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Spring 2016
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Volume 4| Issue 2
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NOAA in the Caribbean News
Spring 2016
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Message from the Steering Committee
On behalf of the NOAA in the Caribbean (NOAACarib) Steering Committee, I want to welcome you to the first issue of the new NOAACarib E-Newsletter! We've switched the format of our flagship newsletter from a stand-alone pdf document to an e-newsletter in response to changes in membership, budget, and technology. The new format will by necessity be a bit shorter, but we intend to provide more timely information by publishing more frequently. We will continue to report on NOAA partnerships in the Caribbean, and provide news items of interest, updates on new data, announcements of funding opportunities, upcoming events and more.
We welcome feedback on the e-newsletter style and content; as with any new product, there is always room for improvement. As always, we want to hear your stories--stories that help connect NOAA and partners in the Caribbean. And of course, we want you to read and share the newsletter!
We would also like to take this opportunity to send a special shout out to Simon Pittman, our NOAACarib Steering Committee member who has more than capably served as editor-in-chief of the NOAA in the Caribbean Newsletter for the last four years. Simon has set some very high standards for the newsletter that we will strive to maintain. Thanks Simon!!
Bill O'Beirne, Chair NOAACarib Steering Committee
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 Feature Stories |
NOAA Engages with Cuba on Several New Projects
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US Ambassador Jeffrey DeLaurentis, and Col. Candido Alfredo Regalado Gomez, Chief of Cuba's National Office of Hydrography and Geodesy, signing the MOU.
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As the United States and Cuba have taken steps to normalize diplomatic relations, NOAA has been at the forefront of engaging Cuban counterparts to collaboratively protect and manage resources in the region. In November 2015, NOAA's Administrator Dr. Kathryn Sullivan traveled to Cuba to sign an historic accord on marine protected areas (MPAs) with the U.S. National Park Service and Cuba's Ministry of Science, Technology, and Environment (CITMA). The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aims to facilitate joint efforts in science, stewardship, and management of MPAs, and establishes sister-sanctuary relationships between Cuba's Guanahacabibes National Park and Banco de San Antonio, and the United States' Florida Keys and Flower Garden Banks national marine sanctuaries.
More recently, in March 2016, NOAA and Cuba's National Office of Hydrography and Geodesy (ONHG) completed a new MOU to improve navigational safety by increasing cooperation in hydrography, oceanography, and geodesy. The MOU will allow for increased sharing of navigational data, filling data gaps, enabling NOAA and ONHG to create a new international chart for south Florida, the Bahamas, and north Cuba. NOAA has several other ongoing projects with Cuban counterparts, including recent research on Bluefin tuna. In May 2015, Cuban scientists joined U.S. researchers on a month-long cruise to study Bluefin spawning and larvae in Cuban waters. Another cruise, aboard the NOAA vessel Nancy Foster, will take place in May 2016. |
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CARIBE WAVE 2016: Largest International Tsunami Exercise
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Evacuation exercise participants in Miguel de la Borda, Panama.
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On March 17, 2016, over a quarter million people across the Caribbean basin participated in the 5th annual CARIBE WAVE tsunami exercise, making it the largest such international exercise on record. The exercise was organized within the framework of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Coordination Group for Tsunamis and other Coastal Hazards for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions (CARIBE EWS). Thirty-two nations and 15 territories participated, including over 118,000 people in Puerto Rico, 62,000 in Guadeloupe and 37,000 in Venezuela. The British Virgin Islands activated 16% of its population with 4,613 participants. Registered participant groups included designated Tsunami Warning Focal Points and National Tsunami Warning Centers, as well as emergency and preparedness organizations, K-12 schools, government agencies, colleges and universities, healthcare facilities, and hotels.
The exercise consisted of two scenarios, including a Venezuela scenario (simulated a tsunami with waves of almost 12 meters generated by a magnitude 8.4 earthquake); and a Northern Hispaniola scenario (magnitude 8.7 earthquake with waves of almost 17 meters). Simulated tsunami messages were disseminated by US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, the CARIBE EWS Tsunami Service Provider. In addition, sirens, emails, emergency alert systems, text messages, media outlets, NOAA weather radio, and social media further disseminated the messages. To complement the communication tests, drills, seminars, table top exercises, and video/web conferencing were held across the region. For more information, contact [email protected] or [email protected].
