NOAA Coastal Services Center
2234 South Hobson Avenue
Charleston, SC 29405-2413
843-740-1200 (phone) • 843-740-1224 (fax)
West CoastProducts and services for the West Coast often originate through the efforts of the NOAA Coastal Services Center's regional offices. For more information, e-mail westcoast-region@csc.noaa.gov. Regional ProjectsLiterature Review for the West Coast Regional Needs AssessmentThis literature review focuses on needs in the West Coast region associated with ecosystem-based management, resilience to coastal hazards, and data and information access and usability. The review is the foundation of a greater needs assessment effort within the region, which will confirm priority regional needs among the coastal resource management community. The Center is developing recommendations on how to better tailor services to meet these needs, as well as outlining the services and expertise available from other NOAA programs. Legislative AtlasThis Web-based legislative mapping tool provides coastal resource managers with easy access to coastal legislative data and information. In 2008 the Legislative Atlas team added additional legislative information for the three regions represented in the atlas-Hawaii, West Coast, and the Gulf of Maine. This added information included both federal and state regulations. The legislative query tool is also being redesigned according to user input. Needs Assessment and Social Science Tools Coordination and Technical AssistanceSurveys, needs assessments, and other social science-related tools are useful in gathering information and making informed decisions about coastal issues. The Center provides coastal managers and communities with technical assistance in the use of social science tools. Current projects include looking at the impacts of climate change on the West Coast and meeting the needs of the Pacific Island communities. The Center provides support in the form of technical assistance with survey design and analysis and for the facilitation of meetings, workshops, and stakeholder engagement in projects across the country. An economics primer and other guidance documents are also being developed. NOAA Regional Collaboration SupportNOAA is furthering its commitment to providing relevant products and services to the nation. The Center has one or more members on five of the eight regional teams, including NOAA Western (other regions are Gulf of Mexico, North Atlantic, Pacific, and Southeast and Caribbean). These teams serve to keep attuned to customer needs and deliver applicable NOAA products and services. The Center also serves on two of NOAA's four priority area task teams (hazard-resilient communities and outreach and communications). Regional Ocean Governance Support: West Coast Governors' Agreement on Ocean HealthRegional ocean governance is a strategy for managing ocean and coastal resources in a more holistic ecosystem-based manner. Operating across local, state, and federal jurisdictional boundaries, the process is coordinated by regional ocean governing bodies, providing the framework, mechanisms, and incentives that state and federal agencies need to coordinate their management efforts. The Center offers support for three regional ocean governing bodies: Gulf of Mexico Alliance, the Northeast Regional Ocean Council and the West Coast Governors' Agreement on Ocean Health. Resource Managers and the Restoration Community WebsiteThe Center is working with the Northwest Fisheries Science Center to design and develop a website that provides the latest data and information on land use change in the Pacific Northwest and its impacts on coho salmon populations. The website aims to provide information that can influence resource management decisions and guide restoration planning efforts. West Coast Ecosystem-Based Management NetworkA number of programs working to practice ecosystem-based management principles are facing common challenges. Six West Coast communities are identifying common goals and challenges, sharing lessons learned, and working jointly toward implementing ecosystem practices. The Center is helping build a collaborative network among these participants, scoping common issues, and identifying existing tools, information, and research, including social science information, to meet these needs. CaliforniaCoastal Elevation MappingThe Center works with state and local officials to collect and distribute high-resolution topographic and bathymetric data sets. The Center worked with the private sector to acquire new light detection and ranging (lidar) data for coastal management applications such as the analysis of storm surge and storm inundation, erosion, and habitat mapping. The Center also worked with state and federal partners to share costs and find multiple uses for coastal lidar data sets. Coastal Management FellowshipThe NOAA Coastal Management Fellowship matches postgraduate students with state coastal zone programs to work on two-year projects proposed by the state. California coastal programs have hosted seven fellows:
Coastal Services MagazineThis bimonthly trade publication focuses on efforts by local, state, and nonprofit organizations to address coastal issues. Recent articles featuring programs in California include
