Great Lakes Integrated Services: Gathering Information, and Maximizing Data and Web Access Sean D. Rafferty Research Director and Associate Director Pennsylvania Sea Grant College Program Penn State University PA LEEF Meeting April 18, 2016

Outline Pennsylvania Lake Erie Watershed Integrated Water Resources Management (PALE IWRM) Plan Great Lakes Services Integration Project Data Acquisition Bluff Recession Research and Outreach WALTER Workshops Collaborators: Pennsylvania Sea Grant, Regional Science Consortium, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Erie County Conservation District, Advisory Committee Funding: DEP Growing Greener, GLRI State Capacity Funding, Pennsylvania Coastal Resources Management Program

Pennsylvania Lake Erie Watershed 508 square miles 33 municipalities; 2 counties 56 streams; 1,121 miles 40% forest cover 31% agricultural 12% developed 5% wetland 5% impervious cover

PALE IWRM Plan: Goals Land use decisions, nutrient inputs, natural resource use and disturbance, chemical and biological contaminants, and non-native invasive species all pose a threat to the 508-square mile Pennsylvania Lake Erie watershed. Integrated Water Resource Management: method for understanding, identifying, and prioritizing actions to restore and protect watersheds serves as a tool for putting an array of information from different disciplines together with the goal of making existing water planning, management, and decision-making more rationale and efficient. Goals: Assist watershed stakeholders in identifying restoration actions, promoting green infrastructure, protecting environmentally sensitive lands, and improving access to and use of water resources in the watershed Enhance the ability of agency staff to manage water resources in the watershed

PALE IWRM Plan: Content The PALE IWRM Plan summarizes and provides data to support informed decision-making regarding the management of water resources and guides users to the areas in the watershed where restoration, conservation, and/or monitoring projects are needed. summarizes existing regulatory, management, and monitoring programs; summarizes existing watershed plans; inventories available data related to natural resources, coastal development, permitted facilities and discharges, ecological systems, recreation and public access opportunities, water use, and real-time data; prioritizes restoration and conservation locations; and provides a series of maps and tables that highlight the data that was collected. Integrating this information offers a clearer picture of what we know and can be used to make more informed choices and decisions regarding the management of water resources within the Pennsylvania Lake Erie watershed. http://seagrant.psu.edu/

GL Services: Data Acquisition Past Data Acquisition Orthoimagery (2012): 6-inch resolution http://www.pasda.psu.edu/uci/MetadataDisplay.aspx?entry=PASDA&file=Lake_Erie_Watershed_Imagery2012.xml&dataset=3162 LiDAR (2012): 1-meter density http://www.pasda.psu.edu/uci/MetadataDisplay.aspx?entry=PASDA&file=Lake_Erie_Watershed_LiDAR2012.xml&dataset=3163 Impervious cover (2012) http://www.pasda.psu.edu/uci/MetadataDisplay.aspx?entry=PASDA&file=Lake_Erie_Watershed_PALE_IC_2012.xml&dataset=3160 Current Data Acquisition Orthoimagery (2015): 6-inch resolution LiDAR (2015): 0.7-meter density Hydrology (2016) Watershed boundaries (2016) Bluff crest line delineation (2016)

GL Services: Orthoimagery (1-meter)

GL Services: Orthoimagery (6-inch)

GL Services: Impervious Cover

GL Services: Bluff Recession Research and Outreach State of Knowledge Report review the current understanding of coastal-change processes; incorporate an annotated bibliography covering grey, peer-reviewed, and other literature on coastal-bluff change, management, and policy on the Lake Erie coast Bluff Recession Analysis Bluff crest lines derived from LiDAR Compare recent rates of recession (2012 to 2015) Rates by watershed and municipality Bluff Erosion Potential Index (BEPI) Tool for assessing erosion potential (high, medium, low) Based on factors contributing to bluff erosion (e.g. recession rates, vegetation, etc.) Bluff Guide BEPI State of Knowledge Provide management guidance

GL Services: WALTER Presque Isle Bay Public Advisory Committee (PIB PAC) identified the need for transparency and easy access to Great Lakes related information, including: management guidance research studies and results watershed plans restoration and protection project data geospatial data The PIB PAC suggested a “one stop web-based shop” as a means for accessing and integrating Great Lakes related information, data, services, and guidance.

GL Services: Workshops Spring 2018: WALTER Training Workshop at TREC Summer 2018: Host a Bluff Analysis Workshop at TREC