On April 25th, 2006 a forum will be held at the Hatfield Marine Science Center to discuss historic environmental sampling datasets for Yaquina Bay. This will be followed by a discussion of how we might develop a new, long-term, integrated and holistic environmental monitoring study of this estuary, with the goal of making Yaquina Bay the best understood estuary on the Oregon coast. There are two primary objectives for this meeting: (1) to examine historical time series of environmental data, from basic physical parameters through sampling of flora and fauna, and (2) to have a discussion on how best to design, implement, and fund a new, multi-tiered environmental monitoring program of the bay. Objective 2 will include a discussion of which investigators/agencies are interested in participating, how a new effort might integrate with the work of a variety of ongoing research projects, and how the monitoring data might be used both now and in the future. The meeting is expected to run for most of the day, with refreshments and lunch provided.

The Yaquina Bay estuary is a 4300 acre drowned river mouth estuary located on Oregon’s central coast. It has been used by humans for a variety of purposes over the last 100+ years, with current use focusing on fishing and fish processing, logging, shipping, tourism, aquaculture, and agriculture. It is also home to the Hatfield Marine Science Center, one of the major marine laboratories on the west coast, and the world-class Oregon Coast Aquarium. The estuary has been modified in a variety of ways, being alternately dredged and filled at different locations to suit the needs of development. This, combined with other industrial and recreational uses has the potential to impact the water quality of the bay, and therefore the long-term viability of its waters.

The recent possibility of bringing a ship breaking enterprise to Yaquina Bay focused much greater public attention on the importance of the bay’s environment. It highlights the need to not only understand the historical environment and environmental change in the estuary, but also the need to have long-term datasets that track the seasonal and annual fluctuations in a variety of physical and biological parameters. These long-term datasets, as unexciting as they are to collect, often prove to be the key to understanding spatial and temporal change as it relates to natural and anthropogenic impacts. It is this motivation that has (1) led to our interest in convening this meeting and (2) using HMSC, its associated scientists and facilities, and the many interested partners and stakeholders in Yaquina Bay as a platform to launch a monitoring program that will allow us to understand this estuary now and in the future.

We expect two primary products from this meeting and subsequent discussions. The first product will be a meta database that identifies the known datasets for Yaquina Bay. Our intent is not to accumulate and assimilate the data per se, rather to catalog the known datasets pertaining to environmental data in Yaquina Bay and the investigators associated with those datasets. Datasets themselves will of course remain the property of their respective investigators and organizations. The second product will be the development of a strategy to conduct a holistic environmental sampling program of Yaquina Bay. Key sampling parameters will be identified, and interested parties will be invited to help develop and implement the long-term sampling strategy for this bay.

Yaquina Bay Environmental Sampling Workshop

Guin Library SeminarRoom

25-Apr-06

Breakout groups

1) Community needs, monitoring needs, logistics and funding sources
2) Biological and habitat monitoring -what parameters, where, how, how often?
3) Physical monitoring of air and water -what parameters, where, how how often?
4) Other monitoring -including pollutants, invasives, estuary use, other metrics
5) Modeling and integration with other programs

For further information, contact:
Scott Heppell or George Boehlert