|
Description:
Project Manager:
Joy Smith
Project Years:
2021
2022
2023
Project Summary:
This project was developed to address National and jurisdictional goals to reduce the impacts of land-based sources of pollution (LBSP) in coral reef ecosystems. It seeks to fulfill American Samoa's needs to assess the effectiveness of LBSP watershed management practices, as well as fill critical monitoring gaps while complementing ongoing local monitoring and watershed management efforts. The outline and basic approach for the project are as follows: - Apply analytical techniques to existing coral reef benthic community data (e.g., cover, colony densities, and size) and environmental driver data (e.g., sediment loading, turbidity, and nutrient concentrations) to elucidate the role of physical and biological conditions as drivers/covariates of benthic coral reef community changes within explicit spatial and temporal scales in Faga’alu and Vatia bays. This component is developed to identify the key, site-specific benthic and coral community variables that respond to changes in water quality and can be effectively implemented as bio-indicators of change. - Develop a biological baseline and monitoring strategy for Aua (priority watershed). Data collection includes benthic community composition, demography, and coral condition metrics. Ensure cross-training and collaboration with jurisdictional partners (e.g. NPS, DMWR, Sanctuaries) on benthic sampling approaches/methods to ensure data integration. This baseline will provide the foundation with which to assess the effectiveness of any future management interventions in the Aua watershed. - Research and develop a pilot water quality and carbonate chemistry monitoring protocol that can be incorporated and implemented as part of the National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) sampling in the Pacific. Explore historical nutrient data from previous NCRMP years to help guide future decisions on implementing potential water quality protocol into NCRMP. - Use products from water quality surveys (spatial and temporal gradient) along with the LBSP GIS spatial layer products (i.e., sediment loading and coastal development generated by in 2019) to investigate how these drivers and related gradients modulate patterns of coral reef benthic community structure across several watersheds in American Samoa (including Faga'alu, Vatia, Aua, Fagasa and potentially others -TBD). Work in collaboration with local partners like the American Samoa Coral Reef Advisory Group to incorporate their monitoring data alongside NCRMP benthic monitoring datasets. - Implement outreach activities and products to disseminate project progress and results to resource management practitioners and the community at large.
Expected Outcome:
A number of tangible products are planned:1-Follow-up from CRCP project 31259 "Status and trends assessment for LBSP impacts on reef communities in Faga'alu and Vatia Bay, American Samoa" with a quantitative analysis to determine how environmental factors drive coral reef benthic community patterns and changes in Faga‘alu and Vatia bays. (FY21; Lead: BVA) 2-Conduct baseline benthic surveys for promoting reef conservation in Aua (priority watershed). Data collection includes benthic community composition, demography, and coral condition metrics. (FY22). Also, provide cross-training and collaboration with jurisdictional partners (e.g. NPS, DMWR, Sanctuaries) on benthic sampling approaches/methods to ensure data integration. (FY21-22) 3-Data mining for existing water quality data to identify gaps/outstanding data needs (for Vatia, Faga'alu, and Aua). Develop sampling designs tailored to each area to identify spatial and temporal gradients in water quality. (FY21). Conduct water quality and physical metrics surveys in collaboration with existing efforts currently underway to fill gaps in Aua; and potentially Vatia. (FY22) 4- Develop a pilot water quality sampling protocol that can be incorporated and implemented as part of the existing Pacific NCRMP. Explore historical nutrient data from previous NCMRP years to help guide future decisions on implementing potential water quality protocol into NCRMP (FY22) 5- Quantitative analyses based on products from water quality surveys (spatial and temporal gradient) along with LBSP GIS spatial layer products (i.e., sediment loading and coastal development generated by PIFSC Ecosystem Sciences Division spatial analysts in 2019) to elucidate how these drivers and corresponding gradients impact and determine benthic and coral community structure relevant across watersheds on Tutuila. (FY23) 6-Conduct outreach activities targeted at the local communities and Jurisdictional resource managers to effectively integrate with ongoing management planning and research efforts. Work in collaboration with local partners like CRAG to incorporate their monitoring data alongside NCRMP/ESD benthic monitoring datasets. (FY23)
Project Locations:
Jursdiction Priority Sites:
Project Category:
Land-based Sources of Pollution (LBSP)
Project Status:
Funding Ended
Associated Products:
|
