[Coral-List] new sentinel technology RE: SEAKEYS Project Terminated

Sarah Frias-Torres sfrias_torres at hotmail.com
Wed Mar 7 11:29:41 EST 2012


Perhaps this could help.
At our lab, Ocean Research & Conservation Association (ORCA), deep sea explorer Dr. Edith Widder and her team of engineers have developed a network of water quality monitoring stations (Kilroy network) which can collect data in real time, 24/7, and send the data over the cell phone network directly to your computer, or over the internet. They don't require people to go on location to download the data, and work at a fraction of the cost of other systems currently in the market. We already have operational stations in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida. The basic Kilroy platform measures temperature, salinity and water flow (speed and direction). Kilroy's interface is capable of connecting with any over-the-shelf sensors available in the market to measure other variables of interest, such as hydrocarbon presence (great for oil spill monitoring), turbidity, bioluminescence, etc.
I think adding Kilroys to the SEAKEYS program, or any other sentinel program in the Florida Keys Marine Sanctuary will be cost effective and bring new life to the program.
We are open for collaborations, if anyone is interested.
here's a link
http://www.teamorca.org/cfiles/kilroy.cfm

Sarah Frias-Torres, Ph.D. Schmidt Ocean Institute Postdoctoral FellowOcean Research & Conservation Association (ORCA) 1420 Seaway Drive, Fort Pierce, Florida 34949 USA Tel (772) 467-1600http://www.teamorca.orghttp://independent.academia.edu/SarahFriasTorres


From: jim.hendee at noaa.gov
Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 10:09:38 -0500
Subject: Re: [Coral-List] SEAKEYS Project Terminated
To: szmanta at uncw.edu
CC: sfrias_torres at hotmail.com; coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov

No, I don't remember that being discussed as a line item--it just occurred to me when Sarah asked.  It's not that expensive (well, everything is relative, I guess), so to fund it at the previous level (which, however, was a bit too low to do everything desirable) shouldn't be that much.  Perhaps a bit of Everglades funding could go toward it, or maybe a new earmark of Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection (http://www.dep.state.fl.us/) funding.  After all, let's keep in mind that an oil spill off the north shore of Cuba could spoil Florida (and the Carolinas') beaches, so a bit of "protection" by way of sentinel crude oil sensors on an array of SEAKEYS stations might be a very good early warning.  Sensors for current flow and direction (ADCPs) would also be helpful in that regard, not to mention how it would help larval drift studies.  Light and turbidity sensors give information of value regarding the clarity of water for divers, fishermen and tourists.  Even real-time video (we've done this previously at St. Croix and in collaboration with NOAA/GLERL at Tennessee Reef) is helpful for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary to monitor fishing boat traffic (not to mention a value to Homeland Security).  And of course sea temperature sensors are helpful for all kinds of reasons (e.g., coral bleaching, fishing).



Cheers, Jim

On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 8:38 AM, Szmant, Alina <szmanta at uncw.edu> wrote:


I think Jim has made an excellent suggestion.  The State of Florida is the best positioned to take on SEAKEYS, and make its funding a line-item in the State budget.  It could be operated by FIO, as it has been for years, or by FMRI, or by one of the Florida academic institutions. May I suggest that scientists at Florida universities initiate contact with their state legislators, pointing out the importance of SEAKEYS  to Florida economic and environmental interests.





Jim:  was that considered as an option at the meeting described in the original email?  If so, why was it not followed up on?



Alina







*************************************************************************

Dr. Alina M. Szmant

Professor of Marine Biology

Center for Marine Science and Dept of Biology and Marine Biology

University of North Carolina Wilmington

5600 Marvin Moss Ln

Wilmington NC 28409 USA

tel:  910-962-2362  fax: 910-962-2410  cell: 910-200-3913

http://people.uncw.edu/szmanta

*******************************************************





-----Original Message-----

From: coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov [mailto:coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov] On Behalf Of Jim Hendee



Sent: Tuesday, March 06, 2012 1:43 PM

To: Sarah Frias-Torres

Cc: coral list

Subject: Re: [Coral-List] SEAKEYS Project Terminated



I don't know...maybe ask the Florida legislature to make it a line-item to the budget?  Write proposals?  I wish I knew!



On Tue, Mar 6, 2012 at 12:40 PM, Sarah Frias-Torres < sfrias_torres at hotmail.com> wrote:



>  It seems the coral reefs have no voice and no CEOs to demand a bailout.

>

> Is there anything the scientific community can do to reverse this

> decision ?

>

> *Sarah Frias-Torres, Ph.D. *

> *Schmidt Ocean Institute Postdoctoral

> Fellow<http://independent.academia.edu/SarahFriasTorres>

> *

> Ocean Research & Conservation Association (ORCA)

> 1420 Seaway Drive, Fort Pierce, Florida 34949 USA Tel (772) 467-1600

> *http://www.teamorca.org<http://independent.academia.edu/SarahFriasTor

> res>

> *

> *http://independent.academia.edu/SarahFriasTorres*

>

>

>

> > From: jim.hendee at noaa.gov

> > Date: Tue, 6 Mar 2012 11:43:43 -0500

> > To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov

>

> > Subject: [Coral-List] SEAKEYS Project Terminated

> >

> > This sad bit of news comes from a recent SECOORA (Southeast Coastal

> > Ocean Observing Regional Association) bulletin. The station referred

> > to that AOML will maintain is located on the Molasses Reef lighthouse.

> >

> >

> > *SEAKEYS Assets Removed from Water*

> >

> >

> > **

> >

> > The SEAKEYS network has been operational for over 20 years and

> > provides a long time series of observations in the Florida Keys. The

> > program

> provides

> > a framework for long-term monitoring and research along the 220 mile

> > Florida coral reef tract and in Florida Bay at a geographical scale

> > encompassing the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS).

> > Compounding the problem of limited funding, the instruments are

> > primarily on a series of stationary platforms (lighthouses, towers),

> > the structural integrity of which has now becoming questionable due

> > to age. The US Coast Guard do not have plans to repair the

> > lighthouses but intend to sell. It

> is

> > anticipated that non-profit entities will purchase these for their

> > historical value.

> >

> >

> >

> > To address the future of SEAKEYS and its infrastructure and funding,

> > the Florida Institute of Oceanography (FIO) held a meeting at the

> > Keys Marine Lab in November 2011. The user community was invited and

> > included representatives from many areas of NOAA (Florida Keys

> > National Marine Sanctuary; National Weather Service; Atlantic

> > Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory; Great Lakes

> > Environmental Research

> Laboratory),

> > the National Park Service, the Ocean Reef and Gun Club, and FIO. The

> > NOAA/National Data Buoy Center, Coast Guard, FL Fish and Wildlife

> Research

> > Institute, and representatives from Audubon, the dive and fishing

> > communities, and staff from a local legislative office were unable

> > to attend, but some sent letters of support. Following the meeting

> > other funding sources were sought but were not successfully identified.

> >

> >

> > At the end of 2011, due to a lack of financial support, FIO made the

> > difficult decision to terminate the SEAKEYS program, and are

> > withdrawing all FIO assets from the water. NOAA/AOML, with

> > assistance from

> NOAA/FKNMS,

> > has agreed to take over maintenance of one station (FIO is loaning

> > an instrument to NOAA/AOML for this purpose); NOAA/GLERL are

> > investigating

> the

> > possibility of maintaining a second station; and a limited subset of

> > meteorological sensors will be visited every two years by NOAA/NDBC,

> > with no maintenance support between visits.

> > _______________________________________________

> > Coral-List mailing list

> > Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov

> > http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list

>

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