Natural Resource Year in Review--2001National Park Service; U.S. Department of the Interior; arrowhead logo
HomeYear at a GlanceForewordIntroductionChapterChapter 1--Meeting the ChallengeChapter 2--Science-Based ManagementChapter 3--National Parks as LaboratoriesChapter 4--Marine and Coastal Resource ProtectionChapter 5--Managing RisksChapter 6--RestorationChapter 7--Collaboration and Public ParticipationChapter 8--Looking Ahead    Search      Archive  

  Marine and Coastal resource protection
 
Thumbnail of schematic and map detailing management zones at Dry Tortugas National Park and vicinity
Adopted in 2001, the Dry Tortugas General Management Plan designated the 46-square-mile research natural area to help meet park preservation goals. The plan also addresses expanding high-quality opportunities for experiencing the park. The complex planning project recently won the 2002 award for Outstanding Collaborative Planning Project from the American Planning Association’s federal planning division.

   Many Americans do not realize that the National Park Service manages 7,300 miles of the nation’s shorelines, encompassing a tremendous diversity of coastal ecosystems and cultural resources. When the United Nations declared 1998 the international “Year of the Ocean,” attention was focused on global preservation of marine resources. The following year, the National Park Service was called to action to undertake a leadership role on this issue. Proudly, in 2001 the Park Service significantly advanced marine protection efforts through a number of initiatives. This chapter examines these efforts, including the precedent-setting creation of a research natural area in Dry Tortugas National Park, an important model for improved conservation of marine ecosystems. The articles focus on efforts to improve the scientific understanding of marine and coastal resources, which is ultimately the key to the sustainable future of our coastal and island-based national parks.
    “Networks of no-take marine reserves–areas where extractive use is prohibited–are one of our only tools for ensuring that future generations will be able to continue to enjoy sustainable use of marine resources.”

—National Park System Advisory Board


Articles

A new era for marine resource protection at Dry Tortugas and the Florida Keys
By Brien Culhane, AICP

Coral reefs in American Samoa: A practical approach to monitoring
By Peter Craig

Evolution of coral reef monitoring at Virgin Islands
By Jeff Miller

USGS science for coastal national parks
By Rebecca L. Beavers

Shifting sands: The challenges of managing NPS coastal resources
By Julia Brunner and Rebecca Beavers


Other Developments

Award-winner Profile - Dr. Charles Roman honored

Damage assessment process bears fruit

This material is from Natural Resource Year in Review--2001, published by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, in May 2001 (publication D-2255)
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Last Updated: 7/4/2002