Habitat Restoration Options for Generating Stations Virginia Dominion Power Focus for this project was based on three predominant types of aquatic habitat restoration: seagrass, oyster reef and salt marsh. Advancing specific restoration options as part of compliance plans for generating stations requires technically sound “scaling” to link impingement and entrainment losses to restoration project outcomes. Status of restoration scaling for environmental compensation in estuarine environments was reviewed.
Potential Response to Sea Level Rise This project was undertaken to assess the likelihood that coastal areas in Virginia, potentially at risk from sea level rise, would be defended in some way. For purposes of this study, coastal
localities along the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay shorelines were considered.
A Digital Environmental Sensitivity Map Atlas of the Chesapeake Bay This project generates an interactive map atlas where a collection of GIS coverages can be queried to provide information to assist with an emergency hazardous waste or oil spill incident in the Chesapeake Bay. The project identifies an initial set of coverages, develops the interactive mapping application, and delivers the application to a web site hosted through the Chesapeake Bay Program's Web site. The intent is to alert emergency responders to environmentally sensitive regions within the Bay in the event of an accident.
Erosion Vulnerability Assessment Tool EVA was designed as an online interactive map interface to illustrate the output of a highly integrated spatial data model that uses multiple data sets generated by various developers across the Chesapeake Bay region. The map outputs, which can be generated on the fly, will inform local planners where community infrastructure, cultural resources, and habitat are potentially at risk in the future.
GIS Conversion of VMRC Fisheries Management Areas This project generates a GIS database of the location of Virginia’s managed fisheries areas within the Bay. Fisheries Management Areas (FMAs) within Virginia include artificial reefs, sanctuaries, oyster reefs, and important finfish spawning grounds, to name a few. They are the cornerstone of the Federal government’s Marine Managed Areas Inventory for Virginia. FMAs are surveyed, managed, and regulated by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission. In a cooperative project between VIMS and VMRC, these data have been converted to GIS formats for integration into other state and federal aquatic management initiatives. Among them is Blue Infrastructure, which collects and disseminates aquatic resource data in an interactive GIS format accessible through the Internet. Virginia’s FMA boundaries and database have been added to Blue Infrastructure as a project deliverable. Link to project page at:http://ccrm.vims.edu/blueinfrastructure/bi_intro.html
Integration of Protection Strategies to an Interactive GIS Database This project enhances the existing online interactive GIS database known as OSCAR (Oil Spill Clean-up and Response Tool). Protective strategies are strategies that military or industrial installations file with the USCG for approval. They address protective measures planned in the event that an oil spill results from their operation. Protective strategies generally provide for the placement of booms and other devices to trap or retard the spread of oil to sensitive areas. The Coast Guard reviews and approves these strategies individually. In Virginia, no strategies have been submitted for review. Currently strategies from Baltimore district are being evaluated for inclusion. Where possible, protective strategies that are approved will be converted to a GIS theme for inclusion in OSCAR.
Oil Spill Clean Up and Response (OSCAR) OSCAR, the Oil Spill Clean-up and Response tool, was generated to assist individuals responding to oil spill accidents in the Chesapeake Bay.
