NOAA NCCOS Assessment: Agency priorities for mapping coral reef ecosystems in Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 2023-02-22 to 2023-06-12

Description:
NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP has identified a need for priority locations based on emerging management requirements in shallow coral reef areas (up to 40 meters) surrounding Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). The priorities provided by participating agencies will inform research and monitoring activities, address current and future management needs, and maximize opportunities to leverage and complement existing regional efforts.
To meet this need, NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) developed a systematic, quantitative approach and online GIS application to gather seafloor mapping priorities from researchers and coral reef managers. Participants placed virtual coins into a grid overlaid on the project area to express the location of their mapping priorities. They also used pull-down menus to indicate specific mapping data needs and the rationale for their selections. Participants’ inputs were compiled and analyzed to identify high priority areas along with their justifications and requirements. A total of seven participant groups entered their mapping priorities into the online tool for Guam and ten participant groups for CNMI. Identifying these high priority areas provide a critical spatial framework for prioritizing mapping efforts in shallow coral reef ecosystems in Guam and CNMI.

Purpose:
The overall goal of the project was to systematically gather and quantify suggestions for mapping needs to support management of shallow coral reef ecosystems along the coasts of the Guam and CNMI. This dataset supports these goals by compiling input from a diversity of regional experts on their recommended priorities for mapping data collection.

Methods:
An advisory group was established which included individuals from NOAA CRCP and NOAA Fisheries. This advisory team customized the prioritization process specifically to meet the needs of CRCP and local coral reef manager priorities. In the online prioritization tool, the Guam study area was divided into 153 hexagonal grid cells 2.6 km2 in size. The CNMI study area was divided into 330 hexagonal grid cells 2.6 km2 in size. Existing relevant spatial datasets (e.g., bathymetry, Sanctuary Protection Areas, etc.) were provided as a digital atlas to help participants understand information and data gaps within the project area and to identify locations they wanted to prioritize for future data collections. Each Guam participant was provided with 50 virtual coins to place into grid cells that they wished to prioritize. Each CNMI participant was provided with 110 coins. They were instructed to place more coins in grid cells that were higher priorities. A maximum of 5 coins could be placed into an individual grid cell in Guam by each respondent, and a maximum of 11 coins could be place into an individual grid cell in CNMI. Respondents also
reported why these locations were important by selecting a minimum of one, and a maximum of two, management uses from the following list: endangered species management (e.g.,), habitat restoration, monitoring, coastal vulnerability planning, watershed management, fisheries management, consultations and permitting, emergency response, and spatial protection and management. Respondents also reported requirements of data were needed in priority cells. A minimum of one, to a maximum of two choices were selected from the following list: delineations of large topographic features, delineations of hard vs. soft bottom, models of habitat suitability for key taxa or communities, delineations of substrate type (e.g. sand, mud, coral, rock), models of presence/absence or density of corals, identification of coral species and their local environments, documentation of individual specimen condition. Coin values were summarized and mapped to identify high priority areas, reasons for those priorities, and information needs. This ESRI shapefiles contain the 2.6 km2 grid cells used in this prioritization and their associated coin values overall, as well as by management use, data product, and mapping methodology. Other summary values include the number of participants, number of participating groups, number of management uses, and number of data requirements. Additionally, coins for microscale (identification of coral species and their local environments and documentation of individual specimen condition), mesoscale (delineations of substrate type, models of presence/absence/density of corals), and regional (delineations of topographic features, delineations of hard vs. soft bottom, models of habitat suitability) requirements were summarized. Also included is a ranking of each grid cell based on the total number of coins, management uses, and participating groups allocating coins in the respective cell. For a complete description of the process and analysis see: Hile et al. 2023, in prep.