Assessment of Natural and Manmade Materials in US Artificial Reef Programs

Natural coral reefs are in a state of serious decline worldwide. The pressures of over fishing, recreational activities, environmental pollutants, and global warming have stressed these marine ecosystems to the breaking point. One of the oldest methods of augmenting natural reef systems is the implementation of artificial reefs. These projects are not as simple as dumping waste or scrap materials in offshore areas. Proper material selection is vital to produce a healthy artificial marine habitat that is completed on schedule and on budget. This Capstone Project will evaluate the most commonly used materials and provide a comparison of their strengths and weaknesses. This comparison provides a valuable tool for project managers as they begin the reef planning process.

Acoustic tracking of reef fishes to elucidate habitat utilization patterns and residence times inside and outside marine protected areas around the island of St. John, USVI

This technical memorandum describes a developing project under the direction of NOAA’s Biogeography Branch in consultation with the National Park Service and US Geological Survey to understand and quantify spatial patterns and habitat affinities of reef fishes in the US Virgin Islands. The purpose of this report is to describe and disseminate the initial results from the project and to share information on the location of acoustic receivers and species electronic tag ID codes. The Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument (VICRNM), adjacent to Virgin Islands National Park (VIIS), was established by Executive Order in 2000, but resources within the monument are poorly documented and the degree of connectivity to VIIS is unknown. Whereas, VICRNM was established with full protection from resource exploitation, VIIS has incurred resource harvest by fishers since 1956 as allowed in its enabling legislation. Large changes in local reef communities have occurred over the past several decades, in part due to overexploitation. In order to better understand the habitat utilization patterns and movement of fishes among management regimes and areas open to fishing around St, John, an array of hydroacoustic receivers was deployed while a variety of reef fish species were acoustically tagged. In July 2006, nine receivers with a detection range of ca. 350 m were deployed in Lameshur Bay on the south shore of St. John, within VIIS. Receivers were located adjacent to reefs and in seagrass beds, inshore and offshore of these reefs. It was found that lane snappers and bluestriped grunts showed diel movement from reef habitats during daytime hours to offshore seagrass bed at night. Timing of migrations was highly predictable and coincided with changes in sunrise and sunset over the course of the year. Fish associated with reefs that did not have adjacent seagrass beds made more extensive movements than those fishes associated with reefs that had adjacent seagrass habitats. In April 2007, 21 additional receivers were deployed along much of the south shore of St. John (ca. 20 km of shoreline). This current array will address broader-scale movement among management units and examine the potential benefits of the VICRNM to provide adult “spillover” into VIIS and adjacent harvested areas. The results from this work will aid in defining fine to moderate spatial scales of reef fish habitat affinities and in designing and evaluating marine protected areas.

Flexural behaviour and design of cold-formed steel beams with rectangular hollow flanges

Until recently, the hot-rolled steel members have been recognized as the most popular and widely used steel group, but in recent times, the use of cold-formed high strength steel members has rapidly increased. However, the structural behavior of light gauge high strength cold-formed steel members characterized by various buckling modes is not yet fully understood. The current cold-formed steel sections such as C- and Z-sections are commonly used because of their simple forming procedures and easy connections, but they suffer from certain buckling modes. It is therefore important that these buckling modes are either delayed or eliminated to increase the ultimate capacity of these members. This research is therefore aimed at developing a new cold-formed steel beam with two torsionally rigid rectangular hollow flanges and a slender web formed using intermittent screw fastening to enhance the flexural capacity while maintaining a minimum fabrication cost. This thesis describes a detailed investigation into the structural behavior of this new Rectangular Hollow Flange Beam (RHFB), subjected to flexural action The first phase of this research included experimental investigations using thirty full scale lateral buckling tests and twenty two section moment capacity tests using specially designed test rigs to simulate the required loading and support conditions. A detailed description of the experimental methods, RHFB failure modes including local, lateral distortional and lateral torsional buckling modes, and moment capacity results is presented. A comparison of experimental results with the predictions from the current design rules and other design methods is also given. The second phase of this research involved a methodical and comprehensive investigation aimed at widening the scope of finite element analysis to investigate the buckling and ultimate failure behaviours of RHFBs subjected to flexural actions. Accurate finite element models simulating the physical conditions of both lateral buckling and section moment capacity tests were developed. Comparison of experimental and finite element analysis results showed that the buckling and ultimate failure behaviour of RHFBs can be simulated well using appropriate finite element models. Finite element models simulating ideal simply supported boundary conditions and a uniform moment loading were also developed in order to use in a detailed parametric study. The parametric study results were used to review the current design rules and to develop new design formulae for RHFBs subjected to local, lateral distortional and lateral torsional buckling effects. Finite element analysis results indicate that the discontinuity due to screw fastening has a noticeable influence only for members in the intermediate slenderness region. Investigations into different combinations of thicknesses in the flange and web indicate that increasing the flange thickness is more effective than web thickness in enhancing the flexural capacity of RHFBs. The current steel design standards, AS 4100 (1998) and AS/NZS 4600 (1996) are found sufficient to predict the section moment capacity of RHFBs. However, the results indicate that the AS/NZS 4600 is more accurate for slender sections whereas AS 4100 is more accurate for compact sections. The finite element analysis results further indicate that the current design rules given in AS/NZS 4600 is adequate in predicting the member moment capacity of RHFBs subject to lateral torsional buckling effects. However, they were inadequate in predicting the capacities of RHFBs subject to lateral distortional buckling effects. This thesis has therefore developed a new design formula to predict the lateral distortional buckling strength of RHFBs. Overall, this thesis has demonstrated that the innovative RHFB sections can perform well as economically and structurally efficient flexural members. Structural engineers and designers should make use of the new design rules and the validated existing design rules to design the most optimum RHFB sections depending on the type of applications. Intermittent screw fastening method has also been shown to be structurally adequate that also minimises the fabrication cost. Product manufacturers and builders should be able to make use of this in their applications.

