OCEAN ENERGY PLANNING - Potential Products and Services from user needs surveys
1.
Identify the data that state
managers and key users need. Review
existing key documents such as EIS's to determine the data requirements for
energy products and the adequacy of these data. (5)
2.
The region lacks a
comprehensive product that documents the potential for wind, wave, and tidal
energy at a fine enough scale (need to define these scales..) for regulators and developer. (10)
3.
Participate in the October
2009 Coastal & Marine Spatial Planning workshop being hosted by NROC's
Ocean Energy Planning Standing Committee. An element of this workshop is to determine what the New States need for
planning for ocean energy planning.
4.
NROC invited the New England
States in spring 2009 to identify up to 3 specific sea floor mapping products
to demonstrate how requested congressional funding could be support the
northeast region mapping needs. (NROC
2009)
5.
The potential development of
any LNG offshore facilities will require accurate current and wave height data.
(16)
6.
Consideration should be given
to creating an organizational structure such as a Long Island Sound Center for
the Marine Environment (LISCME) as a joint initiative of state (Connecticut and
New York) and federal agencies, academic institutions, and scientists to
coordinate and oversee a collaborative effort for the purpose of developing a
better understanding of, and improving decision making with regard to, the
environment and ecology of LIS. This type of regional collaborative effort
could help ensure that LIS is viewed as a regional resource and that future
research and studies will meet the needs of all agencies and regulators. This
center would require funding and staff support at levels to assure it is
sustainable and effective in meeting its goals and objectives. A strategy for
securing adequate funding for operations and projects would need to be
developed. (7).
7.
The mapping initiative for
LIS would include (7):
·
Creating
non-living resource maps that identify the geology of the bottom and sub-bottom
of LIS. These maps provide a foundation of information that can be used to
create living resource maps. The characteristics of the bottom provide clues as
to the type of living resources that may populate certain areas of the seabed.
These types of maps include:
o
Sedimentary
environment and textures maps created from sidescan or multibeam sonar or other technologies. Ground-truthing is used to verify the data that are collected
electronically by using grab sampling, video and photo surveys and other
methods.
o
Bathymetric
maps to identify elevations of the seafloor and in conjunction with sedimentary
environment mapping, provide a three-dimensional
picture of the bottom.
·
Creating
living resource maps to identify benthic habitats, mobile fauna habitats and
endangered and threatened species. These maps would be created by using non-living
resource maps and information to identify and prioritize areas for study, with
sampling being done to identify specific habitats. A process to determine
targeted species of concern for further study should be created. Additional
research and study is necessary for scientists to develop methods to be able to
produce habitat maps.
·
Prioritizing
the importance of nearshore, coastal and deep water
mapping regions, and identifying the best and most cost effective methods and technologies
for various types of mapping projects.
8.
How do bottomland disturbance
impacts from molluscan aquaculture and harvesting
activity differ from cable installation techniques/impacts? Requires
reference/reserve areas to conduct this impact evaluation. (7)
9.
Identifying a risk assessment
protocol for future infrastructure encroachments into LIS. (7)
10.
Assessing existing cables and
pipeline installations to determine short-term and long-term impacts to benthic
habitats and communities. (7)
11.
Develop a classification of
endangered and threatened species for coastal and marine waters in a fashion
similar to terrestrial programs. (7)
SOURCES:
1.
A Survey of Coastal Managers’
Science and Technology Needs Prompts a Retrospective Look at Science-based
Management in the Gulf of Maine 2004. Prepared by NOAA NOS based in part upon the CSO 2004 national survey.
2.
Coastal Resource Management
Customer Survey 2006 Prepared by NOAA CSC
3.
CSO Report: The role of Coastal Zone Management Programs
in Adaptation of Climate Change. 2007. Final Report of the CSO's Climate change work group.
4.
CSO Report: The role of
Coastal Zone Management Programs in Adaptation to Climate Change. 2008. Second
annual report from the CSO's climate change work group.
5.
CSO Report: Improving links between science and coastal
management. Results of a survey to
assess U.S. State Coastal Management Science and Technology Needs. 2004. Prepared by CSO in cooperation with the Urban
Harbors Institute, University of Massachusetts Boston and the University of New Hampshire Survey Center. Includes Appendices document.
6.
Integrated Ocean Observing
System (IOOS) Strategy Recommendation (draft) 2008 CT DEP Office of Long Island
Sound Programs (based in large part upon The Long Island Sound Integrated
Coastal Observing System User Community Needs Workshop Summary Report 2005)
7.
Long Island Sound Symposium:
A study of benthic habitats. 2004. A
report by the Connecticut Academy of Science and Energy for the Connecticut
Energy Advisory Board.
8.
Needs assessment of the New
England Coastal Resources Management Community: Management of Ecosystems and
Natural Hazards 2008 prepared by Coastal Resources Center at URI and NOAA CSC.
9.
New England Governors Coast
and Ocean Action Plan 2007. Prepared by
NROC. This included information
contained in 2009 workplans for all Standing
Committees.
10.
NERACOOS Strategic Planning
and Implementation Team Report (V2): May 12th, 2009, Gloucester, MA.
11.
NERACOOS Product Development Report for Harmful
Algae Blooms. This report cites the
following source documents:
·
M07
- Workshop on Coastal Managers Needs for Coastal and Ocean Observations for
Inundation – MACOORA, Baltimore, MD November 2006
·
Synthesis
of Coastal Managers Needs for Ocean Observing Products and Services – The Keeley Group – September 2006.
·
ECOHAB/GLOBEC
Gulf of Maine Modeling Workshop – June 2002
·
ECOHAB
User Needs workshop – December 2006
·
Storm
Surge Tools and Information: A User Needs Assessment - NOAA Coastal Services
Center 2005
·
GoMOOS Annual Survey 2005, 2007
12.
NERACOOS Product Development
Report for Inundation. This report cites
the following source documents:
·
M07
- Workshop on Coastal Managers Needs for Coastal and Ocean Observations for
Inundation – MACOORA, Baltimore, MD November 2006
·
Synthesis
of Coastal Managers Needs for Ocean Observing Products and Services. October 2006. Prepared for NERACOOS by The Keeley Group .
·
ECOHAB/GLOBEC
Gulf of Maine Modeling Workshop – June 2002
·
ECOHAB
User Needs workshop – December 2006
·
Storm
Surge Tools and Information: A User Needs Assessment - NOAA Coastal Services
Center 2005
·
GoMOOS Annual Survey 2005, 2007
13.
NERACOOS Product Development Report for Water
Quality. Source documents cited in the
report include the following:
·
North
East Regional Association 2006 Regional Water Quality Managers Meeting, 25
April 2006
·
Emails
and telephone communications conducted between April and July 2007 with
regional water quality managers.
·
Synthesis
of Coastal Managers Needs for Ocean Observing Products and Services. October 2006. Prepared for NERACOOS by The Keeley Group.
14.
NROC Seafloor mapping
priorities identified by New England States. 2009 (NROC_SFM)
15.
Synthesis of Coastal Managers
Needs for Ocean Observing Products and Services. October 2006. Prepared for NERACOOS by The Keeley Group.
16.
The Long Island Sound
Integrated Coastal Observing System User Community Needs Workshop Summary
Report 2005. LISICOS-MACOORA sponsored
workshop.
17.
Water Quality Issues: A
National Perspective. Water quality
monitoring managers needs assessment workshop. 2008 prepared by NCCOS/NOS