About this Project: Improving Great Lakes Coastal Recreational Water-Quality Monitoring and Forecasting
This project "Improving Great Lakes Coastal Recreational Water-Quality Monitoring and Forecasting" is part of the Ocean Research Priorities Plan (ORPP) of the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Joint Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology (JSOST). It addresses the ORPP near-term priority of “Forecasting the Response of Coastal Ecosystems to Persistent Forcing and Extreme Events” and is to be implemented over the next 5 years.
The ORPP defines research priorities that focus on understanding critical ocean processes and interactions and applying that understanding toward stewardship and responsible use of the oceans and the Great Lakes.
Project Description
This project will link with NOAA’s Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS), the National Water Quality Monitoring Network, and the Great Lakes Regional Collaboration. Partners include federal, state, local and non-governmental entities. Satellite photo by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The goal of this study "Improving Great Lakes Coastal Recreational Water-Quality Monitoring and Forecasting" is to advance the science of monitoring and
assessing recreational water quality to provide beach managers with
reliable, science-based information to make well-informed beach closure
decisions to protect public health.
The project will focus on:
- Identifying and evaluating new or rapid methods to improve monitoring of bacteria at beaches.
- Identifying physical and biological processes that influence the occurrence and abundance of key bacteria and pathogens that pose risks to recreational users of beaches and nearshore waters.
- Enhancing models and expanding model scope and application to improve forecasts of water quality and support more timely and effective public health warnings, advisories, and beach closures.
- Improving communication of monitoring and scientific information and developing tools to enhance response of beach managers to changing beach and water quality.
Benefits of using data from this project:
- Improve and refine existing forecasting models, develop models for additional beaches
- Provide the tools and training to transfer current modeling techniques to local beach managers.
- Develop regionalized nowcast models for selected coastlines.
- Gain improved understanding of and identify new observations or potential sensor parameters for fecal indicators and selected human-pathogenic organisms at beaches that are associated with coastal processes.
- Collaborate with organizations such as the Great Lakes Observing System (GLOS), beach information outlets such as the Great Lakes Beach Association (GLBA) and the Beach Network, and programs such as the National Water Quality Monitoring Network (NWQMN)
- Ensure that real-time beach health information, complementary data, and study findings are utilized to the fullest potential and made widely available to the public.
 Background
In 2000, Congress tasked the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy (USCOP) to investigate and provide recommendations for a “coordinated and comprehensive national ocean policy.”
In July 2004, the USCOP published An Ocean Blueprint for the 21st Century with more than 200 recommendations, developed based on extensive hearings, written input, and public comment. In December 2004, upon consideration of these recommendations, the Bush Administration released the U.S. Ocean Action Plan (OAP). This broad plan proposed a fundamental restructuring of ocean governance, research, and management intended to “engender responsible use and stewardship of ocean and coastal resources for the benefit of all Americans.”
In order to help identify the most important research challenges and opportunities, and to develop a coordinated response strategy, the OAP called for the National Science and Technology Council’s Joint Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology (JSOST) to prepare an Ocean Research Priorities Plan and Implementation Strategy, using a transparent process that included input from the ocean research community.
 Project Partnership and Collaboration
The beach health research needs being addressed for this project were identified by partners at the 2005 Great Lakes Beach Health Research Needs Workshop sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Great Lakes Beach Association (GLBA).
To continue this partnership, a project steering committee consisting of key partners will:
- Provide input and guidance on research direction for this project.
- Facilitate transition of research to user applications.
- Communicate Great Lakes coastal research needs and move a science strategy forward to address beach recreational water quality issues in the Great Lakes region.
- Increase awareness of coastal water-quality issues to build support for
monitoring, research and collaborative development of decision-support tools.
Funding
This project is funded by the USGS Coastal and Marine Geology Program in support of the interagency implementation of the ORPP near-term priorities.
Contact Information
Dr. Richard L. Whitman, Project Manager
USGS Great Lakes Science Center, Lake Michigan Ecological Station
Indiana Dunes, Porter, IN
(219) 926-8336
rwhitman@usgs.gov
Sources:
- Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Committee on Ocean Policy. "Ocean Research Priorities Plan and Implementation Strategy." Online at: http://ocean.ceq.gov/about/sup_jsost_prioritiesplan.html
- Project Fact Sheet. "U.S. Ocean Action Plan Ocean Research Priorities Plan-Great Lakes
Research Project: Improving Great Lakes Coastal Recreational Water-Quality Monitoring and Forecasting." Dated 31 March 2008. Online at: ORPP factsheet_31Mar08.pdf
- Home page images source:
- SeaWiFS Project http://veimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/793/S2000115180940.png
- SeaWiFS Project http://veimages.gsfc.nasa.gov//1244/S1999114182039.png
- SeaWiFS Project http://veimages.gsfc.nasa.gov/6591/GreatLakes.A2004096.1825.1km.jpg
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U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey
