Call For Abstracts Now Open!

 CERF 2011: Societies, Estuaries and Coasts: Adapting to Change

Daytona Beach, Florida, 6 – 10 November 2011

David Rudnick, Co-Chair, General Program

David Yoskowitz, Co-Chair, Socio-economics

Linda Walters, Poster Session Chair

Bill Nuttle, Plenary and Synthesis Sessions

Bob Virnstein, Scientific Program Team - Regional Issues

Nuria Marba, Scientific Program Team - International Issues

Victor Rivera-Monroy, Scientific Program Team - International Issues

Ruth Carmichael, Workshops Chair

Susan Chalifoux, Scientific Program Database Manager

To Submit, visit the Abstracts Portal at http://cerf2011.abstractcentral.com/index.jsp

Review the program sessions at: http://www.erf.org/cerf-2011

Abstract submittal service online: 16 February 2011

Abstract submission and fee deadline: 12 May 2011

The CERF 2011 Program Committee invites you to submit an abstract for an oral or poster presentation for CERF 2011. The Federation is committed to bringing scientists and students from around the world together to exchange information and ideas about the science and management of coastal ecosystems. Our Federation conferences provide outstanding opportunities for professionals at all stages in their career for continuing education and development.

***Education Sessions and Science for Community Leaders Poster Session***

The conference limit of one first author oral or poster presentation per individual does not apply to the Education sessions and Science for Community Leaders poster session. The abstract fee will be waived for a second abstract submitted to this session. To allow second abstracts to be submitted, we invite you to submit an abstract between May 13-20 for this session rather than during the regular abstract submittal period.

Policies and Procedures for Submitting Abstracts to CERF 2011

 

The abstract submittal deadline is

May 12, 2011 11:59 PM PST/May 13, 2011 04:59 GMT

Electronic submittal: This method is highly encouraged. The abstract submittal portal is accessed via the CERF 2011 conference Web site found at http://www.erf.org. All abstracts must be received by the closing date noted above. Any abstracts received after the deadline may not be eligible for inclusion in the conference program.

Postal/Courier Mail: Under special circumstances and to encourage submittals from regions and countries with historically low submission rates, we will also accept submittal by mail. Mailed submittals must be received, not postmarked, by 12 May 2011. Please call 1-254-776-3550 (Texas, USA) or e-mail cerf2011@sgmeet.com for mailing instructions.

Abstract Fee: All submittals, including invited abstracts, must be accompanied by the abstract fee of $60USD for electronic submission or $70USD for other forms of submission.

Guidelines: Submittal guidelines and procedures are posted on the CERF 2011 conference Web site and must be followed exactly. If the guidelines are not followed, your paper will not be accepted. Questions or concerns about your submittal or the scientific program should be directed to Susan Chalifoux, Scientific Program Committee Abstract Database Manager at sue.chalifoux@unh.edu.

One abstract submittal per person

Please note that the Federation has a one presentation per person policy. This means that each participant is permitted to be the lead author or presenter on only one poster OR oral presentation. You may be co-author on other presentations. This policy was adopted to ensure that Federation conference sessions contain contributions from as many people as possible.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

CERF Will Celebrate Four Decades on 6 November 2011

Forty on Forty 

Leila Hamdan, CERF Secretary, leila.hamdan@nrl.navy.mil

Janet Nestlerode, CERF Member at Large, nestlerode.janet@epa.gov

As CERF prepares for an important birthday celebration on 6 November 2011, the first day of the CERF 2011 conference in Daytona Beach, we third-decade CERF members thought a trip down memory lane with the CERF archives is in order—to remind ourselves of how far CERF has come and to preview what lies in store for our future. The following is the beginning of a series called, “Forty on Forty.” As the title suggests, these will be articles of 40 lines in length on the events of the past forty years. Our goal for the series is to inform, entertain and pay homage to the wisdom in informality that our CERF predecessors have fought to preserve.

