1. Assessment of Ecosystem Services in Galveston Bay Area Using InVEST Models
Greg Guannel, Jorge Brenner, Joe Faries, Anne Guerry, Jennifer Proft, Jess Silver, Mike Thompson

2. Coastal Resilience Initiative
Assess Risk and Vulnerability to coastal hazards
Identify Solutions using built and nature-based infrastructure
Take Action to implement adaptation solutions
Measure Effectiveness of reducing risk

3. Galveston Bay Project
Goal: Assess Nature-based Adaptation Solutions to Climate Change
Study area: Focus in Galveston Bay
Duration: Finalized by February 2014
Partners:
Funding:
Climate-Societal Interactions Project

4. Objectives Identify real world coastal planning question
Assess capacity to provide benefits using InVEST models
Quantify benefits provided by natural systems
Envision management strategies that maximize resilience
Products:
Access to InVEST models & white paper
Ecosystem services and InVEST models training
Access to results through online Decision Support Tool

5. Setting with location of habitats and people

6. Ecosystem Services in the Bay
Habitat
Service
Beaches
Wetlands
Seagrass Beds
Oyster Reefs
Blue Carbon -
Storage and sequestration
Fisheries
Habitat (blue crabs, shrimps, …)
Food+ Habitat
Coastal Protection
Erosion
Waves and surge; Sediment loss; Runoff
Waves and surge; Sediment loss
Recreation
All around fun, Boating, Rec. fishing , Bird watching
Summary of svces in Bay

7. Quantification of Marine Ecosystem Services in Galveston Bay
1- Climate Stressors and Scenarios
2- Preliminary Outputs of Service Models
3- Conclusion

8. No trends in wave height, wind speed, temperature
Climate Stressors
No increase climatic forcing, except for SLR
No trends in wave height, wind speed, temperature

9. Climate Stressors Sea level is rising
SLR increases. Use this as scenario: 2050 and 2100 projections
Sea level is rising

10. Marsh Type Mean SLR Projection 1 m SLR Projection 2 m SLR Projection
Map of regularly flooded marsh for 2004, 2050 and 2100
Change in marsh footprint
Marsh Type
Mean SLR Projection
1 m SLR Projection
2 m SLR Projection
Regularly flooded
11%
175%
43%
Irregularly flooded
-1%
-49%
-14%
Transitional salt
-21%
177%
38%

11. Study Objectives Carbon sequestration
Fished species response to changes in coastal habitats
Coastal Protection
Water storage capacity of wetlands
Attenuation of waves by oyster reefs
Attenuation of waves by wetlands
Attenuation of surge by wetlands
Location and relative importance of recreation areas in the region

12. Carbon Stored – 2004 and 2050

13. Carbon Sequestered (Now – 2050)

14. Fisheries

15. Gain or Loss of Marsh Habitat?
Habitat Change and Blue Crab Population
Gain or Loss of Marsh Habitat?

16. Habitat Change and Blue Crab Population

17. Coastal Protection Overall – process of attenuation – get to service
Then – need information on xyz

18. Coastal Protection marshes mangroves coral reefs seagrass beds
Overall – process of attenuation – get to service
Then – need information on xyz
marshes
mangroves
coral reefs
seagrass beds
sand dunes
oyster reef

19. Surge Modeling

20. Waves

21. Wetlands Attenuate Waves
+ Levee Height

22. Wetlands Can Replace/Help Structures
interiorclip.com

23. Wetlands Can Replace/Help Structures
interiorclip.com
Surge Height
Seawall
Levee
No Vegetation
Levee Vegetation
1 m
3.5 m
0.5 m
0 m
2 m
4.5 m
2.5 m
1.2 m

24. Protect Marshes
Computed average wave power using fetch distance and SLR on top of existing bathy+20yrs of wind records – increase in Wave power from present. This is threat mostly for marsh and beaches.
bayareaobserver.com

25. Example Outputs: Oyster Reefs
bayareaobserver.com
Design Wave
H=1m; T=3s

26. Oysters to the Rescue

27. Conclusion
Quantify E.S. in Galveston using simple process based models
Tons of carbon sequestered in wetlands
Conserve wetlands = more blue crabs
Wetlands reduce waves
Oyster reefs can protect wetlands

28. Future Steps Storm surge analysis Shrimp population model Recreation
Valuation - $
mymauisunset

31. Evaluating changes in habitat using SLAMM
Gain or Loss of Marsh Habitat?