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Research Needs |
We have compiled a list of research issues and information needs from individuals and organizations participating in GCRC activities over the last couple years. They are roughly organized into four categories --
Fisheries
- Status of and trends in Georgia blue crab and shrimp fisheries
- Identification of spawning sites for recreationally important Sciaenids
- Assessment of Georgia inshore and offshore artificial reefs as fish habitat
- Boating and fishing access needs and impacts assessment for coastal Georgia
- Identification of critical habitats for early life stages of Red Drum, Spotted Seatrout, Southern Kingfish, Sheepshead, and Southern Flounder
- Life history and population dynamics of Tripletail in coastal Georgia
- Estimates of fishing and natural mortality for southern kingfish
- Acute and chronic mortality of adult red drum following catch-and-release in the recreational fishery
- Development of a coastal Georgia Fisheries Habitat Plan using GIS
- Current oyster acreage maps
- Sources of funding for shellfish aquaculture development
- Characterization/quantification of impacts to Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) and fisheries productivity
- Assessment/monitoring of manmade and natural reefs and associated communities
- Monitoring techniques/methodologies for Georgia's offshore, coastal, and estuarine reefs
- Sociological and economic evaluations associated with offshore/inshore artificial reef development, user groups, and trends
- Improvements in artificial reef technology (eg., designed units, siting, material configurations, etc.) to maximize the development of reef communities
- Life history investigations
- Improved fishery assessments, with increased/coordinated fishery-dependent and fishery-independent monitoring/surveys regionwide
- Bottom mapping on the continental shelf, mapping/modeling of circulation and effects of terrestrial and ocean climate/weather events on circulation patterns associated with fish spawning and recruitment on the shelf
- Marine protected areas
- Cause of decline in blue crab stocks
- More complete knowledge of the early life history of exploited estuarine and marine fishes indigenous to coastal Georgia
- Definitive information on the habitat preferences of all life stages of exploited estuarine and marine fishes and invertebrates indigenous to coastal Georgia
- Effects of drought and reduced freshwater inflow on estuarine productivity, particularly for fishes and invertebrates
- Characterization of shrimp trawl bycatch
- Causes of black gill disease in penaeid shrimp and implications for management
- Economic impacts of saltwater fishing tournaments, artificial reefs, and the for-hire businesses
Habitat
- Development of an Index of Biotic Integrity for Georgia estuaries
- Current and historical datasets to ID ecological indicators and other indicators that best represent condition
- Cumulative and secondary impacts from development
- Impacts of hammocks development on surrounding vital marshlands
- Impacts of private recreational docks on surrounding vital marshlands
- Development impacts on shellfish resources
- Tidal marsh restoration
- Ecosystem services (value of saltmarshes)
- Buffer science, buffer widths
- Impervious surface impacts to coastal marshlands & projected impacts of impervious surface cover
- Stormwater impacts to coastal marshlands
- Living shorelines
- An early detection and rapid response plan for invasive species
- Southeastern taxonomic keys
- Innovative technologies /methodologies for dredge material disposal
- Innovative technologies utilized for bank stabilization
- Marsh dieback
- Environmental and biological data related to health and/or status of Georgia's river drainage systems. Specific needs relate to habitat needs during early life stages of marine organisms
Water and sediment quality/quantity
- Fecal bacteria and beach water (including baseline data for Enterococci bacteria)
- Bacterial transport – hydrology studies
- what are the bacterial sources?
- How harmful to human health is fecal bacteria in beach waters?
- epidemiological studies
- How can we better detect pathogens in beach waters?
- predictive modeling
- better, quicker indicator tests
- quantifying cumulative impacts to estuaries with respect to changes in land use and stormwater runoff
- quantifying impacts to water quality as a function of change in land use
- Correlations between fecal coliform rates and salinity
- Correlations between DO levels and tannins
- Estuarine nutrient thresholds
- Feasibility of placing "dams" in Satilla River
- Impacts of decreased fresh water into estuaries
- Info on new wells and testing
- Effects of wetlands and land use practices on instream flows
- Direct and indirect influences various forestry activities have on the waters of the state. Research geared specifically on this area of the state and pertinent to the types of disturbances silviculture creates
- Salinity profiles up to the freshwater interface for each major system.
- Baseline data for coastal nutrients, metals, organics, and inorganics.
- Sediment toxicity index for coastal Georgia
- Georgia coastal benthic index
- Aquifer related information (quality and quantities)
- Benthic and contaminant data for Georgia estuaries, particularly those linked to Sapelo, Doboy, and Altamaha Sounds
- Data on sediment transport dynamics and water movement on the continental shelf, particularly in the Grays Reef National Marine Sanctuary area.
- Contacts to help expand the [hydrologic monitoring] network for better coverage and how to mesh better with existing data collection activities.
- Impacts of prior coastal development from Hilton Head to New England
Subsurface geology in coastal Georgia - Sand budget studies for Georgia sea islands
Management and communications
[mostly: suggestions for ways to improve communication between scientists and managers]
- Revision of policies and permitting processes to accommodate emerging needs.
- Smart growth/land-planning initiatives
- Hold annual meeting to communicate resource managers needs – before Sea Grant and CIG deadlines
- Series of “issues” papers on website to identify needs (issues paper that ID data gaps)
- Rapid response vs. emergent issues – need protocol to handle each of these
- Long-term research vision that incorporates management needs and scientists interest – symposium??
- Take research priorities to Sea Grant and CAC as information to incorporate into theme setting
- Better educate CAC members regarding coastwide research needs and priorities
- Directed projects through CAC and Sea Grant – is this possible??
- Data coordination
- Topic-specific education opportunities
- Have workshop similar to Coop. Science Center (NOAA – SSU) to influence incoming applications
- Include those individuals that are “well connected”