Bring Your Birthday Suit???

The saying goes: there are no new ideas. A review of the C/ERF news archives suggests that this saying also applies to environmental issues facing coastal and estuarine systems. In 1974, just three short years after ERF formed, the newsletter that went out to the 1,200 ERF members was a simple, bi-folded sheet of thin white paper. It lacked embellishment, illustration or color.  

There were no traces of the beaming photos of estuarine professionals in action that we are now accustomed to, and the CERF logo was little more than a line drawing. The single article, written by ERF’s second President, Perry Jeffries (1973–1975), detailed all of the day’s news, including the oft-asked question heard at the Second International Symposium on Estuaries:  

“What is this Estuarine Research Federation, anyhow?” The characteristic lack of self-importance shared by so many C/ERF Presidents of the past four decades shone through in the article when Jeffries concluded, “who cares?” In a world concerned with name recognition, branding and marketing, he proclaimed that it was not important that everyone knew what ERF was, so long as its mission was carried out through low-keyed informal conferences that brought interdisciplinary research and discussion to the forefront.  

The 1974 newsletter detailed plans for the 1975 ERF conference in Galveston, Texas, which focused on Estuarine Processes and revealed the role that ERF would play in the upcoming Congressional report on the status of estuaries in the United States. It seems that ERF’s second President and CERF’s current President, Susan Williams, were kindred spirits in that they were keen on interfacing decision makers with the scientific community through the vehicle of C/ERF and “catalyzing national goals and perspectives on significant problems.” Experts from our ranks then began the C/ERF tradition of informing policy decisions through science and innovative thinking. 

However, it is possible that our dress code stood in the way of progress in more formal circles. The terms “quirky,” “informal” and “eclectic” are meant as terms of endearment, and can describe the general fashion (yes, we are going there) of a CERF conference in any decade. Upon seeing the masses of CERFers at the Oregon Conference Center during CERF 2009, a non-CERF member commented, “Do you even know you are at a professional conference? Most of you are wearing fleece vests, as if you are about to spring into action; and I am pretty sure a third of you have utility knives on your belts.” Yes, we know we are at a conference. 

We are just following tradition. President Jeffries was fond of the informal CERF dress code and the power of sacrificing the professional facade in the name of progress in discovery. In his newsletter article, he recited the advice of one ERF mentor to a new ERF student about to give his first presentation ca. 1973, “Rubber boots are allowed here, but for goodness’ sake, take off that tie!”  

Perhaps the most poignant reminder that the coastal problems are the same then and now was the summary of the conference convened by ERF in 1974 for the Bureau of Land Management on Marine Environmental Implications of Offshore Drilling. ERF members at the conference contributed to developing a series of offshore drilling recommendations, ranging from ecological theory to the socio-economic implications of dependency on marine resources. It would be difficult to imagine a contemporary session that would fit in better with the conference theme for 2011 than this.  

So it would seem from this article that the problems of estuaries and coasts, past and present, may be similar; and the readiness of CERF to challenge them is an ageless quality. But most importantly, when action strikes, we will be dressed for success.

Exhibiting proper attire: Scott Lerberg and

Darrin Dantin leave the ties at home and

gear up for a "double thumbs up" meeting at

ERF2007 in Providence.

Photo Credit: Janet Nestlerode

CERF 2011 Special Poster Session: Science for Community Leaders

Holly Greening, CERF 2011 Conference Co-Chair/Session Lead

hgreening@tbep.org

Thanks to input and encouragement from the CERF Conference Core Team and the Daytona Beach Museum of Arts and Sciences (MOAS), Science for Community Leaders is on the way to becoming a Special Poster Session at CERF 2011! Communicating estuarine and coastal science findings and status regarding current topics to decision-makers is recognized as an important objective of CERF—and is probably one of the more difficult tasks to implement. At the Science for Community Leaders session, we plan to provide a venue to encourage interaction between our conference attendees and the Daytona Beach Museum of Arts and Sciences membership.

