Science in Support of West Coast Ecosystem Management

Transcription

1 Science in Support of West Coast Ecosystem Management Frank Schwing, PhD Deputy Science and Research Director (Acting) Southwest Fisheries Science Center swfsc.noaa.gov

2 NOAA Fisheries Service Southwest Fisheries Science Center Who is NOAA s Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC)? NOAA is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, part of the Department of Commerce National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) - one of five NOAA Line Offices, whose mission is to promote sustainable fisheries and the recovery of protected species NMFS operates six Fisheries Science Centers nationally; associated with six Fishery Regions, eight Fishery Management Councils The SWFSC is responsible for generating scientific information for the conservation and management of marine ecosystems and their living resources (extracted and protected) U.S. west coast, throughout the Pacific Ocean and in the Southern Ocean off Antarctica 2

3 SWFSC - Who We Are ~ 300 Federal employees, Contractors Post-Docs, and Students Center Directorate Operations, Management & Information Division Antarctic Ecosystem Research Division Protected Resources Division Fishery Resources Division Environmental Research Division Fisheries Ecology Division 3

4 SWFSC - Partnerships Co-located Partnerships Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission California Department of Fish and Game Other NOAA Line Offices Academic Partnerships Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC at San Diego University of California at Santa Cruz, Davis California State University at San Diego, Los Angeles, Humboldt Naval Postgraduate School University of Hawaii Adjunct professorships and student advisors Other Partnerships Other Federal and regional agencies Industry (commercial & recreational) NGOs 4

5 Facilities La Jolla Pacific Grove Santa Cruz 5

6 Our Mission and Drivers Provide science-based advice for the conservation and management of living marine resources Over 100 legislative and regulatory requirements Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management Reauthorization Act (MSRA) Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) Endangered Species Act (ESA) International fishery management agreements IATTC, CCAMLR, WCPFC, ISC NOAA MISSION GOAL: Protect, Restore, and Manage the Use of Coastal al and Ocean Resources Through an Ecosystem Approach to Management 6

7 Programs/Drivers CA Demersal Species -- MSRA CA Anadromous Species -- ESA, MSRA Coastal Pelagic Species -- MSRA Abalone -- ESA Highly Migratory Species -- MSRA, ISC, IATTC, WCPFC Marine Mammals -- MMPA, ESA Marine Turtles -- ESA Antarctic Ecosystem -- CCAMLR Integrated Ecosystem Assessments -- All 7

8 What We Do Provide science-based advice for management of living marine resource Conduct research on biological and ecological processes and on observing technologies Conduct scientific monitoring of ecosystems Provide forecasts of climate change impacts on living marine resources and their ecosystems Serve 3+ terabytes of ocean data to public World s largest archive of marine mammal & turtle samples Provide outreach to 10,000+ annually 8

9 What We Do 9

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11 National Ocean Policy Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force was created by Presidential Memorandum on June 12, 2009, to develop a national policy for the ocean, our coasts, and the Great Lakes The Task Force will develop recommendations: A national policy for our oceans, coasts and the Great Lakes A framework for policy coordination to improve ocean stewardship An implementation strategy to meet national policy objectives A framework for coastal and marine spatial planning Within 180 days, develop a recommended spatial planning framework 11

12 National Ocean Policy Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force Interim Report released 17 September for 30-day public review and comment period Proposes comprehensive national approach to uphold our stewardship responsibilities and ensure accountability for our actions Outlines a more balanced, productive and sustainable approach to our ocean resources Highlights three key areas: A National Policy A Robust Governance Structure Nine categories for Action The Interim Report may be found at nterim_report_of_task_force_final2.pdf 12

13 Ecosystem-based Management Ecosystem approaches to management use integrated approaches to study and manage the resources of an entire ecosystem. This approach considers the cumulative impacts from various sources and the balance of conflicting uses. NOAA s ecosystem approach to management is: Adaptive Collaborative and voluntary Incremental Regionally directed Adaptable given ecosystem knowledge and uncertainty Inclusive of multiple external influences 13

14 Ecosystem-Based Management Support Management of Fishing stocks Single Sector Assessment Integrated Ecosystem Assessment (IEA) Assesses individual species. Narrow perspective and spatial scale. Short-term (1-yr) perspective. Humans are independent of ecosystem. Conservative resource management. Single use observations. Provides a big picture of an ecosystem. Broad perspective and scale. Long-term perspective. Human impacts considered in models. Adaptive and integrated management. Shared and standardized observations. 14

