AOML's Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division


Post-Hurricane Irma Ecosystem Assessment

This page is under development and being updated frequently. Please check back often.

NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory is conducting investigations with its partners to help NOAA and its partners better understand the effects of Hurricane Irma on south Florida's coastal ecosystems. Below are a list of AOML's post-hurricane Irma ecosystem assessment activities. This list is dynamic and being updated regularly.


Post-Hurricane Irma Water Quality Assessment

NOAA/AOML, NOAA/NESDIS, USF, and University of Miami will conduct a survey of south Florida’s coastal waters on October 9-13, 2017 aboard the R/V Walton Smith. These cruises have been investigating coastal water quality in south Florida every other month since the late 1990s. This cruise is being enhanced and modified to better capture the response of south Florida coastal water quality to Hurricane Irma's passage on September 10-11, 2017. The main objectives of this cruise are to 1) Quantify the impact of Hurricane Irma on coastal water quality along the Florida Keys and southwest Florida shelf, and 2) Calibrate satellite measurements to be post-processed to provide a time-series of Hurricane Irma impacts on south Florida coastal waters. Parameters to be collected at each station or measured underway include Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients, Chlorophyll a, Dissolved Oxygen, Dissolved Inorganic Carbon, and fCO2. At select stations, we will collect samples to measure environmental DNA and Primary Productivity. We will be posting updates from the cruise as internet on board and timing allow.

Juvenile Sportfish Monitoring Survey

  • DATES: October 7-10, 2017
  • GEORGRAPHIC AREA: Florida Bay (Historic Sportfish Stations)
  • OBJECTIVES:
    • Quantify the effect of Hurricane Irma on seagrasses in our study site
    • Determine if there is any response in juvenile sportfish community
  • PARAMETERS:
    • Seagrass percent cover
    • Juvenile sportfish abundances
    • Juvenile and small adult fish collections
    • YSI exosonde water quality data
    • Chlorophyll a
    • Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients

Water Quality of Biscayne Bay

  • DATES: October 11, 2017
  • GEORGRAPHIC AREA: Biscayne Bay (Historic AOML and SFWMD Samples)
  • OBJECTIVES:
    • Quantify the effect of Hurricane Irma on water quality in Biscayne Bay
  • PARAMETERS:
    • YSI exosonde water quality data
    • Chlorophyll a
    • Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients

Coral Gables Waterway Assessment

  • DATES: September 23, 2017/September 29, 2017/October 6, 2017
  • GEORGRAPHIC AREA: Coral Gables Waterway
  • OBJECTIVES:
    • Quantify the effect of Hurricane Irma on water quality in the Coral Gables Waterway
  • PARAMETERS:
    • YSI exosonde water quality data
    • Chlorophyll a
    • Dissolved Inorganic Nutrients

Cheeca Rocks Coral Mosaics

  • DATES: TBD
  • GEORGRAPHIC AREA: Cheeca Rocks near Islamorda
  • OBJECTIVES:
    • FDEP funded AOML to take mosaics at Cheeca Rocks to monitor for coral disase, but these will also allow us to determine how Hurricane Irma impacted this reef