Cumberland Island research program

Cofer-Shabica, Stephen; National Park Service; Department of Navy

This unpublished report lists the different research projects and respective costs to be conducted by the National Park Service and the Department of Navy with regards to the construction and channel development of the Kings Bay Naval Trident Submarine Base and St. Marys River Entrance. Construction of coastal engineering works and channel dredging over the past 100 years have had noticeable effects on the St. Mary's River Entrance and Cumberland and Amelia Islands. The additional construction and channel development at the Kings Bay Naval Trident Submarine Base and further deepening of the channel through St. Marys River Entrance may have significant impacts on the resources of Cumberland Island and Cumberland Sound estuary. The potential biophysical impacts of this construction project will be evaluated by the National Park Service through the following series of research projects: 1. Assessment of Changes of Cumberland Island Marsh, Mudflat and Tidal Creek Morphology and Sediment Accretion Rates, 2. Assessment of Health and Population Dynamics of Bivalve Populations, 3. Geographic Information System: Implementation and oatManagement, 4. Assessment of the Groundwater Hydrology in the Vicinity of the King's Bay Ship Channel, and 5. Rare and Endangered Species Survey: Manatee Movements and Foraging in Cumberland Sound. The Navy, through the Corps of Engineers, will monitor the physical aspects of the ocean shoreline of Cumberland and Amelia Islands and the Cumberland Sound estuary. This research consists of th following studies: 1. Coastal Monitoring research will provide information which can be used to establish the effects of Navy construction activities on shoreline processes, and 2. Estuarine Monitoring will provide a data base which can be used to establish the effects of project dredging on estuarine resource and processes.