The poster session will be held in conjunction with a scheduled evening poster/social event. Daytona Beach MOAS members will be invited to attend and talk with our conference attendees in an informal social setting, which will be contained within the main poster hall. Invitations will also be sent to other local and regional leaders (nearby National Estuarine Research Reserve directors, National Seashore director, Florida Water Management officials, college presidents, etc.). The invitees would be initially welcomed at the special poster area, and then would be encouraged to view posters throughout the poster hall and talk to all of the presenters available that evening.

MOAS leaders are enthusiastic about the upcoming CERF conference in Daytona Beach; CERF 2011 will be the largest scientific conference the city has hosted! MOAS sees this as an opportunity to promote the role of arts and science in the community. The MOAS membership roster includes many local decision-makers and successful business leaders, who actively support the arts and sciences in the Daytona Beach area. They are interested in partnering with  CERF 2011 to create an event that engages their membership and our scientists in a meaningful and enjoyable way. The Director and Curator of MOAS also believe that their members would be interested in being invited “inside” the conference and in interacting with CERF’s scientists and managers as they work.

Contributed posters are encouraged on important coastal topics (oil spill impacts, hurricanes, marine spatial planning, urbanization, climate change, etc.) or case studies addressing these and other topics of interest to coastal community leaders.

For this special poster session, the CERF Conference

Team will waive the ban on being the primary author on only one presentation; the abstract fee for this poster session is also being waived. The CERF Conference Team will provide guidance on poster presentations for the public (more pictures and graphics, less words).

If you are interested in finding out more or participating in this Special Session, please contact CERF 2011 Co-Chair Holly Greening at hgreening@tbep.org. We welcome your ideas and comments—and look forward to a lively new venue for communicating coastal and estuarine science to local decision-makers.

CERF 2011: Exploring the Daytona Beach Area

Airboat tours of the Upper St Johns River

Several different companies run large airboat tours through the beautiful Upper St. Johns. All are very reputable companies and boast a wide variety of wildlife sightings…particularly the infamous FL gator. The tours have restaurants/fish camps, gift shops, and wildlife exhibits on site.

-Black Hammock Adventures is on Lake Jessup and will explore every creek and cranny for wildlife. Tours run about $35 for an hour with 12 people to a boat…can be longer.

http://www.theblackhammock.com/ 

-Lone Cabbage Tours is on Lake Poinsett and will glide through the grassy marshes of the St. Johns. Tours run about $40-65 depending on length of time and size of boat.

http://twisterairboatrides.tripod.com/rides.htm 

-Loughman Lake Lodge is on Loughman Lake and will tour the St Johns River and the grassy wetlands. Tours run about $40 for VIP private services.

http://airboatridesatloughman.com/the_best_airboat_eco-tour_in_central_fl 

-Central Florida Airboat tours is a smaller operation boasting close-up tours deeper into the swamps. Tours run about $40 per hour.

http://www.centralfloridaairboattours.com/index.htm 

Gamble Rogers Music and Nature Festival

Available on Sunday only, you can spend the day at a regional folk festival at Gamble Rogers State Recreation Area. 

Nestled between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway, this windswept park is named for Florida folk singer Gamble Rogers. Gamble Rogers State Park is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Intra coastal waterway to the west. This 144 acre park offers coastal camping, picnicking, swimming, fishing and scenic relaxation.

Gamble Roger was a legendary folk hero who drowned trying to save someone in the ocean in 1991. He refined his storytelling craft, unique in its colorful cast of characters, settings, and philosophical humor and has been compared to that of Mark Twain and Will Rogers.

http://www.abfla.com/parks/GambleRogers/gamblerogers.html 

http://www.floridastateparks.org/gamblerogers/default.cfm 

For kayak and canoe lovers….

Here’s a great link to appeal to all of you kayak and canoe lovers…for adventurers on your own. Scroll down and read some excellent reviews of regional paddles.

http://spacecoastpaddling.com/index.html

Kayak Sights.