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Update on CREWS Network
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CREWS buoy in Barbados.
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Atmospheric and meteorological data from St. Croix's Salt River Bay are now available through NOAA's Coral Reef Information System for the period 2006-2014. These data were collected via the Coral Reef Early Warning System (CREWS), a project of NOAA's Coral Health and Monitoring Program (CHAMP) at the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory in Miami. CHAMP collects a range of environmental data at many other sites throughout the Caribbean via a "virtual station" (satellite data) network. CHAMP is also partnering with the Caribbean Community Climate Change Center (CCCCC) to install additional CREWS stations in Belize, Dominican Republic, Tobago, and Barbados later this year. To access CHAMP data and ecological forecasts for specific sites (from the Integrated Coral Observing Network, ICON), please visit the CHAMP Portal. For more information on the ICON/CREWS program, please visit the
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Dredge Disposal Impacts Mesophotic Coral Ecosystems
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Research supported by NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) found that light-dependent mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) off the south coast of Puerto Rico are vulnerable to sedimentation from anthropogenic sources. MCEs ne ar Ponce, Puerto Rico's second most populated municipality had sedimentation rates 16 times higher than a reference site. MCEs are light-dependent extensions of shallow coral reef ecosystems and host a biodiverse species assemblage including large, overfished species. Therefore, it is important to consider MCEs when siting activities that may impact water clarity and light penetration, such as dredge disposal or deep-water sewage outflow. The study is part of NCCOS's Deep Coral Reef Ecosystem Studies program led by the University of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean Coral Reef Institute. For more information, contact [email protected].
(Left) An impacted reef at a closed dredge disposal site off Ponce at 56 m shows heavy siltation. (Right) A less impacted reef offshore from Ponce at 62 m shows a vibrant community with large sponges, black corals (Antipathes sp.) and an Agaricia sp. colony. (Photos: Francisco Pag�n, Richard Appeldoorn)
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Citizen Science: Improving the Quality of Marine Mammal Research |
In 2014, the Marine Mammal Protected Areas Network (MaMPAN) launched CARIB Tails, a citizen science initiative that enlists yachters and cruisers to assist with marine mammal research by photographing the distinct patterns on the tails of humpback whales in their Caribbean breeding grounds. The photos submitted are used in mark-recapture studies to help monitor the recovery of this endangered species. Recent data from the program revealed that whales mating and calving in the SE Caribbean are behaviorally distinct from those that winter in the Dominican Republic. This new information redefines the West Indian humpback whale breeding stock helps reevaluate changing its conservation status.
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"Footprints" was the first fluke photo match confirming migration exchange between Agoa Sanctuary (Guadeloupe) and Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (US Gulf of Maine). (Photo: Center for Coastal Studies) |
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Yarari joins the North Atlantic Sister Sanctuary Program
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In 2015, the Caribbean Netherland's Marine Mammal Sanctuary "Yarari" joined the North Atlantic Sister Sanctuary Program, increasing the protection area for North Atlantic humpback whales to a total of 699,440 sq. km. The Sanctuary program is a pioneering effort of the United Nations Environment Programme's Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife's Marine Mammal Action Plan for the Wider Caribbean Region (UNEP/SPAW/MMAP). Initiated by Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary (in Massachusetts Bay) in 2007, the program now includes marine mammal sanctuaries in the Dominican Republic, Bermuda, French Antilles and the Caribbean Netherlands. With education, conservation and science exchanges, this marine mammal protected areas network (MaMPAN) is the first international partnership in the world to protect one of the ocean's most iconic and beloved species throughout its migratory range. For more information on the North Atlantic Sister Sanctuary Program, click here.
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| | Yarari Marine Mammal Sanctuary, around the islands of Saba and Bonaire. |
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Cabo Rojo Watershed Study Provides Plan and Tools for Reef Restoration |
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Example of digital map showing Cabo Rojo's benthic habitats.
