Browsing by Author "Bruce, Molly"
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Item Open Access Passive Ecosystem Monitoring: Developing UAS-based monitoring methodologies for tidal wetlands in the NERR System(2021-04-30) Bruce, MollyTidal wetlands perform vital ecosystem services. However, these wetlands confront anthropogenic and natural stressors that are actively contributing to their degradation. In an effort to safeguard tidal wetlands and the ecosystem services they provide, the National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) system developed a System-Wide Monitoring Program (SWMP) intent on assessing impacts to tidal wetlands and, where possible, addressing those impacts. The NERR system SWMP has identified gaps in its current field-based and satellite-based monitoring methodologies—gaps that unoccupied aerial systems (UAS) are uniquely poised to fill. However, NERR system managers lack the expertise necessary to develop rigorous and reliable UAS-based data collection and data analysis workflows upon which reserve managers can rely as they continue to study tidal wetlands. Furthermore, because UAS technology is relatively young, scientific publications for which UASs have been used typically do not discuss data collection and data analysis methodologies in adequate detail for consumers of these publications to replicate, reserve managers included. This project relies on rapidly-deployed aerial surveys of several tidal wetlands proximate to Beaufort, North Carolina in order to develop data collection and data analysis workflows. This project employs an iterative data collection and data analysis process in order to improve these workflows. These workflows will help the NERR system managers in North Carolina and beyond monitor and protect tidal wetlands and the ecosystem services they provide.Item Open Access State of the Coast: A Review of Coastal Management Policies for Six States(2023-01-17) Karasik, Rachel; Pickle, Amy; O’Shea, Maggie; Reilly, Kelly; Bruce, Molly; Earnhardt, Rachel; Ahmed, IqraThis analysis of coastal habitat policy in six US states—California, Florida, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Texas, and Washington—aims to identify promising policy approaches for improved protection and restoration of oyster reefs, mangroves, salt marshes, and seagrass. Coastal habitats provide critical environmental, economic, and recreational services valued at billions of dollars in the United States alone. However, the quantity and quality of most coastal habitats have been under decline for centuries due to a variety of threats. Coordinated policy responses across levels of government are required for protection and restoration of coastal habitats because they do not have discrete jurisdictional boundaries and are often harmed by distant anthropogenic activities. The analysis finds that state-level management is principally guided by federal coastal protection and management statutes, namely the Clean Water Act and Coastal Zone Management Act. State and federal policies are rarely habitat-specific and do not comprehensively address threats, which can result in a fragmented policy landscape that struggles to meet habitat protection and restoration goals. With limited long-term monitoring data and few effectiveness studies, our ability to understand which policy levers work and the extent to which they can be replicated in other states is limited. A successful path forward may be found through local initiatives tailored and designed for their local context that have effectively restored degraded habitats and employed innovative regulatory mechanisms intended to streamline the permitting process for restoration. Dedicated funding for sustained, long-term monitoring to best understand the effects and outcomes of habitat protection and restoration policy efforts will also be critical to identify enabling conditions and replicate effective measures in similar contexts. The Pew Charitable Trusts supported the development of this report. Pew is not responsible for any inaccuracies and does not necessarily endorse the findings.