National Working Waterfront Network Conference 2022

The 2022 National Working Waterfront Network’s Conference will take place from July 19th to July 21st, 2022 in Boston, MA at UMass Boston’s oceanfront campus. 

The National Working Waterfront Network’s Conference is the only national event that brings together people from across North America to connect with one another and showcase (and initiate) initiatives that protect and promote working waterfronts.

Working waterfronts include waterfront lands, waterfront infrastructure, and waterways that are used for water-dependent activities, such as ports, marinas, small recreational boat harbors, and fishing docks.

By design, the conference moves around the country to highlight the diversity of the nation’s working waterfronts; to foster a cross-fertilization of ideas, knowledge, and solutions; and to generate strategic partnerships.

The National Working Waterfront Network will be partnering with the Urban Harbors Institute (UHI) at the University of Massachusetts Boston to host the 2022 conference.

Conference Sessions

Plenary Sessions, which will feature leaders and keynote presenters from the working waterfronts and waterways community.

Traditional Concurrent Sessions, which will include 15-20 minute speaker talks accompanied by PowerPoint presentations. Concurrent sessions will be arranged from individual abstracts submitted on similar topics. 

Breakout “Panel” Sessions, which will include 90-minute breakout sessions with a panel of speakers on topics related to a specific theme. 

Roundtable Discussions, which will include  90-minute breakout sessions of a facilitated and interactive discussion with engaged attendees on specific topics.

Formal Poster Session, which will feature all NWWN Conference poster presentations. 

Creative Communication Installations, includes an individual or team presentation, discussion or performance of art, media, film, poetry, etc. 

Field Trips

As a part of this conference, the NWWN has planned various field trips on the second day Wednesday, July 20th. In addition, there will be full-day field trips happening prior to the conference on Monday, July 18th as well.

The National Working Waterfront Network (NWWN) is a nationwide network of businesses, industry associations, nonprofits, local governments and communities, state and federal agencies, universities, Sea Grant programs, and individuals dedicated to supporting, preserving, and enhancing America’s working waterfronts and waterways.

For more information, visit nationalworkingwaterfronts.com 

East Coast Marine Life Survey - AMAPPS III

Atlantic Right Whale | photo credit NOAA

The Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species (AMAPPS) is a federal multi-agency program designed to study how many marine mammals, sea turtles, and seabirds are in U.S. waters, where they are located at different times of the year, and how they may be changing over time.

AMAPPS, allows researchers to put all the information about abundance, distribution, ecology and behavior of protected species - from whales, dolphins, and seals to marine turtles and seabirds - into an ecosystem context so resource managers can use it for conservation measures and decision-making.

The primary funders of AMAPPS are NOAA, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Navy. One of the goals of the program is to develop models and related tools to provide distribution patterns and density estimates by season and location that includes habitat characteristics of marine mammals, turtles and seabirds along the U.S. East Coast.

The next five-year program, AMAPPS III, runs from 2019 to 2023. During AMAPPS III, in addition to continuing the above data collection, plankton (in particular larval tuna) samples will be investigated.

As part of AMAPPS activities in 2019, NOAA Fisheries scientists for the Northeast and Southeast Fisheries Science Centers conducted spring aerial surveys covering waters from Florida to Maine from the coastline to more than 200 miles offshore during April 1 to June 30 using NOAA Twin Otter aircraft.

The Northeast Fisheries Science Center also collects oceanographic and environmental data on its own shipboard survey cruises throughout the year, such as the Ecosystem Monitoring survey, which also hosts AMAPPS marine mammal and seabird observers.

One product of the program to date has been the Marine Mammal Model Viewer, which displays the data on a map of the East Coast showing the predicted abundance and distribution of a specific marine species in different seasons of the year, based on the data scientists collected during this project. Sightings of the 17 most common whale, dolphin and porpoise species are included, with more species to be added.

Wind-energy lease areas are marked on the maps, which can be viewed on computers as well as on mobile devices. A user can draw a box around an area of interest, investigate in more detail the density patterns within that box, then download the density data for use in other analyses.

The AMAPPS sightings data have also been used in other density models. For example, they have been used in mammal, turtle, and seabird maps available on the Northeast Ocean Data Portal.

Following the successful AMAPPS project in the western North Atlantic Ocean, similar projects have been initiated in the Gulf of Mexico (GoMMAPPS) and the Pacific Ocean (PacMAPPS).

2012 Sea Grant Week - Alaska

Alaska Sea Grant will host the next biennial Sea Grant Week for nationwide Sea Grant programs. The meeting is scheduled for September 15-21, 2012, at the Hotel Alyeska in Girdwood, Alaska.

Every two years Sea Grant Week provides a forum for exchanging information on issues of importance to state Sea Grant programs.

Sea Grant directors, extension leaders, financial officers, educators, and communications specialists will share progress, strategies, and projects in their regions.

About 200 directors, faculty, and staff from all 32 Sea Grant programs are expected to attend Sea Grant Week 2012, the first to be held in Alaska.

Sea Grant Week is organized by the Sea Grant Association.

Sea Grant Week 2010

The biennial gathering of Sea Grant programs will take place Oct. 15-20, 2010 in New Orleans, LA, under the leadership of the Sea Grant Association.

Basic registration is $425, and basic-plus registration (which includes a welcome reception at the Aquarium of the Americas) is $485. Please click the registration link above to register.

The conference hotel for Sea Grant Week 2010 – the Astor Crowne Plaza – is booked. Accommodations are available at the Holiday Inn French Quarter.

Help for Coastal and Waterfront Planners & Developers

NOAA, along with the Environmental Protection Agency, the International City/County Management Association and Rhode Island Sea Grant, has released a guide to bring smart growth to coastal and waterfront communities.

“Smart Growth for Coastal and Waterfront Communities” offers communities 10 coastal and waterfront-specific guidelines to help them balance development with the environment and the economy while maintaining the quality of life that makes these communities attractive.

Among its recommendations, the report suggests that communities:

* Plan for natural hazards;

* Use natural buffers to protect people and property from potential hazards;

* Preserve and restore critical environmental areas; and

* Plan for public access to waterfront and coastal waters.

“Coastal and waterfront communities face development pressures that could affect their economy, environment, and quality of life for decades to come,” said John H. Dunnigan, NOAA assistant administrator of the National Ocean Service. “These coastal and waterfront smart growth guidelines will help communities plan for growth and development while protecting their natural and economic resources, maritime heritage, and traditional sense of place.”

Sea level rise and other impacts of climate change are adding new challenges to waterfront community development. More than half the U.S. population lives in coastal counties, which cover less than 17 percent of U.S. land area. An additional 180 million people visit coastal areas every year and many others visit lake and riverfront communities.

The Smart Growth Network started in 1996 as a collaborative effort between the Environmental Protection Agency and several nonprofit and government organizations. It was a response to increasing community concerns about the need for new ways to grow while boosting the economy, protecting the environment, and enhancing community vitality. Today its partners include environmental groups, historic preservation organizations, professional organizations, developers, real estate interests, and local and state government entities.

To download a copy of “Smart Growth for Coastal and Waterfront Communities,” see http://www.coastalsmartgrowth.noaa.gov or http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth.

source: NOAA press release