Progress Report

CICEET Progress Report for the period 9/01/01 through 1/31/02

Project Title: Refinement of Bacterial Growth Efficiency as an Index of Salt Marsh Ecological Function
Principal Investigator(s): Roger I. E. Newell, Paul del Giorgio

Accomplishments
Scheduled Tasks:

  1. The two restoration marshes, adjacent natural marsh, and open Bay sites in New Jersey will be sampled to allow us to follow Bacterial Growth Efficiency (BGE) in the marshes for a further year. This will allow us to document changes in BGE for a total of 6 y as restoration progresses in these marshes. This sampling will also provide information on any possible seasonality in BGE in natural marshes.
  2. Write a technical manual documenting our methodology in sufficient detail that it can be used by others to measure BGE using our procedures.
  3. Obtain existing environmental monitoring data for plant and animal abundances in the restoration and reference mashes. These data have been collected by various investigators and consultants contracted by PSE&G as part of the permit agreements required by these mitigation projects. Compare these assessments of salt marsh restoration success to our measurement of BGE in the restoration and reference marshes over the 6 y for which we have data.

Progress on Tasks

  1. The first of the field sampling trips is scheduled for that last week of March 2002
  2. The methods manual has been written in part.
  3. The first meeting to obtain data from other investigators working in these same restoration marshes is scheduled for the first week of April 2002.

Difficulties Encountered
None

Anticipated Success in Meeting Project Objectives in Scheduled Project Period
We anticipate that we will be able to meet the scheduled objectives.

Tasks and activities for next reporting period

Tasks for the next reporting period

  1. Continue the field trips to bring back water samples for laboratory incubations to measure BGE
  2. Complete the writing of the methods manual
  3. Obtain all data from other investigators working in these same restoration marshes.
  4. Compare the patterns that we have measured for BGE during the salt marsh restoration processes with the data obtained from other investigators for other indicators of salt marsh function.

Concerns or difficulties
None

Expenditures
In no budget categories are expenditures exceeding estimates.