# Presentation: 193754

## Water Quality Monitoring in National Marine Sanctuaries

**Water Quality Monitoring in National Marine Sanctuaries**

**National Water Quality Monitoring Council**

**July 26, 2005**
**University of New Hampshire**

## 13 National Marine Sanctuaries and 

- 13 National Marine Sanctuaries and
- 1 Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve

## Slide 3

**Notes:**
TB- cultural, Lake Huron, only freshwater site
Monitor – 1st site
 GR- flat bottom benthic site
FL and FGB – coral reefs
SBNMS - SBNMS is located 25 miles east of Boston, stretches between Cape Ann and Cape Cod at the mouth of Massachusetts Bay. Protects 842-square miles. Averages 100 feet in depth.

## Slide 4

**Notes:**
MB –largest site, 5,000 square miles
HIHW – protects a resource

## The Goals of the

-  _Conserve_ and _protect_ biological and cultural resources
-  Provide _educational_ experiences
-  Underwater _exploration_
-  Allow for _recreational_ opportunities
-  Design and manage marine _reserves_
-  Conduct _science_

**The Goals of the**
**National Marine Sanctuary Program**

**Notes:**
SBNMS

## Slide 6

## Water Quality Monitoring

- Water quality is the physical, chemical and biological constituents of nearshore and marine waters that can be managed or restored to achieve defined standards for ecological function and health.

**Water Quality Monitoring**

**Notes:**
Definition of water quality monitoring in the NMSP

## Water Quality Monitoring

- Each Sanctuary is unique – with its own existing and potential water quality issues
- This diversification calls for different approaches at each Sanctuary when monitoring the water quality
- However, results from all
- activities need to be tied to a
- regional and national level

**Water Quality Monitoring**

**Notes:**
I will talk about WQ monitoring on a national, regional and site-based scale
Each site has its own existing and potential water quality issues
Each site has its own different planning environment, community involvement level, and ability to achieve productive programs and projects related to water quality
A multitude of factors and environmental variables affect water quality

## The Need for Consistency

**The Need for Consistency**
**System Wide Monitoring (SWiM)**

-  Framed around a generalized marine ecosystem and questions applicable to all sanctuaries
-  Consistent design process for ecosystem-based monitoring, addressing site-specific priorities and programmatic issues
-  Standardized reporting schemes for local, network/region, system, issue, and resources

**Notes:**
Although all the sites are different and unique, they are all faced with the same water quality management problem.
SWiM provides qualitative answers
Up until a few years ago monitoring was site based and results didn’t contribute very well to the program/national/larger scale level
There also weren’t many connections between sites so comparisons in status and trends wasn’t easily observed
So we decided that we needed to develop a framework that addresses monitoring on a larger scale. We needed to find a way to standardize and make consistent the monitoring efforts that are taking place throughout the sanctuaries.
A framework—titled the System Wide Monitoring Framework (SWiM) was developed that will create a consistency among the sanctuaries when developing monitoring programs which will allow for a consistency in reporting.
SWiM can be applied at all sanctuaries

## Ecosystem Framework

**LIVING RESOURCES**

***Production***

- Biogenic

- Non-biogenic

***Quantity & Quality***

**WATER**

- Physical attributes

- Contaminants

- Pathogens

***Production***

- Fecundity

- Recruitment

- Growth

**ANTHROPOGENIC INFLUENCES**
**(inputs, alteration, loss) **

- Mechanical

- Runoff, Discharges, Debris

- Removal

***Loss***

- Predation

- Competition

- Disease

- Physical Disturbance

***Loss***

- Physical Disturbance

- Introductions

- Harassment/Disturbance

- Productivity

- Immigration

- Emigration

- Atmospheric Inputs

- Structure

- Contaminants

- Distribution

***Quantity & Quality***

- Population Structure

- Distribution

- Food Web Structure

- Contaminants

**Ecosystem Framework**

**Notes:**
Although each sanctuary has its own, unique attributes, all the sanctuaries have the same ecosystem structure and functions. Therefore, a generalized conceptual framework for a generalized marine ecosystem can be developed.The 3 primary ecosystem components (water, habitats, and living resources) are all effected by the same human influences.
This framework ensures that the system-wide monitoring program accounts for the most important aspects of ecosystem structure and function.

