Climate Change Action Plan for the Florida Reef System 2010-2015

Outcome 3: Strengthen the scientificfoundation supporting strategicmanagement of the Florida Reef Systemthrough targeted research, long-termmonitoring, and forecasting climatechange and ocean acidification impacts.Objective 3.1: Characterize physical and chemicalchanges in coral reef environments by enhancingand refining monitoring to fill gaps in our currentobservations. This both establishes a baseline toassess climate change impacts on coral reefecosystems and reveals changes through timewhich are essential to understanding observed andforecasted impacts.••Action 3.1.1: Ensure long term, questiondrivenmonitoring of environmentalvariables linked to coral bleaching and otherclimate change impacts throughout theFlorida Reef System. Integrate monitoringresults into a coastal observing networkthat informs the evolving questionsunderlying protection and marine resourcesmanagement. (1, 3, 5)••Action 3.1.2: Examine relationshipsbetween reef fish populations and stonycoral populations and condition. (1, 2, 3, 5, 6)••Action 3.1.3: Examine calcium carbonatesaturation state and calcification rates at scaleof FRRP DRM monitoring, etc. (1, 2, 3, 5, 6)••Action 3.1.4.: Translate climate forecasts andprojections into products that are relevantand useful for improving Florida ReefSystem ecosystem management anddecision-making. Include explanations ofvariability, uncertainty and range of impacts.Objective 3.2: Develop scientific models of theFlorida Reef system to help predict its responses tophysical, chemical, and socio- economic shiftsassociated with climate change and oceanacidification, and the interactions of these globalprocesses with local stressors (e.g. pollution,over-fishing, etc).••Action 3.2.1: Determine and map areas ofhigh and low resilience to climate change(e.g. identify refugia for thermally tolerantcoral species and populations that willprovide genetic stock for recovery of thewider Reef System) in order to informmanagement efforts. (2, 6, 7)••Action 3.2.2: Coordinate research to identifythresholds beyond which climate changecauses irreversible damage to vulnerablespecies (e.g. sharks, marine turtles,seabirds, corals, fishes and plankton),habitats (e.g. seagrass, mangroves andpelagic) and processes (e.g. primaryproductivity and connectivity). (3)••Action 3.2.3: Define and model thetransitions of one habitat type into anotherthat rapid anthropogenic climate changewill bring to Florida (e.g. transition fromterrestrial to marine habitat driven by sealevel rise or transition from high relief coralreef to lower relief ). (1, 5, 8)Objective 3.3: Examine intervention and restorationmeasures that increase survivorship of coral reefspecies and enhance reef resilience to directlyreduce climate change and ocean acidificationimpacts. (10)••Action 3.3.1: Support field research thatevaluates the effectiveness and feasibility,as well as the potential unintended consequencesof novel intervention measuresdesigned to reduce stress from climatechange and ocean acidification on theFlorida Reef System (e.g. pumping in coolocean water, local reduction of acidificationfrom land based sources, etc.). (10) Supportimplementation, monitoring, and evaluationof promising intervention measures.Climate Change Action Plan for the Florida Reef System — 2010–201513