking structures have the most critical need - to the tune of $50 million - the city also must address Seaside Lagoon, the three piers, bike and pedestrian path circulation and sea level rise, city staff members told the council Tuesday, July 21 night.
Great Lakes
Lake Erie is at its highest elevation in 17 years, shrinking the size of beaches and making other changes that affect people who live along the shore.
According to the Office of Coastal Management - a state agency in Sandusky - Lake Erie's water elevation this month is 19 inches above the level of a year ago.
Learn more
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Announcements
Press release
On August 4, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin, a member of the Senate Great Lakes Task Force, introduced major legislation aimed at boosting efforts to revitalize waterfront communities, including Wisconsin towns and cities along the Great Lakes, rivers and inland lakes. The
Waterfront Community Revitalization and Resiliency Act
will support community efforts to make the most of water resources by attracting water-dependent industries and investments that leverage water sustainably, revitalizing neighborhoods, and enhancing recreation and tourism. In addition, Senator Baldwin's legislation will support communities to plan for their future, provide the tools to implement that plan, and help them attract private and non-profit investment. Senator Baldwin was joined in introduction of her legislation by Senators Angus King (I-ME), Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Gary Peters (D-MI).
Symposium - October 14 - 15, 2015
Please join the
National Park Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the Wisconsin State Historic Preservation Office for a two day exploration of Maritime Cultural Landscapes in Madison, Wisconsin. The symposium will explore how the terrestrial and submerged resources near and in the nation's oceans, rivers, and lakes might be identified, characterized, and evaluated, and what benefits may be derived from the broader recognition of these landscapes as unique entities "worthy of preservation." Come hear presentations by subject experts and join in the discussions on how agencies, tribes, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and State Historic Preservation Offices might use the MCL concept to more effectively preserve and protect their maritime heritage resources.
OneNOAA Science Seminars, 2015
Title: Maps and Datasets for Blue Carbon Habitats
Date & Time: Thu, September 10, 1pm - 2pm
Title:
Inspire Ocean and Climate Literacy and Conservation through MPAs
Date & Time:
Thu, October 8, 1pm - 2pm
Seminars are posted in Eastern Time and subject to changes without notice; please check the web page for the latest seminar updates.
Webinar
Wed, Aug 26, 2015 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT
A major challenge for coastal communities is planning for the impacts of current and future flood hazards. This webinar will highlight two resources that NOAA's Office for Coastal Management has developed to facilitate resilience planning in coastal communities. The first step in planning for flood impacts is to understand a community's exposure to coastal flood hazards. The Coastal Flood Exposure Mapper helps communities get the conversation started about flood hazard risks and vulnerabilities by providing maps and information showing where people, places, and natural resources are at risk from flooding. The mapper displays shallow coastal flooding, flood zones, storm surge, sea level rise, and a composite view of flood hazards, along with societal, infrastructure, and ecosystem information. The next step in planning is to identify and prioritize strategies that address climate and hazard risks. Coastal green infrastructure is an emerging approach that communities are using to reduce the impacts of coastal hazards. With limited budgets for projects like green infrastructure, communities must prioritize natural areas that give the most benefits. The Green Infrastructure Mapping Guide is an interactive online resource to help spatial analysts who are tasked with using GIS to prioritize green infrastructure to reduce hazard impacts and aid in climate adaptation.
Webinar co-sponsored by OpenChannels.org and the EBM Tools Network.
Restore America's Estuaries has released a new report
Events
September 6 - 9, 2015
September 9 - 11, 2015
September 28 - Oct 1, 2015
September 29 - 30
October 5 - 9, 2015
October 6, 2015
October 14-16, 2015
October 14 - 15, 2015
November 8 -12, 2015
December 1 - 2, 2015
December 10 -15, 2016
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