Site selection is the most important step in assuring the success of eelgrass restoration projects.
In this output from the site selection model, green areas, followed by yellow, indicate the best locations to run test transplants for eelgrass restoration. Red signifies a reduced potential for transplanting success, and purple identifies areas of existing eelgrass beds.
Location, Location
Spatial model helps identify the most promising locations for eelgrass restoration projects.
Challenge
Location, location, location—the mantra of real estate brokers could easily be echoed by coastal managers engaged in the costly and time-consuming process of eelgrass (Zostera marina) restoration. Thriving eelgrass habitat is essential to the health of many coastal and estuarine ecosystems. Unfortunately pollution, wasting disease, and other causes have taken their toll on these plant populations. Whether a restoration project involves seeding or transplanting, its success depends on selecting the right location, one with conditions favorable to eelgrass growth.
Approach
With a grant from CICEET, researchers from the University of New Hampshire have developed the Eelgrass Restoration Site Selection Model. This GIS spatial computer model allows coastal managers to rank the potential of different sites in an estuary for eelgrass restoration, thereby maximizing the impact of their financial and operational resources.
The model synthesizes previously collected data on bathymetry, sediment type, water quality, and wave exposure (which the model develops from wind data), as well as past and present eelgrass distribution. These parameters are combined in a multiplicative index that identifies and prioritizes locations for eelgrass restoration. Users can then develop maps that locate the ranked areas within an estuary.
Now formatted on CD, the model will run on any PC equipped with PERL software, and Macintosh computers loaded with Virtual PC. If a GIS program is available, output files can be directly transferred into GIS files. If a GIS program is not available, users can output files for processing in a graphic software package. The CD includes instructions on how to run the program, an example of how the model can be applied, and instructions on how to apply the tool to a specific location.
Impact
More than 450 copies of the site selection model CD were distributed in the U.S. and abroad in late 2005. Recipients included scientists and managers from academia, federal and state management agencies, the National Estuarine Research Reserve System, non-profit environmental groups, National Estuary Programs, and local, county, and regional planners.
The Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management Office is currently applying the model to the Annisquam River; a University of Maryland researcher is deploying it in Chesapeake Bay; and the Eelgrass Project of the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries is applying it in the Boston Harbor restoration.
Learn More
For a free copy of the model:
Mr. Steve Bliven
Bliven & Sternack
T: 508.997.3826
E: Steve.Bliven@comcast.net
For more on the science behind the model:
Dr. Fred Short
University of New Hampshire
T: 603.862.5134
E: fred.short@unh.edu
Related Projects
Density-Dependent Effect on Grazing and Success of Seed Generated Seagrass Plants: [Bulletin]
Early Detection of Nutrient Over-Enrichment Using Eelgrass Community Response: [Progress Report]