The Northeast U.S. Shelf (NES) Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) project integrates observations, experiments, and models to understand and predict how planktonic food webs are changing, and how those changes impact the productivity of higher trophic levels. The NES-LTER is co-located with the Northeast U.S. Continental Shelf Large Marine Ecosystem, spanning the Middle Atlantic Bight and Gulf of Maine. Our focal cross-shelf transect extends about 150 km southward from Martha's Vineyard, MA, to just beyond the shelf break.

Measurements from the Long Term Ecological Research Network (LTER) between 1981 and 1999.

A new tool has been developed, the Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment Tool for Coastal Habitats (CCVATCH), to help land managers, decision makers, and researchers develop conservation, management, and restoration plans for coastal habitats. This assessment tool identifies primary sources of vulnerability to assist with prioritizing coastal habitat management actions. As part of this project, four estuarine reserves in New England will conduct assessments of their areas, demonstrating the utility of the tool to support adaptive management in response to climate change. This science transfer project was funded by NOAA through the National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative to promote the use of science. It did not produce any new data.

Measurements made along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, North Atlantic Bight, and Gulf Stream between 2000 and 2010.

In this project, National Estuarine Research Reserves in North and South Carolina worked to improve local understanding of climate change effects on southeastern salt marsh and provide decision makers with the information and skills they need to address these vulnerabilities. North Carolina Reserve staff members were trained in the Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment Tool for Coastal Habitats (CCVATCH) by their colleagues from North Inlet-Winyah Bay Reserve. This decision support tool incorporates existing information on climate change impacts with knowledge of local conditions to help users develop vulnerability scores for specific areas. The project team used CCVATCH to conduct habitat vulnerability assessments for seven estuaries in North and South Carolina, summarized regional findings to help managers in the Southeast improve salt marsh resilience, and developed guidance and outreach products. This science transfer project was funded by NOAA through the National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative to promote the use of science. It did not produce any new data.

Water quality observations made over long time periods can provide important feedback to scientists and to local, state, and national resource managers about actions taken to manage, protect, and restore estuaries. They also provide valuable information for evaluating the impacts of environmental change on coastal habitats and species. There are at least four water quality stations at each National Estuarine Research Reserve. Each station is designed to characterize long-term variability and short term changes in environmental conditions. Discrete samples for nutrient and chlorophyll a concentrations are collected at each long-term monitoring station at least once monthly. More intensive (24-hours over a complete tidal cycle) sampling is conducted each month at one water quality monitoring station to better understand impacts of tide and irradiance on nutrient cycling. Nutrient parameters collected include: nitrate, nitrite, ammonium, orthophosphate, and chlorophyll a. Numerous optional parameters include dissolved organic carbon, total dissolved nitrogen, and total dissolved phosphorous. The National Estuarine Research Reserves is a network of 30 reserves protected for long-term research, ecosystem monitoring, education, and coastal stewardship. Established by the Coastal Zone Management Act, the reserve system is a partnership program between NOAA and the coastal states. NOAA provides funding, national guidance, and technical assistance. Each reserve is managed on daily basis by a lead state agency or university with input from local partners. These data are collected as part of the NERRS System-Wide Monitoring Program (SWMP), which includes (1) abiotic indicators of water quality and weather; (2) biological monitoring; and (3) watershed, habitat, and land use mapping. Data were collected under individual Reserve NOAA grant/cooperative agreements and managed by the CDMO under NOAA grant/cooperative agreement #NA23NOS4200321 (2023) and prior grants. For more information on Reserve locations and programs, please visit www.nerrsdata.org or https://coast.noaa.gov/nerrs/.

Measurements made under the NAAMES (North Atlantic Aerosols and Marine Ecosystems Study) program.INTERNAL LINKS (Special datasets*)*Special datasets are not in SeaBASS format, and are thus only accesible via these links (they do not appear in the file search or lists of metadata)Altimetry re-analyses (maps of diagnostics e.g., integration of altimetry & maps of masks of water origin)Ship Underway Data (systems include: IMU, SAMOS, and SSW)EXTERNAL LINKSAircraft dataSatellite dataSeaBASS NAAMES pageSee URL below for the primary NAAMES website

These files contain the spatial boundaries of the NOAA Fisheries Bottom-trawl surveys. This data set covers 8 regions of the United States: Northeast, Southeast, Gulf of Mexico, West Coast, Bering Sea, Aleutian Islands, Gulf of Alaska, and Hawai'i Islands.

To restore the ecosystem services lost through coastal habitat degradation, restoration projects have been conducted but most lack monitoring or evaluations. Limited monitoring and evaluation prevents comparisons across designs to determine which are the most functional sustainable, and cost-effective. Additionally, information about the advantages of and how to perform restoration projects is currently limited. Limited comparisons across restoration designs and the sparse information on how to conduct restoration projects significantly hinders the implementation of projects. This project team engaged researchers, environmental managers, stakeholders, and end-users to address some of these issues. The team quantified the functionality, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness of several coastal restoration designs at the Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The designs compared plots planted with nursery grown plugs with plots comprised of standing natural marsh both with and without offshore breakwaters. The study found that offshore breakwaters enhanced natural plant growth, but not nursery grown plants. However, it is possible that this effect is time dependent as the positive effect on natural plant growth was seen beginning six years after breakwater installation while the nursery plants had only been planted two and a half years ago. Information gained from this research and the regulatory knowledge of the collaborative team have been combined with pre-existing literature to create user friendly outreach materials and workshop for consultants, landscapers, and marine contractors. This research and outreach will improve the effectiveness and ease of implementation of coastal restoration projects.

This project provided support for local governments to obtain necessary information to modernize and revise the Coos Bay estuary management plan. Through an integrative assessment, the project team leveraged knowledge from community members, synthesized and compiled existing information, and applied a triple bottom line lens (economic, social, and environmental) to portray current conditions and uses in the estuary, and generate options and recommendations for local governments to improve their estuarine and shoreland management. This integrated assessment project was funded by NOAA through the National Estuarine Research Reserve System Science Collaborative to evaluate options for action. It did not produce any new data.