## System Questions

***Living Resources***
-  What is the status of biodiversity and how is it changing?
-  What is the status of environmentally sustainable fishing and how is it changing?
-  What is the status of non-indigenous species and how is it changing?
-  What is the status of key species and how is it changing?
-  What is the condition or health of key species and how is it changing?
-  What are the levels of human activities that may influence living resource quality and how are they changing?
* *
***Maritime Heritage Resources***
-  What is the integrity of maritime archaeological resources and how is it changing?
-  Do maritime archaeological resources pose an environmental hazard and is this threat changing?
-  What are the levels of human activities that may influence maritime archaeological resource quality and how are they changing?

**Notes:**
These questions are asked on a national level
Because there is a common ecosystem framework among all the sanctuaries, it can be assumed that the same basic questions can be applicable when conducting monitoring work.
These questions (that address the 3 primary ecosystem components) should be addressed when developed site-based monitoring programs in all of the sanctuaries.
These questions are a bit generalized, therefore, sub-questions that are more specific can be developed to address specific site issues

## System Questions

* ****Habitats***
-  What is the abundance and distribution of major habitat types and how is it changing?
-  What is the condition of biologically-structured habitats and how is it changing?
-  What are the contaminant concentrations in sanctuary habitats and how are they changing?
-  What are the levels of human activities that may influence habitat quality and how are they changing?
***Water***
-  Are specific or multiple stressors, including changing oceanographic and atmospheric conditions, affecting water quality?
-  What is the eutrophic condition of sanctuary waters and how is it changing?
-  Do sanctuary waters pose risks to human health?
-  What are the levels of human activities that may influence water quality and      how are they changing?

**Notes:**
Because there is a common ecosystem framework among all the sanctuaries, it can be assumed that the same basic questions can be applicable when conducting monitoring work.
These questions (that address the 3 primary ecosystem components) should be addressed when developed site-based monitoring programs in all of the sanctuaries.
These questions are a bit generalized, therefore, sub-questions that are more specific can be developed to address specific site issues

## Design Process

**Design Process**

**Notes:**
Monitoring programs can all be developed in a similar and consistent way.
The first step is “requirements” where priority issues are addressed. The questions mentioned in the previous slide are also addressed. REQUIREMENTS=THREATS AND RESPONSES
“Protocols” are the steps required to implement field sampling programs. PROTOCOLS=WHAT ARE THE GAPS. ARE THE PROJECTS SUFFICIENT? WHAT IS NEEDED TO DETECT TRENDS?
“Observing” is the actual field work. Data and reports are generated which can then be used to make key management issues. OBSERVING=IMPLEMENTATION

## Icon Reporting Scheme

**Icon Reporting Scheme**

**Notes:**
Symbols will be used to report out on the status and trends relating to the 14 questions.
The symbols are easy to understand
The symbols can be applied to all monitoring programs across all sites

## National Coordination of

- The SWiM prototype has been tested at the
- Channel Islands and
- Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuaries

**National Coordination of**
**Water Quality Monitoring Efforts**

**Notes:**
SBNMS

## Regional Coordination: West Coast

-  The NMSP has identified the need to develop a water quality protection framework for the Sanctuaries located on the west coast
-  A Regional Water Quality Coordinator for the west coast has been hired
-  Buoy installation
- - 22 (4 of the 5 WC Sanctuaries)
-  Consistent data collection
-  Currents (ADCP)
-  Temperature profiles

**Regional Coordination: West Coast**

**Notes:**
The west coast is serving as the pilot location for program implementation
Not installed at Cordell Bank
Flourometry and O2 also collected at OCNMS