Coastal Storms Program Protecting Communities in Southern CaliforniaThe Coastal Storms Program is developing tools and models and launching new oceanic and atmospheric observation platforms along the coastal region of the bight of Southern California. This includes ecological assessments of aquatic impacts from stormwater runoff, an atmospheric profiler, digital elevation model, precipitation atlas, and decision-support tool. These tools help communities and emergency managers better prepare for and mitigate the effects of coastal hazards. Land Cover MappingNothing provides a big picture view of land cover status better than these maps, which are developed using remote sensing technology. The Center has baseline land cover data for most of the coastal zone. The goal is to update the imagery every five years to also provide a means of detecting change or trends. Legislative AtlasThis Web-based legislative mapping tool provides coastal resource managers with easy access to coastal legislative data and information. In 2008 the Legislative Atlas team added additional legislative information for the three regions represented in the atlas—Hawaii, West Coast, and the Gulf of Maine. This added information included both federal and state regulations. The legislative query tool is also being redesigned according to user input. Nonpoint Source Pollution and Erosion Comparison Tool (N-SPECT) ApplicationsThe Nonpoint-Source Pollution and Erosion Comparison Tool (N-SPECT) is a GIS-based screening tool that models basic hydrologic processes, including overland flow, erosion, and nonpoint source pollution for watersheds. In 2008, assistance was given to Puerto Rico and the states of California, Hawaii, and Texas as they used N-SPECT to estimate runoff in various land cover scenarios. Staff members also work with the Environmental Protection Agency and private-sector groups that want to use N-SPECT with their programs. Northern California Ecosystem Based Management PilotThis pilot project underway in and around Humboldt Bay in northern California has local community members, nonprofits, academics, and government agencies working together to build a strong future for the bay and the people and ecosystems in the area. The Center is supporting this project by providing technical assistance and facilitating communication and data collection. Regional Coastal Water QualityCoastal water quality and nonpoint-source pollution are priority watershed issues for coastal communities. Participation from the Center’s regional staff plays an important role in many of these efforts. In California, staff members provide key support for the development of a statewide water quality education and technical assistance organization, the California Water and Land Use Partnership. Staff members in other regions also provide strategic planning assistance and promote education efforts. San Francisco Bay Subtidal Habitat Goals ProjectAs part of a broader effort to create an ecosystem-based management vision for the region, regional partners are participating in a collaborative effort in the development of research, restoration, and management goals for the bay’s subtidal habitats. This work provides an opportunity to improve the coordination of research, restoration, and resource management activities in the area. Shoreline Data Development, Visualization, and DeliveryThe Center’s constituents have identified shoreline data as a priority need, and they look to the Center for related information and guidance. This project addresses that need by continuing to make historical data available and working with the shoreline change community to develop guidebooks and other resources. In California, the Center is working to provide the state and local GIS technical capacity needed to address shoreline erosion and other natural hazards. Social Assessment Technical AssistanceThis project documents cultural and historical sites and practices related to traditional lifestyles and identifies social and cultural factors that influence community support for coastal conservation. The project is focused on Humboldt Bay, California, and Carabelle, Florida. A regional roundtable of natural resource management professionals, applied social scientists, and allied stakeholders was convened to identify the needed information, as well as related data gaps and applied social science approaches necessary to integrate social and cultural information into ecosystem-based management. TrainingThe Center provides training to the coastal resource managers of the nation in three focus areas: geospatial technology, coastal management, and building process skills. Training can take place at the Center’s training facility for some courses but most often is taken to coastal managers in the field. Recent courses delivered to programs in California include
Weather and Hazards Data ViewerThis Internet mapping tool helps users monitor coastal storms and visualize potential storm impacts and fire-related weather conditions. Regularly updated weather data from the National Weather Service are combined with hazards planning data in a GIS. Users assess hazards by displaying and animating forecasts for weather conditions, including waves, winds, temperature, humidity, and rainfall. OregonCoastal Elevation MappingThe Center works with state and local officials to collect and distribute high-resolution topographic and bathymetric data sets. The Center worked with the private sector to acquire new light detection and ranging (lidar) and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IfSAR) data for coastal management applications such as the analysis of storm surge and storm inundation, erosion, and habitat mapping. The Center also worked with state and federal partners to share costs and find multiple uses for coastal lidar and IfSAR data sets. Coastal Management FellowshipThe NOAA Coastal Management Fellowship matches postgraduate students with state coastal zone programs to work on two-year projects proposed by the state. The Oregon Coastal Management Program has hosted five fellows:
Coastal Services MagazineThis bimonthly trade publication focuses on efforts by local, state, and nonprofit organizations to address coastal issues. Recent articles featuring programs in Oregon include
