Between the adorable kitty photos, numerous hashtags, and daily checkins, I like to use my social networking skilz for the greater good.
Read this:
And if you feel that that this closure is a grave mistake, use the form letter below as a starting point. If you do make changes, please remember keep your message on point. The message we want the committee to get is 1) Remove the proposal to close NOAA's Beaufort Lab and 2) Ask the Beaufort leadership for current, correct information on funding the lab.
Email your letter to CJ.Approp@mail.house.gov by Monday March 31.
*****
Name
Affiliation
Address
I
am writing the following letter as a private citizen on behalf of myself during
off-duty hours using only personal resources.
I am not speaking for the federal government or any of its agencies in
any capacity.
I
am writing to specifically discuss the proposed closure of the NOAA Beaufort
Laboratory located in Beaufort, North Carolina.
The lab is part of the Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration and houses employees of the National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS), National Ocean Service (NOS), and National Estuarine Research
Reserve (NERR).
I urge the proposed closure of NOAA’s
Beaufort Laboratory be removed from the NOS budget. Currently, the lab houses 108 employees
from NMFS, NOS, and NERR. The costs
associated with upkeep and maintenance of the lab were inaccurate and outdated
in the NOAA explanation of budgetary items.
There were mistakes in the number of employees at the facility and
incorrect calculations used to detail the budget item. In the past several years, several activities
have been completed to keep the facility in good working condition including
the replacement of the administration building and maintenance building, replacement
of the bridge to the facility, seawall repair, improvements to the air
conditioning, and other improvements, which totaled approximately $14
million. Finally, an updated engineering
report (2014) documents that the facility is NOT structurally unsound.
Closing
the Beaufort Lab would be a tragedy. The
Beaufort Lab is a stalwart of fisheries and oceanic science that has produced
many well known scientists. The Beaufort
Lab has a good reputation for advancing science in population dynamics and
stock assessments; Gulf and Atlantic menhaden biology, movement, and
assessments; harmful algal blooms; hypoxia; pathogens; and snapper and grouper
monitoring and ecology. NOAA has
repeatedly recognized individual researchers, research teams, and the
Laboratory as a whole for the outstanding quality of scientific work
completed. Several of the area fisheries
labs have located in Beaufort due to the NOAA lab’s presence, including Duke
Marine Lab, North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries, CMAST, and the Institute
of Marine Science. The NOAA Beaufort
Laboratory is the center of productive fisheries science informing fisheries
management for the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and is currently the only NMFS lab
between Sandy Hook, NJ and Miami, FL.
Specific
items of note from each line office include:
NMFS:
Stock Assessment Science:
· The NOAA Beaufort
Laboratory provides the stock assessment science that determines how many fish
can be caught in the southeast United States.
The stock assessment
science of the NOAA Beaufort Laboratory focuses on marine fish populations that
are ecologically and economically vital to the region and nation, including
snapper-grouper and pelagic species managed by the South Atlantic Fishery
Management Council, Atlantic menhaden managed by the Atlantic States Marine
Fisheries Commission, and Gulf menhaden managed by the Gulf States Marine
Fisheries Commission. Commercial landings from the South Atlantic have been
valued at $176.5 million, supporting a centuries-old cultural way of life, and
saltwater recreational fishing in this region tops the nation for its economic
impact on sales and jobs (East FL and NC generate $5.3 billion and 47,000
jobs). Atlantic menhaden support the largest fishery on the U.S. east coast,
and Gulf menhaden support the largest fishery in the Gulf of Mexico, with a
combined value of $127.7 million.
Fishery-Independent Surveys:
· Fishery-independent
surveys collect data on fish populations for stock assessments and research,
using standardized sampling gears and methodologies.
The Southeast
Fishery-Independent Survey (SEFIS), run out of the NOAA Beaufort lab, collects
annual information on the abundance, distribution, sizes, and ages of
economically-important reef fish species like groupers and snappers on the U.S.
East Coast between North Carolina and Florida. Using fish traps and underwater
video, SEFIS determines whether reef fish species are increasing or decreasing
in abundance so fish stocks can be managed with much greater certainty. The
SEFIS staff has developed a close working relationship with fishermen in the
Carolinas due to their co location in Beaufort, NC. NOAA’s Beaufort Lab is
ideally situated, centered in the middle of substantial commercial and
recreational fishing industries and a thriving marine science community. If the
SEFIS staff was forced to move out of their survey region, ties with the
fishing industry and the marine science community would be effectively severed,
ultimately resulting in a significant disconnect between the National Marine
Fisheries Service and the communities to which they serve.
N.C. Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve:
Impacts of Closure to
the Reserve, Strategic Location, and Facility for the Reserve:
- N.C. Coastal Reserve and
National Estuarine Research Reserve staff are currently located at
the NOAA Beaufort Lab, which serves as the headquarters office for the
program.
- In 2002, Congress provided NOAA
with “… $5,000,000 for the Beaufort Laboratory for necessary repairs to
existing facilities and to construct a joint laboratory, dock, and other
facilities in collaboration with the Rachel Carson National Estuarine
Research Reserve.” (Public Law 107-77, See S.Rept. 107-42, p.
106-108.) $1.32 million was invested in NOAA ($1.28 million) and state
funds ($42,046) for the construction of a joint building at the NOAA
Beaufort Lab to serve the Reserve’s mission.
- The joint building was
completed in 2007 and was constructed specifically with the Reserve’s
education programs in mind: the auditorium regularly hosts coastal training
program workshops and the teaching classroom hosts school groups, teacher
workshops, field trips, and lectures to support K-12 Estuarine Education
Program activities.
- The NOAA Beaufort Lab is a 5-minute boat ride from the Rachel Carson component of the Reserve; this close proximity is essential for conducting Reserve activities efficiently to conduct mission-critical programming including educational programs, water quality and habitat monitoring and research programs, and stewardship of the site including species monitoring, debris clean-ups, feral horse management, and access point maintenance.
Reserve Activities at the NOAA Beaufort Lab, 2008-2013:
Education
K-12 field trips
·
177 educational
programs
·
4947 participants
Teacher workshops
·
28 teacher workshops
·
412 participants
Summer camps
·
109 camp sessions
·
921 participants
Summer public field trips
·
96 field trips
·
1123 participants
Stewardship
Volunteer service at the Rachel Carson Reserve
·
1170 volunteers
·
2873 volunteer hours
Site management
·
The NOAA Beaufort Lab
provides an ideal base from which to manage the Rachel Carson Reserve due to
its close proximity to the Reserve site, location on calm inland waters, and
boat launching facilities. Additionally, many NOAA staff conduct or have
conducted research at the Rachel Carson Reserve and are able to provide
professional perspectives that are valuable to Reserve research and
management.
Research
Research permits
·
31 research permits
issued for research conducted at the Rachel Carson Reserve
Water quality monitoring
·
Water quality
inventory and monitoring stations at Middle Marsh and Shackleford Banks, in
partnership with the National Park Service
Coastal Training Program
Coastal Training Program workshops
·
31 workshops
·
1076 participants
In
conclusion, closure of the NOAA Beaufort Laboratory would be a poor choice
scientifically, economically, and would leave a large part of the east cost
without the science that they deserve.
The numbers used to estimate the costs of maintaining the facility in
good working order were incorrectly estimated and inaccurate numbers of current
employees were provided for the budget.
In addition, the federal government has invested in this laboratory over
the long-term, and to close it now would be a gross misuse of government
resources.
Your Name
