National MPA Center Projects

Projects

• Analysis of Marine Protected Areas:Using data from the Marine Protected Areas Inventory, the MPA Center has completed an analysis on the nearly 1,700 MPAs that currently exist in the U.S. Some interesting facts and trends have been revealed by this analysis. For example, about one-third of all U.S. waters are in some form of MPA. Nearly all U.S. MPAs are multiple use and allow a variety of human activities, including fishing and other extractive uses. In contrast, only 10% of all U.S. MPAs are no-take areas. This analysis of existing MPAs reveals important trends in how place-based management helps manage and conserve the nation’s marine resources and ecosystems
  
  
• Marine Protected Areas Inventory: Drawing from data collected through the analysis of marine managed areas, the MPA Center has developed a comprehensive inventory of the nation's marine protected areas - a more exclusive category of place-based management. The inventory contains a range of information on each marine protected area established or managed by federal, state, or territorial agencies or programs, and will be used to identify existing sites and/or programs that meet the criteria for nomination to the national system and inclusion on the subsequent List of MPAs.
  
  
• Inventory of De Facto MPAs: The MPA Center has begun a comprehensive national inventory and assessment of de facto MPAs—areas closed to some or all uses for purposes other than conservation. Familiar examples include military operations areas, security zones, pipeline and cable corridors, munitions dumps, etc. When combined with the inventory of more traditional MPAs, this information will allow a complete assessment of existing restrictions to access and use in U.S. waters.
  
  
• West Coast Pilot: The MPA Center is leading a collaborative initiative to pilot key methods and approaches for developing a regional system of MPAs on the west coast (California, Oregon, and Washington). This involves developing, testing, and applying analytical tools, and gathering the best information, including science-based data and traditional ecological knowledge, to better understand how to more effectively use MPAs to sustain healthy marine environments. The West Coast Pilot is an unprecedented effort that requires core partnerships among the region’s federal, state, and tribal government agencies. Key NOAA partners include the National Marine Sanctuary Program, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, and Fisheries. In addition, the participation of the following regional partners is instrumental to the effort’s success: the Department of the Interior’s National Park Service and Fish and Wildlife Service; the National Estuarine Research Reserves System; the Pacific Fishery Management Council; academic institutions; and other non-governmental organizations.
  
  
• West Coast Pilot -- Ecological Characterization: The goal of this project is to provide comprehensive natural resource data to support an ecosystem approach for developing a regional system of MPAs on the west coast. Project objectives include developing methodology to characterize natural resources, developing knowledge and products on the distribution and ecology of living marine resources, developing partnerships, and provide resource managers, scientists, and the public with an improved ecosystem basis for decision-making. Several products are expected to result, including an atlas, linkages report, and a synthesized report.
  
  
• West Coast Pilot -- Marine Cultural Resources: The main goal of this project is to define a standardized inventory of marine cultural resources used for integrated planning. This information can be shared across agency and jurisdictional boundaries. Products expected to result from this project include a multi-layered atlas, tools for assessing historical and cultural connectivity, and tools for identifying marine cultural resources that are sensitive to changed induced through natural or human actions.
  
  
• West Coast Pilot -- Patterns and Impacts of Human Use: This project is designed to document the connections between people and the marine environment in order to inform regional, place-based, ecosystem approaches to management. Project objectives include identifying and collecting existing data, developing a GIS database for storage and analysis purposes, and developing a participatory method and approach for gathering new data on human activities to fill gaps in existing data. The results will aid future efforts to identify location where use patterns pose a potential threat to resource, the categories of user groups that need to be engaged in participatory management, user conflicts and equity issues that may need to be addressed, and the socioeconomic importance of activities to communities.
  
  
• West Coast Pilot -- Governance Framework: The goal of this project is to develop a comprehensive overview of MPA policy authorities at the international, federal, state, and tribal levels. Products that will result include a searchable database of existing legislation and GIS for west coast MPA jurisdictions.
  
  
• Vertical Zoning in MPAs and Understanding Benthic-Pelagic Linkages: Vertical zoning is an emerging topic in MPA design and management. It is the allocation of certain human uses, such as surface trolling for tunas and salmon, within specific depth zones in the water column that are consistent with the goals of the MPA. In order to apply vertical zoning appropriately, it is crucial to understand when and where interactions occur among benthic and pelagic communities. To begin to discuss this issue, the MPA Center gathered a group of anglers, managers, and researchers to explore the current state of knowledge on benthic-pelagic linkages. The group came up with a series of unanimous recommendations for vertical zoning, which can be found here.
  
  
• Integrating Fisheries and MPA Science: In order to better understand how fisheries impact ecosystem function with MPAs and how MPAs impact fisheries objectives, the MPA Center has been working with a group of fisheries and conservation biologists, sociologists, and economists to develop scientific information that can be integrated with conventional fisheries management strategies. The group has been divided into teams that include fisheries (MPA/ecosystem), connectivity, and natural heritage. Products expected to result from these working groups include a series of peer-reviewed papers and reports and conceptual framework to improve the integrative management of fisheries and MPAs.
  
  
• U.S. Coast Pilot Series: Navigating MPAs: Working with NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey, the MPA Center is incorporating key information about the location, purpose, and allowable activities in existing MPAs into NOAA’s navigational charts and products. By better informing maritime users about MPAs, this information will lead to greater protection and awareness.

Products and Reports
National MPA Social Science Research Strategy
National MPA Social Science Research Strategy Brochure
U.S. Caribbean and South Florida Regional Priorities for Social Science Research on Marine Protected Areas
U.S. Pacific Islands Regional Priorities for Social Science Research on Marine Protected Areas
Pacific Coast Regional Priorities for Social Science Research on Marine Protected Areas
South Atlantic Regional Priorities for Social Science Research on Marine Protected Areas
Fact Sheets on West Coast Pilot Components and Projects

For More Information:
Charles M. Wahle, Ph.D.

(831) 242-2052
Fax: (831) 242-2051
Charles.Wahle@noaa.gov