Monitoring and Assessment: using standard techniques to measure our progress
Monitoring and Assessment: using standard techniques to measure our progress
http://marinedebrisblog.wordpress.com/2014/01/09/monitoring-and-assessment-using-standard-techniques-to-measure-our-progress/ Monitoring and Assessment: using standard techniques to measure our progress January 9, 2014 by NOAA Marine Debris Program By: Sherry Lippiatt How do scientists and policy makers figure out if efforts to prevent trash from becoming marine debris are working? Ultimately, to evaluate any campaign, or initiative, or policy, we need to see a change in the amount of debris washing ashore or a decrease in the number of particular items, such as plastic bags, in the marine environment or Great Lakes. This change can be tricky to detect, given that we need a baseline understanding of how much and what types of debris are out there in the first place. Determining a baseline is not as simple as going to the beach once or twice and looking for trash – it requires going back to the same spot over time and recording data in the exact same way. We also need to know how environmental factors, such as winds and coastal currents, impact the way debris moves and builds up on certain shorelines. To gather this kind of information, the NOAA Marine Debris Program (MDP) developed standard techniques for assessing debris on shorelines, on water surfaces, at-sea, and in benthic environments, and the guidelines are now available for the public’s use. They were developed over several years, based on literature reviews, discussions with experts, and field testing by the MDP and contractors. http://marinedebris.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/Lippiatt%20et%20al%202013.pdf