Coastal Storms Program Protecting Communities in the Pacific NorthwestThe Coastal Storms Program, a cross-NOAA program, is developing tools and models and launching new oceanic and atmospheric observation platforms along the coastal region of the Columbia River Watershed in Oregon and Washington. Included are ecological assessments of aquatic impacts from stormwater runoff, nearshore wave models, a coastal inundation tool, a Columbia River circulation model, a new buoy, and water level gauges. Together these tools will benefit communities and emergency managers by equipping them to better prepare for, and mitigate the effects of, coastal hazards. Coastal Zone ConferenceThe Coastal Zone conference series is the largest and best-known international conference for coastal resource managers. Coastal Zone 07, held July 22 to 26, 2007, in Portland, Oregon, was the 15th installment of the biennial conference. Since 2000, the Center has served as the conference executive secretariat, coordinating the conference logistics, technical program, federal sponsors committee, and local planning committee. The local planning and federal sponsor committees help in shaping overall conference themes and issue areas. Land Cover MappingNothing provides a big picture view of land cover status better than these maps, which are developed using remote sensing technology. The Center has baseline land cover data for most of the coastal zone. The goal is to update the imagery every five years to also provide a means of detecting change or trends. The entire West Coast is being updated in 2008. Legislative AtlasThis Web-based legislative mapping tool provides coastal resource managers with easy access to coastal legislative data and information. In 2008 the Legislative Atlas team added additional legislative information for the three regions represented in the atlas—Hawaii, West Coast, and the Gulf of Maine. This added information included both federal and state regulations. The legislative query tool is also being redesigned according to user input. Oregon Coastal Inundation Visualization ToolThis tool incorporates real-time data collected from the National Data Buoy Center and the National Ocean Service to calculate the combined effect of wave run-up and tides on the beach. This tool allows the user to identify erosion or flooding during a storm. Users can also view information from past storms, such as peak wave and tide heights. Animations of historical inundation are also available through an accompanying website. Storm and Shoreline Products for PractitionersResilience is about building the capacity to “bounce back.” These products enhance community resilience by providing information, resources, and tools relating to coastal storm hazards and shoreline change. Products and services include the following: a storm information website, easy access to hurricane evacuation studies, an expanded hurricane preparedness study for Chatham County, Geogia, including a decision-support tool and model for mapping storm surge zones, and an information guide regarding best management practices for shoreline change. TrainingThe Center provides training to the coastal resource managers of the nation in three focus areas: geospatial technology, coastal management, and building process skills. Training can take place at the Center’s training facility for some courses but most often is taken to coastal managers in the field. Recent courses delivered to programs in Oregon include
WashingtonCoastal Elevation MappingThe Center works with state and local officials to collect and distribute high-resolution topographic and bathymetric data sets. The Center worked with the private sector to acquire new light detection and ranging (lidar) and Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IfSAR) data for coastal management applications such as the analysis of storm surge and storm inundation, erosion, and habitat mapping. The Center also worked with state and federal partners to share costs and find multiple uses for coastal lidar and IfSAR data sets. Coastal Management FellowshipThe NOAA Coastal Management Fellowship matches postgraduate students with state coastal zone programs to work on two-year projects proposed by the state. The Washington State Department of Ecology has hosted four fellows:
Coastal Services MagazineThis bimonthly trade publication focuses on efforts by local, state, and nonprofit organizations to address coastal issues. Recent articles featuring programs in Washington include
Elwha Watershed Information ResourceTwo dams constructed on the Elwha River have blocked the passage of anadromous fish since 1911. The National Park Service will remove these dams in 2009. This website provides a clearinghouse of spatial data and other information to support the future management of this watershed after dam removal. The project also included the creation of a cultural inventory for the Elwha Tribe and an economic baseline report for monitoring conditions after the dam is removed. Land Cover MappingNothing provides a big picture view of land cover status better than these maps, which are developed using remote sensing technology. The Center has baseline land cover data for most of the coastal zone. The goal is to update the imagery every five years to also provide a means of detecting change or trends. The entire West Coast is being updated in 2008. Legislative AtlasThis Web-based legislative mapping tool provides coastal resource managers with easy access to coastal legislative data and information. In 2008 the Legislative Atlas team added additional legislative information for the three regions represented in the atlas—Hawaii, West Coast, and the Gulf of Maine. This added information included both federal and state regulations. The legislative query tool is also being redesigned according to user input. TrainingThe Center provides training to the coastal resource managers of the nation in three focus areas: geospatial technology, coastal management, and building process skills. Training can take place at the Center’s training facility for some courses but most often is taken to coastal managers in the field. Recent courses delivered to programs in Washington include
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NOAA Coastal Services Center
2234 South Hobson Avenue
Charleston, SC 29405-2413
843-740-1200 (phone) • 843-740-1224 (fax)
