SOP 9 – Seagrass Condition Monitoring; A Protocol for Monitoring Estuarine Nutrient Enrichment in Coastal Parks of the National Park Service Northeast Region
Kopp BS and Neckles HA. 2009. SOP 9 – Seagrass Condition Monitoring; A Protocol for Monitoring Estuarine Nutrient Enrichment in Coastal Parks of the National Park Service Northeast Region. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
This is an SOP of "A Protocol for Monitoring Estuarine Nutrient Enrichment in Coastal Parks of the National Park Service Northeast Region" (https://irma.nps.gov/App/Reference/Profile/2218712). This SOP describes measurement of seagrass structural characteristics used as early indicators of estuarine condition in response to nutrient enrichment. The goal here is neither to evaluate the overall condition of seagrass resources within NPS Northeast Region (NER) coastal parks, nor to detect early loss of seagrasses on a park-wide scale. The sampling design is inappropriate to address these questions. Instead, this SOP describes an efficient approach to using targeted seagrass monitoring as an indicator of estuarine nutrient enrichment. The monitoring protocol is based on population- and shoot-based measures of seagrass condition, as well as important ancillary variables that influence seagrass responses to nutrient load. Procedures are derived from the SeagrassNet protocol for global seagrass monitoring (www.seagrassnet.org), a program designed to investigate and document the status and trends of seagrass resources around the world. The program was originated in 2001 in the Western Pacific, where 19 monitoring sites were established in seven countries. Since then, many more SeagrassNet sites have been established around the world. Two of the U.S. sites were established at CACO during development of this SOP. We have adapted SeagrassNet methods (Short et al. 2004) for use in NER coastal parks to accommodate regional characteristics of seagrass ecosystems and logistical constraints in implementation. The NPS procedures for monitoring seagrass condition are consistent with the global SeagrassNet program in fundamental aspects of sampling design, measures, and sampling methods, so that NPS data may contribute to the global SeagrassNet database. Use of methods compatible with SeagrassNet provides a global framework for interpretation of NPS monitoring data.
- Type
- Standard Operating Procedure
- Authors
- Kopp, Blaine; Neckles, Hilary
- Date of Issue
- 2009-05
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- ASIS , CACO , COLO , FIIS , GATE , GEWA , NCBN , NRSS
- Keywords
- Assateague Island National Seashore, estuarine habitats, Estuary, Fire Island National Seashore, Gateway National Recreation Area, Monitoring, Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network, Nutrient Enrichment, Nutrients, Plant Communities, plant cover, Sea grass, Soil Chemistry, Species Composition, Vegetation, Vegetation cover, Water Chemistry, Water Clarity , Water Quality, Water Quality Monitoring, Wetlands
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Geology and Soils | Soil Quality | Soil Function and Dynamics , Ecological Framework: Water | Water Quality | Water Chemistry , Ecological Framework: Water | Water Quality | Nutrient Dynamics , Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Estuarine Communities , Ecological Framework: Human Use | Non-point Source Human Effects | Non-point Source Human Effects , Ecological Framework: Landscapes | Nutrient Dynamics | Nutrient Dynamics , Ecological Framework: Landscapes | Energy Flow | Primary Production