Photos Credit: Marilyn Sullivan

So, You Think You Know Daytona Beach…

(check your answers below)

1.     Daytona Beach is between two noteworthy locations in Florida.  The northern site is ‘old world,’ while the southern site is ‘new world.’  What are these two? 

2.     Beach Street is famous in Daytona Beach. After what beach is it named? 

3.     Who was the famous 20^th century tycoon whose mansion remains in use today in the Daytona Beach area? 

4.     What kind of art comprises a major collection in The Museum of Arts and Sciences? 

     

5.     What endangered animal lives in the Daytona Beach area during the summer months? 

6.     How many rivers are in the Daytona Beach area?

7.     What mammals can be seen from the shores of Daytona Beach during the winter months?

8.     What sports group has headquarters in Daytona Beach?

9.     The town of Ponce Inlet, at the southernmost tip of the Daytona Beach area, houses what important structure?

10.  The Daytona Beach area consists of seven cities and towns. What are the names?

11.   Patches of sand along Daytona Beach look orange.  What causes this?

12.  How long is Daytona Beach?

Answers:

        1. ST. AUGUSTINE and CAPE CANAVERAL
2.     MR. BEACH …and note that this street is not even close to the beach
3.     JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER
4.     CUBAN ART, one of the largest collections outside of Cuba
5.     MANATEE
6.     THREE            (1. Halifax, a part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway; 2. St. Johns, approximately 300 miles long and flowing north; 3. Tomoka, designated as a manatee sanctuary)            
7.     MIGRATING RIGHT WHALES
8.     LADIES PROFESSIONAL GOLF ASSOCIATION
9.     FLORIDA’S TALLEST LIGHTHOUSE
10.     ORMAND BEACH, DAYTONA BEACH, DAYTONHA BEACH SHORES, PONCE INLET, PORT ORANGE, SOUTH DAYTONA and HOLLY HILL
11. COUQINA SHELL FRAGMENTS THAT HAVE ABSORBED THE RUSTY COLOR OF
IRON OXIDE
12. TWENTY-THREE MILES

9.     

Strong science, fantastic venue, and exciting wildlife...

CERF 2011 Is Shaping Up

Jim Fourqurean, CERF 2011 Conference co-Chair

jim.fourqurean@fiu.edu

Holly Greening, CERF 2011 Conference co-Chair

hgreening@tbep.org

(originally published in Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation Newsletter, October 2010, Vol. 36, No. 3, p. 11)

I hope that you all are eagerly anticipating the upcoming CERF 2011 meeting “Societies, Estuaries and Coasts: Adapting to Change.” The scientific program committee, headed by David Rudnick and David Yoskowitz, is working diligently to continue the tradition of strong, disciplinary science sessions, as well as to put emphasis on the nexus of science, social science, management and policy, that will be the key to understanding and adapting to changes on the horizon for the coastal zone. We had a strong response to our calls for special sessions proposals, and the meeting leadership team will be working over the next few weeks to meld these session proposals into a coherent and exciting scientific program.

We are also working on ways to improve the flow of information from the scientists and managers, who make up the membership of CERF, to policymakers. We are particularly excited about a new initiative called “Science for Community Leaders,” in which we will bring together local and regional policymakers with CERF members around a special poster session designed to educate these policymakers about the science and consequences of changes in the coastal environment.

The venue for the meeting looks fantastic! The Ocean Center at Daytona Beach is a perfectly sized conference center for a CERF meeting: it is large enough to accompany the expected 1500+ attendees for the meeting but not so huge that we feel lost in the facility. The session rooms, poster/exhibit area, and special purpose rooms are ideally suited for a meeting like ours. Plus, the location is hard to beat – it is directly across the street from Daytona Beach, one of the premier surfing beaches along the

Atlantic Coast. Restaurants, pubs, and shopping nearby – along with the beach itself – will provide plenty of opportunity for distraction when you have absorbed all of the coastal science, management, and policy information you can for the day.