## Highlighted Monitoring Programs: 

**Plumes and Blooms **
- - Conducted by CINMS, UCSB, Inst. of Comp. Earth System Science
-  Ocean color data
-  3 collection methods:
-  Vessel
-  Aircraft
-  Satellite imagery
-  Monthly collections
-  7 sites in the SB Channel
-  Curriculum for schools

**Highlighted Monitoring Programs: **
**Channel Islands NMS**

- http://www.icess.ucsb.edu/PnB/PnB.html

**Notes:**
High profile water quality monitoring program at CINMS
Sediment plumes and phytoplankton blooms
Partnership with many agencies—federal, academia and private (Coastal Services Center, UCSB, Institute of Computational Earth System Science)
Time series information provides information on surface water color changes
Temperature, salinity, chlorophyll a, phytoplankton, pigment, inorganic nutrients, silica

## Highlighted Monitoring Programs: 

**Water Quality Monitoring Program**
- - Partnership with the Harbor and Outfall Monitoring Program
-  Mass. Water Resources Authority Outfall Pipe opened in September 2000
-  Sampling program for 7 sites
-  WQ Parameters include:
- Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients
- Dissolved Organic Carbon
- Total Dissolved Nitrogen
- Total Dissolved Phosphorous
- Particulate Organic Carbon
- Particulate Organic Nitrogen
- Chlorophyll *a* and Phaeophytin *a*
- Dissolved Oxygen
- Phytoplankton / Zooplankton species

**Highlighted Monitoring Programs: **
**Stellwagen Bank NMS**

**Notes:**
Massachusetts Water Resources Authority
Over 300 million gallons of treated sewage is released daily into Mass. Bay

## Highlighted Monitoring Programs: 

-  Volunteer Program
-  Test water flows into Monterey Bay
-  Nitrate, phosphate, bacteria, copper, chlorine, DO, temperature, conductivity, pH

**Highlighted Monitoring Programs: **
**Monterey Bay NMS**

**Snapshot Day, Urban Watch, First Flush**

**Notes:**
Water quality monitoring at Monterey Bay NMS test waters that flows into Monterey Bay which then greatly effects marine life.

Snapshot Day (in May) that measures the 11 major watersheds and many smaller sub-watersheds that flow into the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary.

Urban Watch is a program which measures water flow into the Sanctuary in dry months when there has been no rainfall and ideally no water should be running into the ocean from our streets.

First Flush is a sampling of the water flowing into the sanctuary during the first rain of the year.

## Application: Education

**Application: Education**

**SIMoN - Sanctuary Integrated Monitoring Network**
-   To initiate basic surveys or characterizations of all
-        habitats and regions within the MBNMS.
-   Establish a series of long-term
-       monitoring efforts to fill in
-       critical gaps.
-   Incredible resource for
-       information online about
-       monitoring efforts in
-       the MBNMS and
-       adjacent watersheds.
-  Online interactive mapping on website!
- _[http://www.mbnms-simon.org/](http://www.mbnms-simon.org/)__ _**	**

**Notes:**
Another program at the Sanctuary is the SIMoN program which stands for the Sanctuary Integrated Monitoring Network.  Our team is busy doing basic surveys in order to characterize all of the habitats within the MBNMS.  They are also tasked with establishing a series of long term monitoring projects in order to fill in critical gaps in information.  Basically they are helping to establish some baseline information and data which will eventually be useful in resource management.

- SIMoN will serve as the model as we work to implement this resource at all sanctuary sites—beginning with the west coast sites.

## Application: Management

**Application: Management**

-  Manage reserves and zones
-  Permitting
-  Update management plans during review process**	**

**Effective Management Relies on Sound Science**

**Notes:**
Another program at the Sanctuary is the SIMoN program which stands for the Sanctuary Integrated Monitoring Network.  Our team is busy doing basic surveys in order to characterize all of the habitats within the MBNMS.  They are also tasked with establishing a series of long term monitoring projects in order to fill in critical gaps in information.  Basically they are helping to establish some baseline information and data which will eventually be useful in resource management.

- SIMoN will serve as the model as we work to implement this resource at all sanctuary sites—beginning with the west coast sites.

## Slide 22