July is Habitat Month: Join Us!
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I am pleased to announce that July is Habitat Month at NOAA Fisheries. This year, we will be focusing on the Power of Partnerships. Everything we do in habitat conservation requires strong partnerships and they are incredibly important to us. Follow us on our website and through Twitter (@NOAAHabitat, #HabitatMonth).
We are hoping that you will be an active participant and help spread the word. Most importantly, I want to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to all of our partners for your important contributions. Together we can make a difference!
Pat Montanio
Director, Office of Habitat Conservation
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We work in partnerships at all levels—with local, state, federal governments, private entities, and non-governmental organizations—toward shared goals and enhanced understanding. Join us to learn more about NOAA's ongoing work and successes related to habitat conservation and partnering opportunities. Be sure to tune-in frequently, as new information will be available all month long highlighted Habitat Heroes. Learn More >
The 2018 NOAA Habitat Month digital photo contest recognizes photographers who have captured beautiful and captivating images of coastal and ocean habitat. Photos can display scenery, wildlife, or hands-on activities in coastal or marine habitats. We are looking for entries that incorporate habitat types in the following categories: (1) Coastal wetlands, marshes, mangroves. (2) Estuaries and rivers. (3) Underwater habitats (oyster reefs, coral reefs, deep sea coral, grasses, kelp, etc.). (4) Other habitat. NOAA staff and the public are eligible. Learn More >
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The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and NOAA recently announced a request for proposals under the 2018 National Coastal Resilience Fund, as authorized by the National Oceans and Coastal Security Act. This new fund will invest up to $30 million in the restoration or expansion of natural features such as coastal marshes and wetlands, dune and beach systems, oyster and coral reefs, mangroves, coastal forests, coastal rivers, and barrier islands. The request is for projects that restore, increase, and strengthen natural infrastructure to ultimately protect coastal communities, enhance fish and wildlife habitat, and allow communities to recover more quickly from hazardous weather events. The new grant program will fund projects that restore and strengthen natural systems so they can protect coastal communities from storms and flooding impacts. Learn More >
Credit: Photo © John Stanmeyer/TNC
NOAA’s GulfCorps program, in partnership with The Nature Conservancy and five local conservation corps organizations in the Gulf states, just finished its first year of action training the next generation of conservationists. The results were remarkable, restoring hundreds of acres of habitat and providing more than 50 participants with skills to take their careers to the next level. Learn More >
Do you know someone who has done great things for coastal and marine habitat conservation? The NOAA Office of Habitat Conservation and our partner, American Fisheries Society, are seeking nominations for the 2018 Dr. Nancy Foster Habitat Conservation Award by July 27 (deadline extended). Nominees must have demonstrated extraordinary dedication, innovation, and excellence to NOAA-related habitat conservation fields. Learn More about the Nomination Process >
Partnerships are a critical component of NOAA’s Habitat Focus Area (HFA) approach. They provide technical and on the ground support to advance our shared goals of improving habitat conditions for fish and coastal communities. The first HFA partner to be highlighted is the Sonoma County Water Agency with the Russian River and they model salmonid rearing habitat in the estuary. Learn More >
Are you looking for more information about how post-oil spill habitat restoration in the Gulf of Mexico works, or how to get more involved in shaping what the Gulf will look like in the future? The Trustees are holding a two-part community outreach workshop on the evening of July 18 prior to the Deepwater Horizon Trustee Council’s annual public meeting on July 19. Both events are happening in the Gulfport, Mississippi area. Learn More >
XPRIZE is soliciting design concepts to help solve a global need to save coral reefs by July 24, 2018. The Saving Coral Reefs XPRIZE is seeking urgently needed innovations that can scale to protect and restore coral reefs. XPRIZE has prioritized three broad areas for prize design: Coral Restoration, Local Coral Protection, and Climate Resilience. Overall, the prize should incentivize innovative breakthroughs in creating a world of abundant, healthy corals. Do you want to win prizes for helping design the XPRIZE to save coral reefs? Learn More >
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Restore America’s Estuaries, a long-standing partner of NOAA, has been planning, organizing, and hosting the National Summit on Coastal and Estuarine Restoration and Management for the past fifteen years. The six-day summit explores cutting-edge issues in coastal restoration and management, and includes field sessions, plenary sessions, expert presentations, and more. This biennial summit provides the largest opportunity to gather the coastal restoration and management community in robust discussions that explore critical issues, solutions, and lessons learned that face our nation’s coasts and estuaries. Learn More >
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With oyster shell in short supply for use in constructing Chesapeake Bay oyster reef restoration projects, many wonder what other materials may be suitable for these efforts. A recent NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office literature review provides an overview of previous research, describing findings on how successful things like porcelain, concrete, limestone, and oyster shells may be in forming ructed oyster reefs. The document does not advocate for any particular substrate; it simply illustrates a range of alternatives that can be used in a variety of situations. Learn More >
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