1. Abstract Background Methods Discussion Conclusion Results The Great Bay Estuary is a beautiful place and an important environmental resource to both New Hampshire and Maine. The ecosystem services provided by Great Bay are endless and vital to both states’ economic and commercial success. The Piscataqua River which is located within the Great Bay watershed is a highly trafficked commercial shipping and recreational boat passage. The Memorial Bridge, which connects Kittery, ME and Portsmouth, NH, is in the process of advanced technology installation to make it a “Living Bridge”. With a turbine and other additional sensors, it will be able to track the structural health of the bridge but also provide another data collection site for the Piscataqua Region Estuaries. Data collection of both physical and chemical parameters is critical for understanding the quality and health of the estuary. Great Bay Estuarine Health and Measurements: Present State and Future Needs Alison Pflanz This research was supported with funding from the National Science Foundation’s grant to RETE (1132648) and the PFI: BIC Living Bridge Project (143260). Thank you to Dr. Erin Bell from UNH who has been so helpful in guiding me throughout this research project. Thank you to Paul Stacy from the Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve for his expertise and input on the topic. Thank you to Dr. Ken Baldwin and Ian Gagnon from CORE-UNH and the rest of the Living Bridge team for helping me with this project and answering any questions I had along the way. This research was supported with funding from the National Science Foundation’s grant to RETE (1132648) and the PFI: BIC Living Bridge Project (143260). Thank you to Dr. Erin Bell from UNH who has been so helpful in guiding me throughout this research project. Thank you to Paul Stacy from the Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve for his expertise and input on the topic. Thank you to Dr. Ken Baldwin and Ian Gagnon from CORE-UNH and the rest of the Living Bridge team for helping me with this project and answering any questions I had along the way. Essential that data collection is comprehensive, in both location and data type throughout the region because water quality is fragile in estuarine systems Marine life could be put in danger if water quality decreases over time especially as the shipping traffic increasing in the river Sensors and data monitoring must cover physical and chemical parameters to understand the big picture of what is happening in the estuary The Memorial Bridge is a great location for a new monitoring site because of its geography and the cutting edge technology being installed there Essential that data collection is comprehensive, in both location and data type throughout the region because water quality is fragile in estuarine systems Marine life could be put in danger if water quality decreases over time especially as the shipping traffic increasing in the river Sensors and data monitoring must cover physical and chemical parameters to understand the big picture of what is happening in the estuary The Memorial Bridge is a great location for a new monitoring site because of its geography and the cutting edge technology being installed there Data was gathered from various organizations working with Great Bay such as PREP (Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership), Great Bay NERR (Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve), etc and when and where that data was collected Identified gaps in data available and how Memorial Bridge sensor package fills the gaps in data collection due to prime location and available technology (see table below) Synthesized data availability and the needed types of data, location of collections and frequency of sampling Data was gathered from various organizations working with Great Bay such as PREP (Piscataqua Region Estuaries Partnership), Great Bay NERR (Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve), etc and when and where that data was collected Identified gaps in data available and how Memorial Bridge sensor package fills the gaps in data collection due to prime location and available technology (see table below) Synthesized data availability and the needed types of data, location of collections and frequency of sampling Sensors already planned to be used: CTD (Conductivity Temperature Depth) -From this salinity, density, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and flourometry (Photo below) Imperative to understand how to monitor conditions of estuary and with what devices to keep the estuary healthy (sensors are not uniform at all stations) Expected sensor reading of a healthy estuary increase the decision making value of data collected in the Great Bay Important to not only measure data but show to public how small changes can have huge impacts on Great Bay’s health -Public access to data that is collected (ex: website) Continued funding needed for sensors and continual future monitoring of data Imperative to understand how to monitor conditions of estuary and with what devices to keep the estuary healthy (sensors are not uniform at all stations) Expected sensor reading of a healthy estuary increase the decision making value of data collected in the Great Bay Important to not only measure data but show to public how small changes can have huge impacts on Great Bay’s health -Public access to data that is collected (ex: website) Continued funding needed for sensors and continual future monitoring of data Acknowledgements Underwater Cameras Acoustic Doppler Current Profile -From this waves, current speed and direction, tidal signal Airmar (Photo below) - Wind speed and direction, Temperature, relative humidity Suggestion for Memorial Bridge Proposed Sensors for Chemical Data Collection: SUNA V2 (Submersible Ultraviolet Nitrate Analyzer) -This probe would be placed under the surface of the water to collect information on nutrients, flourometry for color and chlorophyll and DNA probes for bacteria and other living organisms FlowCytobot -Provides real-time phytoplankton species identification and counting which contributes to productivity and biodiversity metrics Important to monitor estuary as shipping traffic is expected to increase with new Sarah Mildred Long Bridge renovation (increase in size and frequency of boats) For future work, use ArcGIS to present visualizations of estuarine data collected throughout the Great Bay A collection station at Memorial Bridge can fill the gap in available data and allow for a more comprehensive monitoring program for the estuary Share estuarine health information with the public, which is not readily available Important to monitor estuary as shipping traffic is expected to increase with new Sarah Mildred Long Bridge renovation (increase in size and frequency of boats) For future work, use ArcGIS to present visualizations of estuarine data collected throughout the Great Bay A collection station at Memorial Bridge can fill the gap in available data and allow for a more comprehensive monitoring program for the estuary Share estuarine health information with the public, which is not readily available ParametersStation IDGRBSFGRBCMLGRBGBGRBSQGRBORMemorial Bridge DepthXXXXXX Tidal LevelXXXXXX Current Direction/SpeedX Wave HeightX DensityX SalinityXXXXXX TemperatureXXXXXX ConductivityXXXXXX pHXXXXXX TurbidityXXXXXX DOXXXXXX FlourometryX Wind Direction/SpeedX Wind GustsX Air TemperatureX Relative HumidityX PrecipitationX Additional data collection is needed in Great Bay covering both continuous collection of physical parameters as well as chemical parameters The sensor package for Memorial Bridge proposed below would be extremely beneficial for the continued comprehensive monitoring of Great Bay Source: Great Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve and New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Note: The table on the right is showing data that is continuously collected over time and is collecting a physical parameter Stations GRBAP and GRBCL collect grab samples of chemical data and are not included in the table The other stations on the map not shown in the table were not included because data was not readily available or accessible Note: The table on the right is showing data that is continuously collected over time and is collecting a physical parameter Stations GRBAP and GRBCL collect grab samples of chemical data and are not included in the table The other stations on the map not shown in the table were not included because data was not readily available or accessible