Coordinated Water-Resources Monitoring Strategy

Coordinated Water-Resources
Monitoring Strategy
SSER Mapper
U.S. Geological Survey / N.Y. Department of State
Long Island GIS Users Conference
Stony Brook University
November 18, 2015
U.S. Geological Survey
New York Water Science Center
Shawn Fisher | Jason Finkelstein |
Louis Bonavita | Chris Schubert
New York Department of State
Office of Planning and Development
Nancy Rucks | Myra Fedyniak
South Shore Estuary Reserve Office
Sherry Forgash | Lou Siegel
Coordinated Water Resources Monitoring Strategy
• First version compiled in 2000
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reviewed past & current monitoring
listed status of SSER bays and tributaries
identified data gaps
suggested improving the type and frequency of data collection to guide
future decisions regarding the health of the SSER
• Used to inform the creation of a SSER Comprehensive
Management Plan, 2001
• A lot has changed in the past 15 years…
Shaping the new CWRMS
• Establish a SSER Project Advisory Committee
• Incorporate stakeholder input
• Identify data/monitoring gaps in SSER
• Create SSER water-quality monitoring website
• Develop a SSER monitoring database
• Prepare Quality Control (QC) protocols
The new CWRMS will include…
• Updates to SSER monitoring programs
• Highlights of current monitoring status relative to the SSER
Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP)
• References to recent reports by USGS, NOAA, EPA, TNC, and
other agencies/organizations currently monitoring and/or
assessing the estuarine health of the SSER
• Current Topics
Current Topics
• Nitrogen in the bays
– Studies relating loading to algal blooms are ongoing
– More evidence of groundwater input via seepage and base flow
– Sources include natural (wildlife, deposition) and anthropogenic
(fertilizers, septic discharge, sewage treatment effluent, road run-off)
– Excess nitrogen believed to be one cause of wetland loss, which can
decrease coastal resiliency against future storms and sea level rise
• State and municipal beach closure and shellfish monitoring
results–publically available online
Current Topics
• Climate change
– Sea-level rise
– Hurricane Sandy impacted the water quality in the bays
• Great South Bay: breach at Old Inlet, Fire Island
• Hempstead Bay: Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant failure
• Marsh restoration projects have begun and/or are in the works
• Other monitoring and small-scale
CWRMS—Monitoring Sites as of 2000
CWRMS—Monitoring Sites as of 2000
CWRMS—Monitoring Sites as of 2000
The new CWRMS website
The new CWRMS website
Metadata displayed
• Data types
– Surface water quality (bays and tributaries) and quantity (tide/tributary
stage)
– Bed sediment quality and wetlands health
– Wildlife surveys and biota health
– Groundwater quality
• Federal, State, local, NGOs and academic institution metadata
– Study areas and monitoring locations identified
– Point to data and (or) information on host website or provide contact info
• Water Quality Portal query
– USGS National Water Information System (NWIS)
– EPA Storage and Recovery (STORET)
– Water Quality Exchange for data import
The new CWRMS website
The new CWRMS website
The new CWRMS website
The new CWRMS website
The new CWRMS website
THANKS!
Questions? | Comments? | Suggestions?
Shawn Fisher – scfisher@usgs.gov
Jason Finkelstein – GIS – jfinkels@usgs.gov
Louis Bonavita – website – lbonvita@usgs.gov