Behavioral ontogeny in larvae and early juveniles of the giant trevally (Caranx ignobilis) (Pisces: Carangidae)

Behavior of young (8−18 mm SL) giant trevally (Caranx ignobilis), a large coral-reef−associated predator, was observed in the laboratory and the ocean. Size was a better predictor of swimming speed and endurance than was age. Critical speed increased with size from 12 to 40 cm/s at 2.7 cm/s for each mm increase in size. Mean scaled critical speed was 19 body lengths/s and was not size related. Swimming speed in the ocean was 4 to 20 cm/s (about half of critical speed) and varied among areas, but within each area, it increased at 2 cm/s for each mm increase in size. Swimming endurance in the laboratory increased from 5 to 40 km at 5 km for each mm increase in size. Vertical distribution changed ontogenetically: larvae swam shallower, but more variably, and then deeper with growth. Two-thirds of individuals swam directionally with no ontogenetic increase in orientation precision. Larvae swam offshore off open coasts, but not in a bay. In situ observations of C. ignobilis feeding, interacting with pelagic animals, and reacting to reefs are reported. Manusc

Corals, fishermen and tourists

Two major anthropogenic activities that disturb coral reefs are fishing and tourism, even though coral reefs are important for both fishing and tourism. Already more than 60 per cent of all reefs worldwide are endangered. The use of explosives and poison by small-scale fishers, to supply the market for live fish for aquariums and for human consumption, cause irreversible damages to reefs. Similarly, rapid and unmanaged coastal development for marine tourism negatively affects coral reefs in many ways. Though marine parks and marine protected areas are being promoted all over the world, developing countries need assistance in establishing and assessing such reserves and for taking appropriate actions for rehabilitation of reefs. These can be accomplished through partnership projects.

The coupling of St. John, US Virgin Islands Marine Protected Areas based on reef fish habitat affinities and movements across management boundaries [Poster]

NOAA's Biogeograpy Branch, the National Park Service (NPS), US Geological Survey, and the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI) are using acoustice telemetry to quantify spatial patterns and habitat affinities of reef fishes in the US Virgin Islands (USVI). The objective of the study is to define the movements of reef fishes among habitats within and between the Virgin Islands Coral Reef Nationla Monument (VICRNM), adjacent to Virgin Islands National Park (VIIS), and USVI Territorial waters. In order to better understand species habitat utilization patterns and movement of fishes among management regimes and areas open to fishing around St. John, we deployed an array of hydroacoutstic receivers and acoustically tagged reef fishes. A total of 150 fishes, representing 18 species and 10 families were acoustically tagged along the south shore of St. John from July 2006 to June 2008. Thirty six receivers with a detection range of approximately 300m each were deployed in shallow nearshore bays and across the shelf to depths of approximately 30m. Receivers were located within reefs and adjacent to reefs in seagrass, algal beds, or sand habitats. Example results include the movement of lane snappers and blue striped grunts that demonstrated diel movement from reef habitats during daytime hours to offshore seagrass beds at night. Fish associated with reefs that did not have adjacent seagrass beds made more extensive movements than those fishes associated with reefs that had adjacent seagrass habitats. The array comprised of both nearshore and cross shelf location of receives provides information on fine to broad scale fish movement patterns across habitats and among management units to examine the strength of ecological connectivity between management areas and habitats. For more information go to: http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/ecosystems/ coralreef/acoustic_tracking.html

Estado de conservación de la ictiofauna arrecifal en sitios de buceo turístico de cuatro regiones del Archipiélago Sabana-Camagüey, Cuba.

