Storm Surge Protectors Protocol

Introduction

The mission of the Storm Surge Protectors is to collect long-term data of coastal wetland vegetation that can be used to assess damage or degradation, protect key areas, and create a resilient community. What is Storm Surge Protectors? Storm Surge Protectors is a UNCW MarineQuest citizen science project, which aims to collect long-term data that will help determine the ecological condition of coastal wetlands in New Hanover and Brunswick Counties, NC. The project promotes an understanding of coastal wetlands through community engagement and direct assessment of wetland health throughout the year. By providing an opportunity for members to preform fieldwork, the project highlights the connections between a healthy ecosystem, storm resiliency, and community.

Storm Surge Protectors requires all citizen scientists who participate in this project to attend a workshop prior to completing a wetland assessment on their own. If you are completing an assessment with an individual who has attended a workshop, you may complete the assessment with the guidance of the trained individual. You will not be able to become a certified Storm Surge Protector, unless you attend a workshop. How will the data be used? UNCW MarineQuest will use the data collected by Storm Surge Protectors to make future recommendations for potential restoration sites and build environmental education materials demonstrating the connection between a healthy coastal wetland and a storm-resilient coast. How can you participate?

• Community Outreach Events • Volunteer • Workshops • Certified Storm Surge Protectors

Storm Surge Protectors Wetland Vegetation Assessment Protocol

UNCW MarineQuest & AmeriCorps

Storm Surge Protectors Protocol

Basic Information Required Materials:

• Storm Surge Protectors Data Sheet • Smart Phone with camera capability • Pen or Pencil

Recommended Materials:

• Long pants • Closed toed shoes • Long sleeve shirt • Hat/ Sunglasses

• Sun protection • Bug spray • Water • Binoculars

Safety Guidelines Storm Surge Protectors suggests citizen scientists always monitor with another person, to reduce risk associated with field assessments. When arriving to a site for an assessment, be sure your vehicle is parked in a designated parking area or an area where your vehicle is safe to park and is away from traffic. If walking to a location, follow basic safety guidelines, i.e using sidewalks, crosswalks, etc. Storm Surge Protectors recommends wearing shoes while completing an assessment, closed toed shoes are strongly recommended. There are oyster beds, and potentially sharp objects such as broken shells, and other materials that could cause injury. If injury is caused due to an oyster, clean the wound thoroughly and seek medical attention if possible. While completing an assessment be mindful of the environment. Try to take paths that are already created, avoid touching or removing any living flora or fauna. Do not leave any trash or debris behind.

From this point forward Storm Surge Protectors will be referred to as ‘SSP’

Storm Surge Protectors Protocol

Site Selection Determine what site the wetland assessment will be conducted at. To determine what site to collect data at, visit the Storm Surge Protectors website Assessment Locations page. Follow the steps below to select an assessment location. Website link: https://uncw.edu/marinequest/americorps-ssp/assessment-locations.html

Step 1: Once at the Assessment Location page, the user may scroll down to the map and zoom in on the area they plan to sample. The possible sites to choose from are marked by a color icon.

Step 2: Once an area has been selected, zoom in to see the site closer. For certain assessment locations there are multiple sites to choose from. For example, Fort Fisher State Park has two assessment sites.

Step 3: Each site has 3 points to conduct an assessment at. Each point will be marked by an icon.

Step 4: Once the site point is determined, click on the icon. The icon will have a title of the Assessment Location, Site #, Point #, and GPS coordinates.

https://uncw.edu/marinequest/americorps-ssp/assessment-locations.html

Storm Surge Protectors Protocol

Shoreline Snapshot Assessment Protocol Each location has PVC poles to mark assessment location points.

The purpose of a shoreline snapshot is to allow Storm Surge Protectors to collect photographic data assessments of assessment locations. Storm Surge Protectors aims to use the data to determine any noticeable physical changes in assessment sites. Citizen Scientists can conduct a ‘Shoreline Snapshot” for the entire assessment if they do not have enough time to complete a full rapid assessment. Follow the steps below to collect a set of assessment images that will later be transformed into a 360° photo of the site. Panoramic and other modified photos are not wanted for submission.

• Stand at the Starting Site point, found on the SSP website’s ‘Site’ page. • With your body facing the water, take a portrait oriented photo. • Move slightly clockwise so that your next photo contains 20% of the frame from your previous photo. • Continue these steps until you have completed a 360° turn. • Once the ‘Shoreline Snapshot’ has been completed, fill out the online data sheet found on the SSP website,

on the ‘Data Sheet and Protocol’ page. There is a photo upload section, where the photos taken during the ‘Shoreline Snapshot’ can be uploaded. Please name the photos in the order they were taken. Example formatting is: SiteName_1, SiteName_2, etc. Once materials have been submitted, a thank you confirmation email will be sent from the AmeriCorps Coastal Citizen Science Ambassador to the email address that was provided on the data sheet.

Storm Surge Protectors Protocol

Wetland Vegetation Assessment

Citizen scientists must follow the steps below, before beginning the vegetation assessment.

• Step 1: Citizen Scientist will start at point 1 and connect the quadrat, making the attached PVC poles look like a square.

• Step 2: Once the small PVC poles have been put together the Citizen Scientist will place the quadrat within 3 feet of the point pole.

• Step 3: Citizen Scientists will conduct a vegetation assessment of all vegetation that lies within the quadrat using the Braun-Blanquet Scale.

• Step 4: Citizen Scientist will repeat the steps at the remainder of points at the site location, taking the quadrat and returning it to point 1 when finished.

Total % coverage: Total % coverage of vegetation in the quadrat, use the Braun-Blanquet cover-abundance scale.

Braun-Blanquet Cover-Abundance Scale

Do not put 0, just leave blank if vegetation is not present.

Species BB Scale

Species BB Scale

1 2 3 1 2 3

Smooth Cordgrass Sporobolus alterniflorus Seaside Goldenrod Solidago sempervirens

Black Needlerush Juncus gerardii Pickleweed Salicornia europeae

Salt Meadow Cordgrass Spartina patens Sea Lavender Limonium perezii

Saw Grass Cladium jamaicense Marsh Elder Iva frutescens

Salt Masrh Aster Symphyotrichum subulatum Sea Oxeye Borrichia frutescens

Other Observed Vegetation: . If any vegetation that is not included on the data sheet is identified, please record what is seen in the ‘other observable vegetation sections’. If unsure about the specific vegetation species, take a photo and leave a note for the Coastal Citizen Science Ambassador to review the data collected.

Storm Surge Protectors Protocol

Marine Debris Assessment

If there is marine debris present anywhere in the wetland, record what is seen and the amount of the debris. For example, 1 plastic bag, 2 plastic spoons, 1 toy. If there is a variety of marine debris, write down each item. If comfortable, please safely remove the debris.

Assessment Data Sheet Submission

Once the assessment is completed, go to the SSP website and click on the ‘Data Sheet and Protocol’ page. Follow the ‘Data Sheet Submission’ link. This will take you to a Wufoo submission form, where the information collected during the site assessment can be entered. Please upload photos that were taken during the site assessment, on the “Shoreline Snapshot” page. Once the data sheet has been submitted, a confirmation email will be sent to the email that was provided on the data sheet.