ANEP: Publications- ANEP Update

Publications:
ANEP Update

April 2004

NEP NEWS

Contents:

Casco Bay | Click Here
Galveston Bay | Click Here
Long Island Sound | Click Here
Massachusetts Bays | Click Here
Peconic Estuary | Click Here
Puget Sound | Click Here
Tillamook Bay | Click Here

Casco Bay

On Wednesday, May 5, the Casco Bay Estuary Project and Maine SeaGrant are co-hosting "Maine's Marine Invasion: A Forum on the Impact of Non-Native and Other Invasive Species on Maine's Coastal Ecosystems." While Maine is doing a great job of addressing freshwater invasive species in its lakes and ponds, very little is currently being done to address its marine invasives problem.

The Casco Bay Estuary Project initiated the planning for this forum to bring attention to the problem of marine invasive species in Maine and to engage fellow professionals in marine invasives issues. Already, the planning phase for the forum has stimulated conversations and new ideas amongst the partners which include the state agencies, Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, Gulf of Maine Research Institute, the Ocean Conservancy, among others.

The forum is an all-day event with research and management presentations in the morning, including a presentation on the results of the 2003 Northeast rapid assessment for invasives. An afternoon session for invited professionals will consist of concurrent working sessions on research, education/outreach, management, and monitoring. Anticipated outcomes of the forum include publicity, increased collaboration, educational and communications tools, and next steps in the areas of prioritizing research and managing and monitoring marine invasions. For more information, please visit our website at www.cascobayestuary.org

Galveston Bay

The Galveston Bay Estuary Program is a co-sponsor of April 7th 's "Backyard, Bayou and Beyond: A Watershed Symposium." National, state and local experts on flooding and water quality will offer presentations and advice for the Houston home, neighborhood and commercial district. The symposium, to be held in the University of St. Thomas' Jerabeck Activity Center in Houston from 8 am and 5 pm, will feature Houston Mayor Bill White and internationally-recognized architect Sim Van der Ryn, a leader in promoting sustainable and innovative planning and design.

The Symposium is sponsored by the Bayou Preservation Association (BPA), whose goal is to foster a healthy system of waterways that will provide habitat for flora and fauna, natural watersheds to prevent flooding and multiple recreational opportunities for walkers, canoeists and naturalists. Other organizing sponsors for the Symposium in addition to the Galveston Bay Estuary Program include: Buffalo Bayou Partnership, Harris County Flood Control District, Houston-Galveston Area Council, Texas Cooperative Extension/Texas Sea Grant, The Trust for Public Land, and the University of St. Thomas.

For registration, log on to www.urban-nature.org/watershedsymposium.htm or Contact BPA at 713-529-6443. Students $15, adults $50 in advance/$60 at the door, space providing.

Attendee of a Winter 2004 public forum in Stamford, CT were introduced to the Long Island Sound Study's Stweardship Initiative. Photo by Andrew MacLachlan, US Fish & Wildlife Service

Long Island Sound

How do we better protect and preserve Long Island Sound's coastline? In February and March 2004, the Long Island Sound Study held a series of public meetings to discuss this very question and to introduce the public to the Long Island Sound Study's Stewardship Initiative. This initiative is an effort to identify, protect and enhance the special places throughout Long Island Sound. The public meetings provided communities throughout the Sound with an opportunity to learn about the Stewardship Initiative and to share their ideas regarding how to best protect and preserve the Sound's ecological and recreational resources.

The Stewardship Initiative is a collaborative effort involving public and private organizations. Technical support is provided by Audubon New York, the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Regional Plan Association, Save the Sound, the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Fish & Wildlife Service.

Massachusetts Bays Program's State of the Bayts 2004 report describes current efforts to protect and restore the Bays and provides goals to guide future work.

Massachusetts Bays

The Massachusetts Bays Program (MBP) is currently planning for the Massachusetts Bays Symposium to be held on May 6 and 7, 2004. It has been nearly a decade since the last Massachusetts Bays symposia were held, so the 2004 conference will provide a necessary update on trends and conditions of the Bays and a review of current research. While the conference will look back on a decade of progress, it also aims to strengthen scientific partnerships in order to further the work of protecting and enhancing the health of the Bays.

To complement the symposium, the MBP is developing a State of the Bays 2004 report that will provide the general public with a comprehensive, and comprehendible, report on the conditions of Massachusetts and Cape Cod Bays. The report will also describe efforts currently underway to protect and restore the Bays and provide goals to guide future work.

