ESIP overview | Interactive map | Vision statement and core principles | Data
The Ecosystem Indicator Partnership (ESIP) is a committee of the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment. ESIP is developing indicators for the Gulf of Maine and integrating regional data for a new Web-based reporting system for marine ecosystem monitoring. Activities of ESIP initially center on convening regional practitioners in six indicator areas: coastal development, contaminants and pathogens, eutrophication, aquatic habitat, fisheries and aquaculture, and climate change.
ESIP Progress and Interactions
In May 2008 ESIP's Steering Committee and Subcommittee chairs met in Boston, Massachusetts to discuss ESIP's progress and direction. Conversation focused on the priority indicators as declared by each of the six ESIP subcommittees. Questions were asked regarding the usefulness of the indicators, the availability of data, and the potential interactions between indicators. In particular, time was spent on determining likely interactions between the various subcommittees. A figure was developed to help visualize potential interactions (see below). A copy of the notes from the meeting is accessible via the link below. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Christine Tilburg ().
- Summary Notes of ESIP meeting in Boston (DOC, 84 KB)
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Interactive map of monitoring sites
The long-term goal of ESIP is to provide Web-based access to synthesized monitoring data collected in the Gulf of Maine and its watershed. Numerous government agencies and non-government organizations conduct monitoring programs in the region. The purpose of the ESIP Monitoring Map is to provide information regarding where monitoring programs exist in the Gulf of Maine. Although data can be accessed by following data links back to the parent organization, the purpose of this map is not to provide data. Instead, this map provides a means of assessing the type of monitoring data that is available in the Gulf of Maine. Data from these programs will be made available in the ESIP Indicator Map, under development now.
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Questions about how to use the ESIP Monitoring Map? Download the revised ESIP Monitoring Map User Guide 2 (PDF, 1.3 MB).
To add your program to the ESIP Monitoring Map, please contact ESIP Program Manager Christine Tilburg.
Data displayed on the ESIP Monitoring Map can be downloaded in database files or accessed via Web Mapping Services (WMS). Click here for more information.
Funding to develop the pilot version of the ESIP Monitoring Map was provided by the Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology (CICEET).
- A workshop on Development of Ecosystem Indicators for Multiple Management and Research Needs occurred November 15, 2006, at Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve in Wells, Maine. RARGOM, the Regional Association for Research on the Gulf of Maine, convened a workshop focusing on the science, development, and application of ecosystem-related regional indices. This session built on the 2004 Northeast Coastal Indicators Workshop and other related forums to examine the state of the art, define multiple management needs, and facilitate methods of comparison for indices representing a variety of Gulf of Maine habitats. The workshop touched on the chemical, physical, biological, geological and socio/economic factors that affect the ecosystem, and contrasted how indices reflect specific measures versus overall ecosystem health. Participants identified the distribution and condition of regional habitats for assessment, protection, and restoration; considered methods to combine various data types; and commented on the level of detail and specificity required to achieve index development goals. Workshop Summary (PDF, 86 KB)
- The Gulf of Maine Summit: Committing to Change was convened October 26-29, 2004, in Saint Andrews, New Brunswick. The Summit brought together coastal experts, concerned citizens, fisheries and aquaculture representatives, businesses, and leaders from around the Gulf of Maine to celebrate 15 years of partnerships, assess current environmental conditions, share knowledge, and together develop plans for future actions needed to continue improving the environmental quality of the Gulf. Tides of Change Across the Gulf: An Environmental Report on the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy (PDF, 5.4 MB) and Appendices (2.4 MB)
The Gulf of Maine regional indicators and reporting initiative is guided by the following objectives:
- Provide baseline data and information, using historical data where available, about ecosystem conditions against which future changes can be compared;
- Develop ecosystem indicators for assessing the state of the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy that have a scientific grounding and that are relevant to management issues of concern in the region;
- Provide consistent, scientifically-sound, credible information that can be used to strengthen environmental policy and guide management decisions with environmental and social implications;
- Utilize a collaborative, interactive process that involves a variety of partners and data sources; and
- Ensure that information reaches decision-makers within the Gulf of Maine and Bay of Fundy region in a manner that is useful to them.
Although decision-makers receive information from multiple sources, the Gulf of Maine indicators and reporting program will uniquely convey linkages between science, management, and ecosystem goals at a regional scale and elucidate connections between ecosystem conditions and human needs. This initiative will begin with modest short-term goals and gradually extend the scope of its effort to expand 1) the depth and breadth of management-relevant issues that are covered, 2) the level of integration across specific management issues, 3) the spatial scale of focus, and 4) the audience that is reached through products of this program. It will rely heavily on partnerships with existing government agencies, environmental organizations, community groups, business and trade groups, academic institutions, and other programs operating within the region and at national and international scales.
- A Strategy for Gulf of Maine Ecosystem Indicators and State of the Environment Reporting (PDF, 344 KB)
- Gulf of Maine Indicators: Final Report of Listening Sessions and Evaluation of Tides of Change Report (PDF, 327 KB)
- One-page summary (PDF, 32 KB) of the two documents listed above
- In Transboundary Gulf of Maine: Environmental Indicators Bring Tide of Change for Coastal and Ocean Managers (DOC, 112 KB)
- E43 - In Transboundary Gulf of Maine: Environmental Indicators Bring Tide of Change for Coastal and Ocean Managers (Abstract) (DOC, 112 KB)
Reference info for the two documents above:
CZC 2008/ZCC 2008 and CCC 2008
Managing our Oceans and Coastal for a Sustainable and Prosperous Future/GÉRER NOS OCÉANS ET ZONES
CÔTIÈRES POUR UN AVENIR DURABLE ET PROSPÈRE
Abstracts and Papers/Les résumés et les Papiers
University of British Columbia/Université de Colombie-Britannique
Vancouver, BC Canada/ Vancouver, C-B, Canada
25-29 mai 2008
Gary Matlock
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Susan Russell-Robinson
United States Geological Survey
Anita Hamilton
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Charles Strobel
United States Environmental Protection Agency
Kathryn Parlee
Environment Canada
Coastal Development Subcommittee
Fisheries and Aquaculture Subcommittee
Christine Tilburg
ESIP Program Manager
Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment
ESIP overview | Interactive map | Vision statement and core principles | Data