NROC News – April 2019

Living Shorelines Project Resources Now Available Online

Northeast Regional Ocean Council (NROC), Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (NERACOOS), The Nature Conservancy, and state coastal management programs throughout the Northeast recently completed work on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) funded project – Advancement of Green Infrastructure and Living Shoreline Approaches in the Northeast (#NA16NOS4730013). During the project period from May 2016 through April 2019, project partners published a Living Shorelines State of the Practice Report, developed a series of profiles for living shorelines, evaluated regulatory issues associated with living shoreline practices, hosted workshops, and worked with local communities and stakeholders to advance living shoreline projects. Products and outreach materials from this multi-year effort are available on NROC’s website at: https://nrocsiteprod.wpengine.com/committees/coastal-hazards-resilience/living-shorelines-group/advancingls/. In related news, project team members will host a webinar to share resources, case studies and lessons learned from the project on June 11, 2019 at 2:00 PM – see detailed listing under events below.

April NROC Meeting

NROC members and partners held a very productive meeting at the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services in Portsmouth on April 2nd. Committee Co-Chairs presented draft work plans for NROC’s three committees: Ocean Planning, Ocean and Coastal Ecosystem Health, and Coastal Hazards Resilience. NROC’s work plans are currently being revised to incorporate feedback received during the meeting and will be circulated next month. NROC partners – NERACOOS, Northeast Sea Grant Consortium, Gulf of Maine Council, North Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative, and New England Federal Partners – provided highlights from ongoing initiatives throughout the Northeast. Other key meeting topics included a discussion regarding offshore wind, an update from the Integrated Sentinel Monitoring Network, and a project update from The Nature Conservancy on Increasing Resilience and Reducing Risk through Successful Application of Nature Based Coastal Infrastructure Practices in New England. Detailed updates were included as part of the meeting Briefing Book available here.

Upcoming Events

Northeast Biological Observations Workshop
University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire – May 6 – 7, 2019
This two-day workshop seeks to identify U.S. Northeast stakeholder needs and observation priorities for animal telemetry and marine biodiversity observations. Hosted by NERACOOS, NROC, Animal Telemetry Network, Marine Biodiversity Observation Network, and Ocean Tracking Network. Workshop details, agenda, and registration are available at: http://www.neracoos.org/nebioworkshop2019

NOAA National Water Model – Regional Workshop
Bangor, Maine – May 8, 2019
Regional meeting on the National Water Model, a partnership with NOAA, USGS, and USACE. This workshop will focus on regional scenarios on the Penobscot Watershed. For more information, please contact Ellen Mecray, ellen.l.mecray@noaa.gov

Coastal and Marine Ecological Classification Standard (CMECS) Update
Webinar – May 10, 2019, 3:00 PM
For those interested in the update process for CMECS, Kate Rose will give New England an update on how to suggest changes, what has come in so far, and how all the suggestions will be evaluated.  Click here to join webinar.  Call-in: 866-506-7697; 9500660#

Habitat Classification and Ocean Mapping (HCOM) Video Workshop
NH Dept. of Environmental Services, Portsmouth, NH – May 13, 2019, 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM
This meeting is designed to increase knowledge of different techniques, successes and challenges faced when analyzing videography. The goal of the meeting is to provide a framework for a small group to develop best practices towards standards for use of videography with CMECS. REGISTER HERE

Heat Health Webinar
May 30, 2019, 9:30 AM
NOAA’s Northeast Regional Climate Center will host a webinar focused on heat health during May. For more information, please contact ellen.l.mecray@noaa.gov. A link to register will be posted here when available: http://www.nrcc.cornell.edu/services/webinars/2019/03/index.html.

NROC Ocean Planning Meeting
June 4, 2019 – (Gloucester, MA or Portsmouth, NH)
Meeting location and agenda will be available soon.

Living Shoreline Approaches: Lessons Learned – Webinar
June 11, 2019, 2:00 PM
Communities undertaking projects that reduce storm-related impacts are being helped by NOAA’s Coastal Resilience Grants. This webinar is part of a series designed to share the lessons learned from these projects. NOAA, NROC, NERACOOS and other partners will host this webinar to share resources, case studies and lessons learned from the recently completed project, Advancement of Green Infrastructure and Living Shoreline Approaches in the Northeast. The webinar will provide an overview of the work that occurred in each state, as well as an in-depth look at lessons learned from the different experiences between two states in the same region. Register: http://noaacsc.adobeconnect.com/crgnorthest/event/registration.html

Gulf of Maine 2050 International Symposium
The Westin Portland Harborview, Portland, Maine – November 4 – 8, 2019
The Gulf of Maine 2050 International Symposium will bring scientists, managers, industry and community leaders together to understand how the Gulf of Maine is expected to change over the next 30 years and identify challenges and opportunities for regional resilience. Registration is now open, a call for abstracts has been issued, and opportunities for sponsorship are available. Details are available at www.gulfofmaine2050.org. Follow @gulfofmaine2050 on twitter for latest news about the symposium.

Funding Opportunities

2019 National Coastal Resilience Fund
https://www.nfwf.org/coastalresilience/Pages/2019rfp.aspx
Pre-proposals due: May 20, 2019. Full proposals due July 22, 2019.

National Coastal Wetlands Conservation Grant Program
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=313644
Proposals due: June 28, 2019