For the most up-to-date information on the symposium please see the Massachusetts Bays Program website at www.mass.gov/envir/massbays.

Peconic Estuary

The Peconic Estuary Program (PEP) continues to aid towns in acquiring additional vessel waste pump-out boats. By taking advantage of the reimbursement opportunities through Suffolk County's Capital Program and New York's Federally-funded reimbursement program, a municipality can purchase a pump-out boat for 73% off the purchase price. In June 2002, the entire Peconic Estuary was designated as a Vessel Waste No Discharge Zone.

In other program news, the PEP, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, used aerials to inventory and digitize the existing submerged aquatic vegetation and hardened shoreline in the Peconic Estuary. Only 1,550 acres of eelgrass (119 beds) were inventoried - a big difference from the estimated 12,000 acres of eelgrass found throughout the Peconics in the 1930's. Of the estimated 453 miles of shoreline in the Peconic Estuary, approximately 29 miles are hardened and an additional nine miles are docks.

Puget Sound

A sampling of fish and shrimp from Hood Canal that have succumbed to hypoixa, a condition of dangerously low levels of dissolved oxygen. Photo courtesy of Greg Bargmann, Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife

The Puget Sound Action Team (PSAT) and Hood Canal Coordinating Council, which includes tribal and local government officials from around the canal, are taking action to reduce or reverse dangerously low levels of dissolved oxygen in Hood Canal, a fjord-like arm of Puget Sound that extends south about 60 miles from its mouth near the Strait of Juan de Fuca. During the past several years, Hood Canal has suffered from extremely low levels of dissolved oxygen extending over a broader area and lasting longer each year, creating a crisis for fish and other aquatic life. Nutrients in the water from human and pet waste, stormwater runoff, and fertilizer have contributed to plankton and algae blooms that decompose and rob the water of oxygen. Ocean conditions as well as Hood Canal's poor water circulation and flushing also contribute to the low-oxygen levels. In April, the organizations will complete a preliminary corrective actions plan that will identify and set priorities for the sources of nutrient pollution and solutions to decrease the human-related nutrients that are entering the canal. Then, this spring the Action Team will award funding to local entities to put the plan into action. Look for more information about Hood Canal on the Action Team's Web site at www.psp.wa.gov.

In other program news, the PSAT partnership recently completed a public review of priority issues and activities to protect and restore Puget Sound. Staff are now reviewing comments on the draft 2005-2007 Puget Sound Priorities, a document that will set the conservation objectives to inform and guide the work of 10 state agencies, two university programs and the Action Team staff during the state's 2005-2007 budget cycle. The Puget Sound Priorities will steer partnership activities towards very specific work, such as managing stormwater runoff, restoring habitat for fish, reducing toxic discharges, and recovering killer whales. The final plan is expected to be completed in fall 2004 and will focus state government work by detailing measurable actions, as well as expected results to improve the water quality and habitats for fish, marine animals and other aquatic life in Puget Sound. The plan will also call out some Soundwide recommended actions to be completed by the 113 cities and 12 counties in the region.

To review the draft plan visit: www.psp.wa.gov/Publications/priorities_05/Priorities_05_review.htm

Tillamook Bay

Tillamook Estuaries Partnership (TEP) Director, Mark Trenholm, joined two representatives from the Wild Salmon Center and another from Oregon Trout on a ten day trip to Sakhalin Island, Russia. The trip was part of an effort led by the Portland, Oregon-based Wild Salmon Center, a non-profit organization working to improve the management of wild salmonid populations throughout the Pacific rim.

Native fish populations on Sakhalin Island are under threat from poaching, habitat loss, and a lack of local understanding of salmonid life histories and habitat needs. The purpose of the trip was to work with local stakeholders to improve wild fish management and increase advocacy for the protection of wild stocks. Towards these ends, the group promoted the use of partnerships in watershed planning and encouraged environmental education that focused on salmonids and aquatic health.
As a National Estuary Project, TEP was uniquely suited to assist the project because of its experience in collaborative resource management. The TEP Director met with government officials to discuss how public-private partnerships and community-based decision making benefit both local institutions and the resources that they manage. He also met with several groups of educators and school administrators to discuss the TEP's education programs, which focus in large part on salmonids, habitat protection, and community stewardship.

The project was funded under a grant from the Foundation for Russian and American Economic Cooperation and USAID.