Local coastal and estuarine scientists are pitching in to provide a feel for the environments and culture of the area. Our field trip team is putting together a diverse set of pre-meeting excursions to local coastal ecosystems. November is a great time to be outdoors in central Florida; and there will be plenty of opportunities to get out into the diverse coastal environments to bird watch, spot wildlife, and learn about environments you have only read about. We have also called on local expertise on wildlife of a different sort to work on evening entertainment at the meeting.

For those of you wondering what to expect from the weather in Daytona Beach in November, the answer is, if climatology is a good guide, delightful!

The average daytime high in November is 75°F (24°C for our international attendees) with nighttime lows of 56°F (13.5°C). The sun shines at least 2/3 of the days of the month, on average, with rain falling only seven days of the month. This means it will be pleasant walking around and enjoying all that the area has to offer.

From our perspective, the CERF 2011 meeting in Daytona Beach looks like it will extend the long list of scientifically enriching, professionally important, and personally relaxing CERF meeting of the past. Please hold the dates, 6-11 November 2011; and we look forward to seeing old colleagues and making new ones on the beach in Daytona!

Bridging Environmental and Human Dimensions

Can CERF Help Find Solutions?

David Yoskowitz

Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies,

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi

david.yoskowitz@tamucc.edu

Robert Costanza

Institute for Sustainable Solutions,

Portland State University

robert.costanza@pdx.edu

(originally published in Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation Newsletter, October 2010, Vol. 36, No. 3, p. 7, 25)

  

There is little doubt that we have a love affair with our coasts, to the point that already stressed ecosystems and infrastructure will become more so, even without considering the potential impacts of climate change. In 2000, the estimated world population was 5.7 billion, with 2.3 billion living within 100km of the coast. While it is expected that the proportion of the population (40%) living along the coast will not change over the next fifteen years, there will be 600 million more people in this traditionally sensitive area as world population climbs to 7.4 billion by 2025.1 That is equivalent to dropping the population of two United States’ into the world’s coastal zone. Of greater concern are the low elevation coastal zones (10 meters or less), which are 2% of the world’s land area and contain 10% of the global population. More dramatic is the fact that developing countries have a higher share of their population (14%) in this zone than developed countries (10%).2 In the U.S., coastal counties account for almost one-third of the population. The dramatic increase in coastal population for the Gulf of Mexico between 1960 and 2008 was 150%. In that same time period, coastal population grew 110% in the Pacific coast.3 The impact of future population growth will have a disproportionate impact on the environment as lower quality resources are utilized,4 and our coast will bear an unusually large part of the environmental degradation. 

  Our coasts are headed for a shipwreck, and it is critical that decision makers in both the private and public sectors take into account all the benefits and costs in order that those decisions are effective. Environmental decision-making cannot be the domain of one discipline and still be effective. Those decisions must be supported by not only the natural sciences but social/cultural considerations, political realities and economic science. Right or wrong, a number of decisions that impact our environment are based on their monetary costs and benefits. It is critical that the socio economic values of our coastal resources are accounted for when decisions are being made.

  The Deepwater Horizon blowout highlights concerns about what may happen to our coastal and marine ecosystems and how those changes can affect us. This unfortunate event provides an opportunity to once again bring to light the critically important interconnectedness between the well-being of the natural environment and human well-being. The traditional market economy impacts were the focus shortly after the beginning of the event, and included primarily the commercial fishing and tourism industries. 