Los peces constituyen uno de los atractivos principales en los arrecifes coralinos para el buceo turístico, por lo cual resulta necesario monitorear su abundancia y valores estéticos. El objetivo de esta investigación fue evaluar el estado de conservación de las asociaciones de peces arrecifales en cuatro de los principales polos turísticos del Archipiélago Sabana-Camagüey, Cuba en el año 2010. Se muestrearon 23 sitios de buceo turísticos en áreas adyacentes a las regiones de Varadero (5 sitios), cayos de Villa Clara (6 sitios), Cayo Coco (6 sitios) y Santa Lucia (6 sitios). En cada uno de ellos se realizaron seis réplicas de censos visuales de todas las especies de peces en recorridos lineales de 50 m de largo por 2 m de ancho, ocupando un área total de 600 m2. El puntaje más alto de conservación lo presentó los cayos de Villa Clara (37), siguiéndole en orden decreciente Cayo Coco (35), y con valores más bajos Varadero (24) y Santa Lucia (22). Los puntajes de las cuatro regiones fueron inferiores a los encontrados en otros arrecifes de Cuba y el Caribe. Los valores de Varadero y Santa Lucia se correspondieron con los de arrecifes de hábitats degradados y sometidos a explotación pesquera. En general, en la mayoría de las regiones predominaron peces de talla pequeña (<20 cm) pertenecientes a las familias Pomacentridae y Labridae y hubo poca abundancia de peces carnívoros y herbívoros de mediana (20-40 cm) y gran talla (>40 cm). ABSTRACT Fish are one of the main attractions on coral reefs for diving tourism; therefore, it is necessary to monitor their condition and aesthetic values. The objective of this research was to evaluate the status of reef fish assemblages in four tourist areas of Sabana-Camaguey Archipelago, Cuba in 2010. Twentythree tourist diving sites were sampled in adjacent areas to regions of Varadero (five sites), Villa Clara keys (6 sites), Coco key (6 sites) and Santa Lucia (6 sites). In each region, six replicated visual census of all fish species were conducted along belt transects of 50 m length and 2 m width, occupying a total area of 600 m2. The highest conservation score was obtained by Villa Clara keys (37), followed in decreasing order by Coco key (35), and with lower values Varadero (24) and St. Lucia (22). The scores of the four regions were lower than the values of other Cuban and Caribbean reefs. The values of Varadero and Santa Lucia corresponded to reefs with degraded habitats and subject to overfishing. In general, small fish (< 20 cm) from families Pomacentridae and Labridae, and low abundance of carnivore and herbivore fish of middle (20-40 cm) and large size (> 40 cm) predominated in most regions.

Gradients in the number of species at reef-seagrass ecotones explained by gradients in abundance

[EN] Gradients in the composition and diversity (e.g. number of species) of faunal assemblages are common at ecotones between juxtaposed habitats. Patterns in the number of species, however, can be confounded by patterns in abundance of individuals, because more species tend to be found wherever there are more individuals. We tested whether proximity to reefs influenced patterns in the composition and diversity (‘species density’ = number of species per area and ‘species richness’ = number of species per number of individuals) of prosobranch gastropods in meadows of two seagrasses with different physiognomy: Posidonia and Amphibolis. A change in the species composition was observed from reef-seagrass edges towards the interiors of Amphibolis, but not in Posidonia meadows. Similarly, the abundance of gastropods and species density was higher at edges relative to interiors of Amphibolis meadows, but not in Posidonia meadows. However, species richness was not affected by proximity to reefs in either type of seagrass meadow. The higher number of species at the reef-Amphibolis edge was therefore a consequence of higher abundance, rather than species richness per se. These results suggest that patterns in the composition and diversity of fauna with proximity to adjacent habitats, and the underlying processes that they reflect, likely depend on the physiognomy of the habitat.