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NOAA, in collaboration with several partners including University of Puerto Rico and Protectores de Cuencas, recently completed a watershed study and plan for Cabo Rojo, in southwest Puerto Rico. The study considers local and global stressors--such as climate change, overfishing, and land-based pollution--to Cabo Rojo's coral reef ecosystems, and includes recommendations for watershed restoration to improve coral reef health. The study also included a baseline coral reef assessment, and a digital map that allows the public to access information on proposed restoration areas, as well as freshwater, marine and coral reef data. The watershed plan was completed under a grant from National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, with funding from NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP). To read the full report, click here.
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Initiative Encourages Sustainable Seafood Market in the U.S. Virgin Islands
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As part of the Reef Responsible Sustainable Seafood Initiative, NOAA Fisheries helped organize a Reef Responsible Fish Fry during the DineVI restaurant week in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI), on November 8, 2015. During the event, sustainable seafood bites were provided for free to 300 event attendees from ten St. Croix Reef Responsible restaurants. The Reef Responsible Sustainable Seafood Initiative is a partnership led by The Nature Conservancy, with participation from NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program, NOAA Fisheries, USVI Department of Tourism, University of the Virgin Island's Marine Advisory Service, and the USVI Division of Fish and Wildlife. The Initiative promotes responsible use and protection of coral reefs and other natural marine resources, with the goal of ensuring their long-term existence and preserving the Caribbean way of life. Check out the Reef Responsible Facebook page for more details on the Initiative and related events.
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Upcoming Events |
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NOAA in the Caribbean 2016 Partners Meeting
May 9-11, 2016. San Juan, Puerto Rico. This year's meeting focus is: Enhancing Community and Ecosystem Resiliency in the Caribbean
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Announcements |
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A new study in Global Change Biology addresses the potential of mesophotic coral reefs of the Virgin Islands to serve as refuge from climate change. The study utilized data from NOAA, NPS, USVI DPNR, and University of the Virgin Islands.
NOAA Fisheries Announcements
Updated bilingual guide Regulated and Protected Species in U.S. Caribbean Waters now available. NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) has funded an update to the 2010 edition to take into account changes in federal, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Island fishing regulations, as well as new Endangered Species Act listings. Digital and hard copies are now available and can be requested by sending an email to [email protected].
Commercial and recreational fishing is prohibited in federal waters of the Mutton Snapper Spawning Aggregation Area in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands from March 1 through June 30, 2016. U.S. Caribbean federal waters off the U.S. Virgin Islands extend from the three nautical mile seaward boundary of the Territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands out to 200 nautical miles offshore.
Fishing for, or possession of, mutton and lane snappers in or from U.S. Caribbean federal waters is prohibited from April 1, 2016 through June 30, 2016. The prohibition on possession does not apply to mutton and lane snapper harvested and landed ashore prior to the closure. Federal waters in the U.S. Caribbean extend from the three-nautical mile seaward boundary of the Territory of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the nine-nautical mile seaward boundary of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, out to 200 nautical miles offshore.
Upcoming seasonal prohibition on fishing for, or possession on board a fishing vessel, of queen conch: This annually recurring prohibition will take effect at 12:01 a.m., local time, June 1, and continue through October 31, 2016, in federal waters east of 64 deg 34' W longitude, which includes Lang Bank east of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. This is the only area in U.S. Caribbean federal waters where fishing for queen conch is allowed during the open season. The queen conch fishing season is scheduled to reopen at 12:01 am, local time, on November 1, 2016.
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NOAA in the Caribbean Newsletter
Please e-mail us at [email protected] to subscribe or unsubscribe to the newsletter or to submit any questions, comments, story ideas, artwork and photographs.
NOAA in the Caribbean Newsletter is produced by the NOAA in the Caribbean Steering Committee, including support from NOAA's Office of International Affairs, Southeast And Caribbean Regional Collaboration Team, Office for Coastal Management, National Marine Fisheries Service SE Regional Office, Office of Legislative and Intergovernmental Affairs, and National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science.
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