15 Integrated Ecosystem Assessments A formal synthesis and quantitative analysis of information on relevant natural and socioeconomic factors relative to specified ecosystem management goals. (Levin et al. 2008) Scientific basis for evaluating the benefits and risks of human activity and proposed management options to marine ecosystems and the social systems that depend on them Incorporate climate change and environmental variability into management decisions Process to implement ecosystem based approaches to management Tool to address multi-sector issues, through spatial planning 15

16 Dimensions and Outcomes of IEAs An IEA addresses five dimensions: Status of the topic being considered Causes and consequences of the status Forecast of future status with and without management action Costs and benefits of possible management actions Evaluation of past management actions success or failure A successful IEA: Responds to policy-relevant questions Quantitatively identifies uncertainties in existing data and information Includes public participation and peer review Integrates data across multiple disciplines Uses existing high-quality data and information Forecasts future conditions and outcomes Data Acquisition Monitoring of Ecosystem Indicators Scoping Identify goals of EBM EAM and threats to achieving goals Develop ecosystem indicators and targets Risk Analysis Characterization of Characterization of susceptibility to resiliency to perturbation perturbation Assessment of ecosystem status relative to EAM EBM goals Management Actions 16

17 REGIONAL DIMENSIONS: Determining the appropriate space and time scales for IEAs Mid-Atlantic Bight Scotian Gulf of Maine Shelf Slope Water Georges Bank LME > Sub-Region > Local Area Data systems should allow hierarchical assessment [political and management boundaries need to be accommodated]

18 Recent Highlights Puget Sound IEA approach being used to inform the Puget Sound Partnership and the 2020 Action Agenda California Current scoping meeting with NOAA west coast resource managers initial report completed for integrated assessment used to guide salmon management FY10 pilot Management Strategy Evaluations informing Pacific FMC about IEA process and opportunities West Coast Governors Agreement on Ocean Health California Ocean Protection Council Development of data catalog Creation of virtual Data Assembly Center

19 Private (PI) access to all animal tracks along with environmental data Download a variety of environmental data along with the track as images or Text View in Google Earth 19

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21 Next Steps - FY10 and beyond Use integrated data system to develop specific regional IEA actions Puget Sound, CA Current pelagics, fisheries management, ecosystem health, Protected Resources, Sanctuary resources Increase number of data sets publicly available in virtual Data Assembly Center (vdac) Modify data services software to provide enhanced integration with selected national and Regional data services Prototype operational implementation of services into IEA models and analyses for the California Current Expand CC tool box - data services, analysis and visualization, models Dashboard features > PDA apps for managers 21

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24 Integrated Ecosystem Assessments Current Focus Complete framework for data management and integration, & ecosystem models Operational IEA within the California Current Identify and prioritize data gaps Develop integrative indicators of current and future ecosystem status Inform and evaluate outcomes of management actions Develop ability to forecast outcomes of future management options Future Focus Transfer data and modeling frameworks to additional regional ecosystems 24

25 Research Highlights Biological, Economic and Oceanographic Research CalCOFI 57-year collaboration with SIO and California Fish & Game to study the fishery resources of the California Current ecosystem (e.g., sardine) Advanced Survey Technologies - design new methods for surveying fish and essential habitat (e.g., rockfish CA #1 recreational fishery) Marine Mammals distribution, abundance and studies of recovery in the eastern tropical Pacific and U.S. West Coast Marine Turtles - San Diego Bay and trans-pacific tagging and tracking and conservation economics Antarctica the U.S. s only ecosystem-based program for management of Antarctic resources (krill, and krill predators such as penguins) Facilities Aquaria, ROV/AUV lab, FSV David Starr Jordan (MarFac), world s largest collections of ichthyoplankton, marine mammal and marine turtle specimens for genetic studies Research Partners Scripps Institution of Oceanography, California Department of Fish & Game, Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission, American Fisheries Research Association, California Sportfishing Association 25

26 California Current Eastern Tropical Pacific Scotia Sea 26

27 Everything begins at sea with data and specimen collection Averaging ~550 days at sea every year Averaging ~270 hours airtime 100% requirement ~950 days at sea, ~600 hours airtime 27

28 Other Platforms 28

29 Cuvier s Beaked Whales in Area of Concern 29