At its peak, 36% of Gulf of Mexico federal waters were closed to commercial fishing.5 This sector alone supported around 176,000 jobs in 2008.6 Tourism, on the Gulf coast, sustains over 400,000 jobs, with visitor spending reaching $34 billion (2008).7 

   At least as important to our well-being are the non-traditional goods and services we have come to rely upon without formally recognizing them. Early on after the blowout had begun, it was estimated that the value of the goods and services provided by coastal marsh only, which may have been potentially impacted by oil, was $1.2 billion a year.8 It has been calculated that the greater Mississippi River Delta ecosystems may provide in the range of $12-47 billion annually in benefits to people, including storm and flood protection, water supply and quality, and recreation and fisheries.9 To provide perspective, the gross domestic product for the State of Louisiana was $222 billion in 2008.10 The most conservative number from above ($12 billion) would make the services provided equal to 5% of the state’s economy, equivalent to its health care and social assistance industry.

   There has been a major shift over the last two decades of how we look at ourselves in relation to the environment. To a greater degree we understand that humans are part of the surrounding ecosystem and not separate from it and therefore have an increased sense of responsibility. Given its mandate, what role can CERF play in bridging the environmental and human dimensions? With CERF 2011, the board has made the conscience decision to begin to incorporate the social and policy sciences into not only the program but also the Federation at large. The momentum that is building must continue beyond the next biennial meeting. The Federation, given its diverse current and future membership, has the opportunity to elevate not just the academic practice of multidisciplinary research but the application of that work to make more effective policy.

   One way to do this is for CERF and its members to engage more directly with coastal stakeholders. Sponsoring workshops and short courses aimed at solving realworld problems can go a long way in this direction. These solutions-focused events can occur both in conjunction with the biennial meeting and at other times. It is also important that we communicate more broadly and more effectively, both across disciplines and between the science, policy, and various stakeholder communities. The new journal/ Web site, Solutions (www.thesolutionsjournal.org), is trying to do just that, incorporating a variety of new techniques to encourage dialog and consensus-building on real, integrated solutions. Additionally, utilizing the Federation’s own journal, Estuaries and Coasts, to publish more work dealing with the social and policy issues of our coasts will also help open up the discourse.

Time is running out. We know much about the problems and need to now focus on applying what we know toward finding solutions. CERF and its members can help lead the way.

ENDNOTES

1 Duedall, I.W. and G. A. Maul, 2005.  Demography of Coastal Populations 

in Encyclopedia of Coastal Science, edited by Maurice L. Schwartz,  Springer, Netherlands. pp. 368-374.

2 McGranahan, G., D. Balk, and B.  Anderson. 2007. “The rising tide: 

assessing the risks of climate change and human settlements in low elevation coastal zones.” Environment and  Urbanization 19:17-37.

3 Wilson, S.G. and T.R. Fischetti, 2010.  Coastline Population trends in the

United States; 1960 to 2008. U.S.  Department of Commerce, U.S. Census

Bureau. 

4 Ehrlich, P. 2010. The MAHB and the  BioScience Gang. BioScience Vol. 60

 No. 3, pp:170-71.

5 “Deepwater Horizon/BP Oil Spill: Size  and Percent Coverage of Fishing Area Closures Due to BP Oil Spill”. NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Regional Office. http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/ClosureSizeandPercentCoverage. htm. Retrieved 2010-09-02. Table.

6 “Fisheries Economics of the U.S., 2008” NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Science and Technology.  http://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/st5/publication/fisheries_economics_2008.html. Retrieved 2010-09-02.

7 Oxford Economics. “Potential Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill on Tourism”. Retrieved 2010-09-02.

8 McKinney, L. and D. Yoskowitz, 2010.  The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill –Putting a Price on the Priceless. Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies.

9 Batker, D. , I. de la Torre, R. Costanza, P. Swedeen, J. Day, R. Boumans, and K. Bagstad, 2010. Gaining Ground.  Wetlands, Hurricanes, and the Economy: The Value of Restoring the Mississippi  River Delta. Earth Economics. 100 pages. 

10 Gross Domestic Product by State,  Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce. http://www.bea.gov/regional/gsp/. Retrieved 2010-09-16. Gross domestic product is a measure of a country’s or state’s overall economic output but not necessarily a good measure of the its standard of living.