FY2012 Annual Accomplishments Report for Inventories and Vital Signs Monitoring: Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network (NCBN)

Price, George; Karish, John; Stevens, Sara

The Northeast Coastal and Barrier Network (NCBN) includes eight parks located along the Atlantic coast from Massachusetts to Virginia: Cape Cod National Seashore (CACO), Fire Island National Seashore (FIIS), Sagamore Hill National Historic Site (SAHI), Gateway National Recreation Area (GATE), Assateague Island National Seashore (ASIS), George Washington Birthplace National Monument (GEWA), Thomas Stone National Historic Site (THST), Colonial National Historical Park (COLO). These parks represent some of the most ecologically similar collections of lands within the National Park Service. They consist of critical coastal habitat for many rare and endangered species, as well as migratory corridors for birds, sea turtles, and marine mammals. They also protect vital coastal wetlands, essential to water quality, fisheries, and the biological diversity of coastal, near shore, and terrestrial environments. All NCBN parks continue to be pressured by encroaching development, intense recreational activity, and now the effects of rapid climate change. Sea level rise, increased storm intensity, amplified variability in surface and groundwater levels, and ocean acidification are expected to be among the most pressing natural resource management challenges in the near future. In addition to the effects of climate change, being within the urban sprawl of the Northeast creates additional management pressure to monitor the condition of these sensitive and often last remaining pristine ecosystems.