Injuries associated with continuous miners, shuttle cars, load-haul-dump and personnel transport in New South Wales underground coal mines

In the three years to June 2005, 959 injuries associated with continuous miners (CMs), shuttle cars (SCs), load–haul–dump and personnel transport (PT) were reported by NSW underground coal mines, comprising 23% of all injuries reported. The present paper reports an analysis of the narrative field accompanying these reports to determine opportunities for controlling injury risks. The most common combinations of activity and mechanism were: strain while handling CM cable (96 injuries); caught between or struck by moving parts while bolting on a CM (86 injuries); strains while bolting on CM (54 injuries); and slipping off a CM during access, egress or other activity (60 injuries). For the other equipment considered, the common injury mechanism was the vehicle running over a pothole or other roadway abnormality causing the driver or passengers to be injured (169 injuries). Potential control measures include: monorails for CM services; hydraulic cable reelers; handrails on CM platforms; redesign of CM platforms and bolting rigs to reduce reach distances during drilling and bolting; improvements to guarding of bolting controls; standardisation and shape coding of bolting controls; two handed fast feed; improvements in underground roadway maintenance, vehicle suspension, visibility and seating; and pedestrian proximity warning devices.

Prioritizing land and sea conservation investments to protect coral reefs

Background: Coral reefs have exceptional biodiversity, support the livelihoods of millions of people, and are threatened by multiple human activities on land (e.g. farming) and in the sea (e.g. overfishing). Most conservation efforts occur at local scales and, when effective, can increase the resilience of coral reefs to global threats such as climate change (e.g. warming water and ocean acidification). Limited resources for conservation require that we efficiently prioritize where and how to best sustain coral reef ecosystems.----- ----- Methodology/Principal Findings: Here we develop the first prioritization approach that can guide regional-scale conservation investments in land-and sea-based conservation actions that cost-effectively mitigate threats to coral reefs, and apply it to the Coral Triangle, an area of significant global attention and funding. Using information on threats to marine ecosystems, effectiveness of management actions at abating threats, and the management and opportunity costs of actions, we calculate the rate of return on investment in two conservation actions in sixteen ecoregions. We discover that marine conservation almost always trumps terrestrial conservation within any ecoregion, but terrestrial conservation in one ecoregion can be a better investment than marine conservation in another. We show how these results could be used to allocate a limited budget for conservation and compare them to priorities based on individual criteria.----- ----- Conclusions/Significance: Previous prioritization approaches do not consider both land and sea-based threats or the socioeconomic costs of conserving coral reefs. A simple and transparent approach like ours is essential to support effective coral reef conservation decisions in a large and diverse region like the Coral Triangle, but can be applied at any scale and to other marine ecosystems.

Proposal to permit experimental artificial reefs inside and outside the Big Sycamore Canyon Ecological Reserve

(Document pdf contains 19 pages)

Indicators for management of coral reefs and their applications to marine protected areas

Informed planning and decision-making in the management of natural resources requires an ability to integrate complex interactions in ecosystems and communicate these effectively to stakeholders. This involves coping with three fundamental dilemmas. The first comes from the irregular pulse of nature. The second is the recognition that there are no strictly objective criteria for judging the well-being of an ecosystem. The third is posed by the quest for indicators with some integrative properties that may be used to analyze an ecosystem and impart the information to the relevant resource users. This paper presents some examples of indicators used to: 1) assess the status of a coral reef and, in particular, the state of its fisheries resources; 2) identify reefs that are most threatened by human activities; and 3) evaluate the likelihood of success of management interventions. These indicators are not exhaustive, but illustrate the range of options available for the management of coral reef ecosystems.

Indicators for management of coral reefs and their applications to marine protected areas

Informed planning and decision-making in the management of natural resources requires an ability to integrate complex interactions in ecosystems and communicate these effectively to stakeholders. This involves coping with three fundamental dilemmas. The first comes from the irregular pulse of nature. The second is the recognition that there are no strictly objective criteria for judging the “well-being” of an ecosystem. The third is posed by the quest for indicators with some integrative properties that may be used to analyze an ecosystem and impart the information to the relevant resource users. This paper presents some examples of indicators used to: 1) assess the status of a coral reef and, in particular, the state of its fisheries resources; 2) identify reefs that are most threatened by human activities; and 3) evaluate the likelihood of success of management interventions. These indicators are not exhaustive, but illustrate the range of options available for the management of coral reef ecosystems.

The use of large artificial reefs to enhance fish populations at different depths in the Florida Keys

This study showed that large prefabricated units and concrete rubble patch reefs, placed as artificial marine habitats on sand bottom, greatly enhance the abundance, diversity, and biomass of fish in an area. Densities of individuals and biomass were found considerably higher at artificial reefs than at nearby, natural, bank reefs, a result consistent with other studies. Location, depth, and vertical profile are important factors determining fish assemblages at artificial habitats in the Keys. Fishes were both produced at artificial reefs and attracted from the surrounding area. Fish assemblages at the Hawk Channel artificial reefs were considerably different from those on the offshore reef tract, particularly in terms of dominant species. Rescue of the original 1992 work in 2005 was funded by the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Prediction and Modeling Program.