HABMAP:CALIFORNIA HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOM
MONTORING and ALERT PROGRAM
Meredith HowardSouthern California Coastal Water Research
ProjectUniversity of Southern California
Goals of the Regional Workshop for HABs in California Coastal Waters
• Assess feasibility of creating a statewide HAB alert network
• Facilitate information exchange among CA HAB community
• Identify the HAB-related research and monitoring programs in CA
• Identify major impediments to integrating programs and creating a HAB network
Recommendations and Outcomes of the HAB Workshop
• HAB alert network would be valuable for researchers and end users
• Compatibility among datasets and methods is main impediment
• Establish HABMAP• Initiate interactive tools, such as e-
mail list serve• Intercalibration study of methods
Technologies and Methodologies For the Detection of Harmful Algae
• National design workshop sponsored by ACT, CICEET and Florida FWC
• Review current state of technologies and methodologies for toxin detection and quantification of harmful algae species
• West coast regional study to take place in Spring 2009 in Monterey Bay
Desirable Attributes of an Integrated Statewide Network
Benefits to a Coordinated Statewide Network
• Provides context for interpretation of local or regional data
• Improved communication with end user communities
• Improved ability to understand long-term trends in HABs and factors controlling them
• Opportunity to increase interaction between the CA OOS’
Next Steps for HABMAP
• Determine the design elements needed for a statewide network
• Assess interest of the Ocean Protection Council • Seek collaboration and integration with the
OOS’ (hopefully)